Kids’ title at trade fairs

An independent picture book from a London studio made the rounds at two of publishing’s biggest spring trade fairs this year. (pressat.co.uk) *Walt & The Magical Bee*, created by Cristina Cargasacchi of Goldenhive Productions in Southall, was shown first at the London Book Fair in March and then at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in April 2026. Bologna ran from April 13 to April 16, and London ran from March 10 to March 12. (pressat.co.uk) (bookfairs.ecpublishingllc.com) (bolognachildrensbookfair.com) At Bologna, the book was included in a Foreword Reviews collective exhibition, a showcase aimed at publishers, agents, and other rights and licensing buyers. Foreword Reviews says it covers independent, university, and self-publishing, which helps explain why that placement matters for a small studio. (pressat.co.uk) (forewordreviews.com) These fairs are not consumer book festivals first; they are business marketplaces where publishers sell translation, illustration, audio, film, and territorial rights. BolognaBookPlus, the general-trade program inside the Bologna fair, describes itself as a spring gathering for translation and illustration rights as well as wider trade publishing. (bookfairs.ecpublishingllc.com) (bolognachildrensbookfair.com) Bologna’s scale shows why an indie children’s title would want a slot there. Publishers Weekly reported that the 63rd Bologna Children’s Book Fair brought together roughly 1,500 exhibitors from 90 countries for four days at the Bologna Exhibition Centre. (publishersweekly.com) This year’s Bologna meetings were also shaped by a second story: artificial intelligence. Publishers Weekly reported that artificial intelligence was a recurring panel topic in the fair’s first two days, with speakers focusing on both opportunities and hazards for creators and publishers. (publishersweekly.com) That put children’s illustration, authorship, and rights in the same room as debates over machine-generated content and creative labor. Publishers Weekly said the 2026 fair was also framed by concern about declining reading among young people alongside the changing role of artificial intelligence in publishing. (publishersweekly.com 1) (publishersweekly.com 2) For Goldenhive Productions, the immediate result was visibility rather than a reported deal. The company’s announcement described the two fair appearances as a step toward introducing the project to international publishers, agents, and creative-industry professionals. (pressat.co.uk) So the story is less about a single fair stop than about where an indie children’s book tries to break through in 2026: on rights floors in London and Bologna, while the industry argues over how much of the next generation of children’s publishing will still be made by hand. (pressat.co.uk) (publishersweekly.com)