Fay B. Kaigler Children's Book Festival
Celebrating excellence in children’s and young adult literature
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The 2026 Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival will take place April 8-10 on campus at The University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, MS. We’re thrilled to announce that Meg Medina is the 2026 Southern Miss Medallion winner. Medina is a New York Times best-selling author who writes book for all sorts of young people – from picture books, to middle grade readers, and all the way up to young adult fiction. Her work is emotionally rich and beautifully written, but her legacy goes beyond the books she’s authored. Medina has worked on various community-building projects that support young women, Latino youth, and/or literacy. From 2023-2024, Medina served as the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, promoting literature and literacy to millions of young people nationwide.
Other 2026 Keynotes include Coleen Salley Storytelling Lecturer Molly Idle, Ben Clanton, Molly Knox Ostertag, and SLIS Lecturer Amanda Jones!