The 14th Book Arsenal reveals curators and event dates

The 14th International Book Arsenal Festival will take place from May 28 to May 31, 2026. The festival will feature a program and a book fair on the first floor of the Old Arsenal building.

The focus theme of the festival will be curated by human rights activist, military serviceman, public figure, and journalist Maksym Butkevych. Writer, military serviceman, and volunteer Andriy Lyubka will serve as curator of the Writer’s Program.

“We are working hard on Book Arsenal-2026 and believe that it will be exceptional. I am grateful to Maksym and Andriy for their trust and willingness to work with us to make Book Arsenal exactly what we love it for: intelligent, relevant to its time, intellectually profound, and aesthetically captivating. We will do everything possible to achieve this and, if necessary, even a little bit of the impossible. Because Book Arsenal is the festival that gives us all hope and encourages us all to think, work, and experience the joy of being, even in difficult times,” said Olesia Ostrovska-Liuta, Director General of the Mystetskyi Arsenal.

The Book Arsenal program, which will be developed by invited curators, will include events within the Focus Theme of the Festival, the Main Program, the Writer’s Program, the Kids and Teens Program, the Professional Program, as well as performative and musical events. Exhibition projects and special programs will also be present.

The event will also host the annual Book Arsenal Fellowship Program for international publishers and literary agents, aimed at fostering global collaboration with Ukraine’s book industry by creating direct professional connections and introducing participants to the local literary and publishing landscape. Applications close on March 9, 2026.

Publishing houses and bookstores are invited to be sales operators at the exhibition-fair. Bookstores will present selections of books in foreign languages.

Applications for stand participation in the fair will be accepted until February 28, 2026. Detailed information about the conditions for submission is available on the festival website.

In 2025, the 13th Book Arsenal lasted from May 29 to June 1. At that time, it was visited by about 30,000 people. 

RELATED: Book Arsenal launches open call for 2026 Fellowship Program

Images: Festival Facebook page

Copy editing: Joy Tataryn