Katherine Rundell writes adventures for readers who want to be carried somewhere extraordinary, and non-fiction for adults who love thinking about literature. For a family following her imagined creatures, hearing her speak can make the journey from reading together to a shared festival day feel wonderfully close.
Quick facts
Best known for
Impossible Creatures and adventure stories for children
Genre or subject
Children’s adventure, fantasy and literary non-fiction
Rundell’s work moves between fiction for children and literary non-fiction for adults. Her professional life includes studying Renaissance literature at Oxford. Super-Infinite, her adult book, won the Baillie Gifford Prize, while her children’s writing has received the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, the Blue Peter Book Award and the Costa Children’s Book Award.
Her fantasy series takes children through a world of mythical creatures and an imagined archipelago. Its first adventure became Waterstones Book of the Year in 2023, and in 2024 it won Children’s Fiction Book of the Year at the British Book Awards, where Rundell was also named Author of the Year.
Bloomsbury published The Neverfear, the third adventure in the sequence, in August 2026. Readers who have been travelling through those books have characters, places and creatures to carry into the audience with them. Others may have arrived through a different adventure, or through her writing for adults.
For a child, an author visit can begin with something small and personal: a creature they would like to meet, a scene they keep rereading, or a question about how an idea became a story. Let that be enough. Their own enthusiasm is a better preparation than a set of questions they feel obliged to ask.
Where to start with their books
Rooftoppers
Sophie follows a clue to Paris in the hope that her mother survived a shipwreck, then meets children who live above the streets. Choose this for an adventure of rooftop journeys, loyalty and the refusal to give up a possibility.
The Explorer
After a plane crashes into the Amazon canopy, Fred and three other children must find a way to survive. This is a starting point for a reader who enjoys danger, discovery and children finding courage in an unfamiliar landscape.
The Good Thieves
Vita arrives in New York determined to recover the home a conman has taken from her grandfather. A pickpocket and two boys with unusual skills join her plan, making this a lively choice for readers who enjoy a heist and a wrong to put right.
Festival appearances
For tickets, use the host festival’s official box office. Confirm the date, venue and access details before paying.
Edinburgh’s Making the Impossible with Katherine Rundell took place on 28 August as a schools event available by livestream only. It invited classes into the fantasy world and the making of its mythical inhabitants. The festival also held Impossible Creatures Made Real with Katherine Rundell on that date.
Where to see them next
No 2027 appearances announced yet. Check the festival guides for programme dates.
Plan your trip
Let the youngest reader help choose the day. Leave a gap for food and a break before the session, and resist packing another ticket immediately afterwards if they want time to talk about it. A favourite book can come in the bag, but check signing information before promising a meeting.
For teachers, confirm whether a booking is for schools, an online audience or a public event before organising transport. A livestream can bring the writer into the classroom without a journey, leaving more time to read or draw together afterwards.
Were all Katherine Rundell’s 2026 events public family sessions?
Use the festival links on Katherine Rundell’s profile for the event’s own ticket and audience guidance.
Do children need to finish the whole series first?
A favourite chapter or a creature they are excited about is a good way to begin. Let the child choose how much they want to read, and avoid turning an outing for a much-loved author into homework.
Does she also write for adults?
Her work includes adult literary non-fiction as well as children’s adventures. When choosing a future visit, pick the strand that suits your reader, whether you are planning a family outing or an evening centred on literature.
Can we bring a book for signing?
Look for the organiser’s signing details before the day. If a queue would be difficult for your child, ask the box office what to expect and decide how much time and energy to leave after the session.
How can schools find her next event?
Use the festival links on Katherine Rundell’s profile for the event’s own ticket and audience guidance.
