Soma Nami Books, Kenya’s leading Pan-African bookstore, has officially announced the return of the African Book Fair for its fourth edition, themed “Rewriting the Future: African Stories, Power & Possibility.” The fair will take place from August 5th to 9th, 2026, at Maktaba Kuu, the Kenya National Library Service (KNLS) in Upper Hill, Nairobi. Launched in 2023, the African Book Fair has grown to become East Africa’s foremost literary gathering, dedicated exclusively to celebrating African storytelling. Designed uniquely for readers rather than just publishers, the fair remains one of the few on the continent to offer a direct, reader-centered experience, with attendees able to browse thousands of books from across Africa and the diaspora at discounted prices during the five-day event.
This year’s theme pushes the fair’s framing further than in previous editions, positioning African storytelling not just as cultural expression but as an active force shaping how power is understood, negotiated, and redistributed across societies. Organizers describe the 2026 edition as exploring how narratives, written, spoken, performed, and digitally produced, function as instruments of influence across politics, markets, culture, and emerging technologies, foregrounding African writers, creators, and thinkers as architects of possibility rather than mere chroniclers of experience. Entry to the fair remains free, and the full program, spanning Friday, August 7 through Sunday, August 9, features panels, book chats, and launches, with the complete lineup and schedule available as a downloadable programme via Soma Nami’s website.
Founded in 2021 by Muthoni Muiruri and Wendy Njoroge, Soma Nami Books continues to lead a Pan-African literary movement that places African stories at the center of the global stage, having grown from a single Nairobi storefront into a bookstore with two branches and a devoted community built around book launches, readings, signings, and a monthly book club. The inaugural African Book Fair in 2023 drew over 5,000 attendees browsing books from 54 African countries, and the fair has expanded each year since, with the 2025 edition billed as its biggest yet. With this fourth edition, Soma Nami is set to deliver a literary experience that celebrates the depth, diversity, and brilliance of African literature in all its forms.
“The African Book Fair is more than a book market, it’s a cultural force,” said Muthoni Muiruri, co-founder and director of Soma Nami Books. “It’s a platform that affirms the value of our stories. We built this fair on the belief that Africans are not just part of the story, we are the story. And we’re celebrating that boldly.”
Access the full 2026 programme here.
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