Frankfurter Buchmesse 15 - 19 October 2025

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Frankfurt Kids

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Frankfurt Kids brings you an exciting lineup with current topics in Children's and YA literature

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Once again, Children's and young adult literature is one of the focal points of Frankfurter Buchmesse 2025. In addition to German-language publishers with the latest new releases and international publishers, the Young Adult and New Adult sections are also represented in various areas of the exhibition grounds.
In addition to the exciting specialist programme with current topics in children's and young adult literature, such as anime, film and games, there is another highlight: the Frankfurt Kids Conference on the Wednesday of the fair, 15 October. 

The Frankfurter Buchmesse in October 2025 - an unmissable event for anyone interested in books for children and young people!
How come?
Around 600 independent international children's and YA book publishers will be exhibiting at our fair, and the national stands will also be presenting numerous companies from this segment.
For five days, Frankfurter Buchmesse offers the world's largest marketplace for rights and licence trading: for translations as well as for film, tv and games adaptations, and for the general licensing business.
During the trade visitor days (Wed-Fri), a specialist programme on key industry topics invites visitors to build up their expertise and to network.
On Friday, the Frankfurter Buchmesse Kids Festival starts in the city of Frankfurt, with a join-in and read-aloud day in local libraries.
On the weekend, the Kids Festival will also feature events at the exhibition grounds: in the Congress Centre, you can experience your favourite children's book authors up close at readings and signing sessions, while numerous children's and YA book events will once again take place in the Frankfurt Studio.
Many exhibitors will be offering books for sale, often on all days of the fair. 
In short - Frankfurter Buchmesse offers five intensive days for interested trade visitors and the general public alike, to discover trends and innovations in children's and YA literature and to exchange ideas. There are children's and YA book publishers in almost every exhibition hall:

Kids-Hallenplan_EN_2025-08
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Hall plan Frankfurt Kids

Download the latest hall plan as a PDF here.

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Save the date: Frankfurt Kids Conference 2025, 15 October 2025

This year's Frankfurt Kids Conference is all about "Children’s Books in a Fragile World", featuring Axel Scheffler as a keynote speaker. 

We live in a fragile world. Illiteracy is on the rise as are attacks against children's books and their creators or publishers. Different actors from across the book sector will discuss how they are making sure that no child is left behind in this fragile world and how they are fighting back against some of the many different forces trying to censor or restrict children having access to a diverse range of books that reflect the world they live in, with takeaways that can possibly be adapted or used in other contexts, countries, and languages. 

Educating (and entertaining) future generations remains more important than ever, which is why Frankfurt Calling continues to shine a spotlight on children's books, following and building upon last year's conference focused on responsibility.

This year’s conference—once again be moderated by Lawrence Schimel—will feature a keynote by renowned illustrator Axel Scheffler and two panel discussions with experts and publishing professionals such as Jon Yaged, Chief Executive Officer of Macmillan Publishers and the Ukrainian writer, translator and editor Kateryna Mikhalitsyna.

The event will take place from on Wednesday, 15 October 4.00 till 6.30 pm at Centre Stage Hall 4.1/B 68, followed by a networking reception. Admission included with exhibitor and trade visitor ticket.

Sessions

Look forward to the following speakers

Further events

Serafina Logo

The Deutsche Akademie für Kinder- und Jugendliteratur (German Academy for Children’s and Young Adult Literature) in collaboration with Börsenblatt and Frankfurter Buchmesse, is once again presenting the prestigious Serafina Young Talent Award for Illustration. The award, which is endowed with 2500 euros, honours outstanding artistic achievements by young illustrators in the field of children’s and young adult books.

The Deutsche Akademie für Kinder- und Jugendliteratur (German Academy for Children’s and Young Adult Literature) in collaboration with Börsenblatt and Frankfurter Buchmesse, is once again presenting the prestigious Serafina Young Talent Award for Illustration. The award, which is endowed with 2500 euros, honours outstanding artistic achievements by young illustrators in the field of children’s and young adult books.

Award ceremony: Wednesday, 15 October 2025

The award ceremony will take place during Frankfurter Buchmesse – a highlight for the publishing industry and a platform for young creative voices.

Further information on the competition and conditions of participation is available on the website of the Deutsche Akademie für Kinder- und Jugendliteratur.

Go to the website

Masterclasses

AI in children's book publishing – using it sensibly, responsibly and practically

AI in children's book publishing – using it sensibly, responsibly and practically

Thursday, 16 October 2025
4:30 – 5:30 p.m. at Frankfurt Studio

Susanne Ospelkaus and Dr Christian Homma will use practical examples to demonstrate how AI can be used to improve everyday publishing workflows.

Ein Blick auf Südostasien

By setting a focus on Southeast Asian children’s book markets this year, we aim to support the rights business in children's books from and to countries of that region, providing information on the various territories and initiating business contacts.

By setting a focus on Southeast Asian children’s book markets this year, we aim to support the rights business in children's books from and to countries of that region, providing information on the various territories and initiating business contacts.

Thursday, 16 October 2025
Asia Stage Hall 5.1/A 75

12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.: Networking Lunch – Get a taste of Southeast Asia
4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.: From Bangkok to Manila – Explore Southeast Asian children‘s books markets  (aimed at publishing professionals) 

Studio Pop-up

The Academy for Children's Media, in cooperation with the Frankfurt Book Fair, invites you to a panel discussion on Anne Gröger's Hey, ich bin der kleine Tod (Hey, I'm Little Death).

The Academy for Children's Media, in cooperation with the Frankfurt Book Fair, invites you to a panel discussion on Anne Gröger's Hey, ich bin der kleine Tod (Hey, I'm Little Death).

From the development of the material in 2015/16 to script funding and a debut children's novel to a stage adaptation – filming is expected to begin in the summer of 2025. We talk to author Anne Gröger and editor Natalie Tornai about strategies for format changes, creative continuity and the growth of a story across multiple media.

Friday, 17 October 2025
Exhibition grounds, Frankfurt Studio Pop-Up

Duration: approx. 35 minutes discussion + approx. 15 minutes Q&A, followed by alumni networking
Moderator: Hanna Reifgerst, member of the academic management team at the Academy for Children's Media

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Impressions of Frankfurt Kids at #fbm24

Bühne
Besucher fotografiert mit Smartphone
Besucher*innen
Publikum

This was Frankfurt Kids Conference 2024

Paving the Way for the Future: Responsibility in Children’s Book Publishing 

International experts discussed the topic of ‘responsibility’ that publishing books for children and young adults entails. At the end, moderated breakout sessions on Sustainability, Accessibility/Disability, POC/Diversity and Creator's Responsibility offered the opportunity to discuss topics more in depth.

The conference was moderated by award-winning author and translator Lawrence Schimel, Bestselling author Cornelia Funke joined us virtually for the Keynote.

The speakers at Frankfurt Kids Conference 2024

  • Cornelia Funke
  • Ken Wilson-Max
  • Ani Rosa Almario
  • Paolo Canton
  • Dominique Raccah
  • Daniela Filthaut
  • Karine Pansa
  • Carolina Ballester
  • Ivan Fedechko
  • Åsa Bergman
  • Lawrence Schimel
  • D'Avellonne van Dijk
  • Loulou Drinkwaard
  • Thilo Krapp
  • Rachel Martin

Rewatch events

Frankfurter Buchmesse 2023

Media library

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