The YA Book Prize is run by The Bookseller magazine in partnership with Edinburgh International Book Festival. As part of this partnership, authors shortlisted for the YA Book Prize 2026 will feature in events at the festival in August, as well as a special event to announce the winner. 

Edinburgh International Book Festival is a registered charity, a non-profit making organisation. Each August, its children’s programme invites some of the most exciting authors and illustrators from across the globe to take part in over 150 events, activities and workshops for children, families and young adults.  

When the partnership was announced, the festival’s children and schools programme director Rachel Fox, said: "We are very excited to be working with The Bookseller on the YA Book Prize, which celebrates great books for young adults as we are always keen to connect with this audience and champion the talented authors who write such brilliant books for them. The book festival has been strongly supportive of YA writers for a number of years, and the partnership with The Bookseller is an excellent way to further strengthen our commitment to them and their teen readers going forward."

Caroline Carpenter, The Bookseller’s children’s editor and deputy features editor and chair of the YA Book Prize, added: "The Edinburgh International Book Festival is one of the world’s leading literary events and we are looking forward to working with the team there on the YA Book Prize. As the prize enters its eighth year, this partnership will allow us to reach new audiences and grow its impact, making it bigger and better than ever."

The Edinburgh International Book Festival will run from 15th to 30th August 2026 at Edinburgh Futures Institute. The full programme will be announced in June 2026 and all details can be found at the festival’s website.