Born in Spain in 1927 and exiled in Mexico during his adolescence, Segovia expressed surprise at being awarded this prestigious prize. In his acceptance speech, the writer reflected on his condition as a man forced to adopt a new homeland.

"Since I was born, I have always been inside and apart from places, groups, families, communities where I've lived. Being an orphan and living in exile are the most easily recognizable manifestations of this peculiarity," Segovia said.

"But these are just two among many other examples. If I've been uprooted, how can I not also feel more or less uprooted from the soil of shared thought in the world and the era in which I've lived?"

Segovia said he was dubious of the automatic benefits brought by market economies, of the "Darwinist" ideology in politics and the need to base all human activity on competitiveness.

Segovia's work, which consists of some 50 books, has mainly been published by companies less well known by the general public.

Among the esteemed authors in attendance at the opening day of the book fair were Peru's Mario Vargas Llosa and Nobel Literature Laureate Toni Morrison of the United States.

The Guadalajara event is considered the largest book fair in the Spanish-speaking world, attracting representatives of some 1,580 publishing houses from 38 countries.

Between 450,000 and 500,000 people, including 15,000 professionals of the book-publishing industry, are expected to attend the fair, which runs through Dec. 4.