Publishers and book stores in Venezuela are trying to survive the country's long economic crisis and sky-high inflation by selling used texts and a handful of new books from Venezuelan writers, booksellers said. A drastic reduction in the number of publishers, imprints and bookstores began more than decade ago, as the government put in place currency controls, rules about the distribution of school textbooks and import restrictions. Though economic activity enjoyed a slight recovery in 2021 and 2022 as the government eased currency controls, leading many to use dollars instead of the hugely-devalued bolivar, the respite was brief, with inflation reaching 398% year-on-year in July.