2026 International Children’s Book Festival

Every Story Starts a Journey – Discovering the World Through Stories

Stories bring people together. They open up new perspectives, spark curiosity, and invite us to see the world through different eyes.

The International Children’s Book Festival views children’s literature as a bridge between people, languages, and cultures. Renowned authors, illustrators, and artists invite you to discover stories, ask questions, and get creative yourself—through readings, workshops, storytelling sessions, and discussions.

Look forward to readings with Margit Auer, Isabel Abedi, Efua Traoré, and Isabel Pin; workshop discussions with illustrator Andrea Wandinger; live drawing sessions; bilingual storytelling with Kathleen Rappolt and musician Erik Sjøholm; musical readings; shared reading sessions; translation workshops; philosophical workshops; and a bilingual book fair.

Whether it’s fantasy, friendship, nature, science, or social issues—the festival showcases how children’s literature conveys complex topics in a sensitive, intelligent, and inspiring way. Multilingual events and encounters with international guests make the festival a vibrant place for discovery, participation, and reflection.

International Children’s Book Festival Goes to Schools

Our goal with the festival is to reach as many children as possible. And where better to do that than at school! In addition to the festival’s public program, we therefore offer a separate school program that classes in the Rhine-Neckar metropolitan region can attend. If you’re interested, please register by email at: kibu-festival@dai-heidelberg.de

The generous support of the Manfred Lautenschläger Foundation makes the International Children’s Book Festival and the coming together of children, families, and a wide variety of voices possible.

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all our partners for their dedication and trusting collaboration: