What's on | Edinburgh International Book Festival

Welcome to the Book Festival

Set in a specially created tented village in the heart of Edinburgh, the Edinburgh International Book Festival offers something for just about every age and interest, bringing readers and writers together for inspiration, entertainment and discussion.

The Book Festival welcomes around 900 authors from over 60 countries in more than 800 events for adults and children each year including novelists, poets, scientists, philosophers, sportsmen, illustrators, comic creators, historians, musicians, biographers, environmentalists, economists, Nobel and Booker prize-winners and many more besides.

The 2020 Book Festival takes place from 15-31 August.

Full details of the programme, including authors, themes and events with BSL interpretation and captioning will be available here from 18.30 on Thursday 11 June.

Request a brochure for the 2020 Festival

In the meantime, you can enjoy Festival photographs, listen to or download free podcasts of event recordings and watch exclusive interviews and Festival highlights from past Book Festivals here on our website, on our YouTube channel and on itunes.

Tom Fletcher event, December 2019

Assembly Rooms for Tom Fletcher: © Robin Mair

Leah Boleto and Tom Fletcher: © Robin Mair

Book Festival staff at Assembly Rooms for Tom Fletcher: © Robin Mair

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Look, Listen & read

Outriders Africa: Meet Emmanuel Iduma and Eliza Anyangwe | Edinburgh International Book Festival

In 2017 the Edinburgh International Book Festival supported ten writers to travel on journeys across the Americas. This was Outriders – an ambitious exploration of the idea that in shifting, disorienting times, a writer can make a unique contribution to our understanding of the world, giving voice to untold stories and providing new insights on contemporary geopolitical contexts. Outriders will again see ten writers explore a region of the world – this time in Africa. Each pair of writers will embark…