Founded in 2016 by author Jamila Gavin, Stroud Book Festival has grown from a small local event to a full, five-day Festival, staged annually each November by a team of local authors and experienced publishing and cultural professionals. We present a programme of entertaining and thought-provoking events to engage audiences of more than 4,500 in our vibrant local community and beyond. 

The Festival has played host to many famous names – Clive Myrie, Adam Rutherford, Ali Smith, Lemn Sissay, Julia Donaldson, Bernardine Evaristo, Ian McEwan, Mary Portas, Kamal Ahmed, Rachel Joyce, Cath Kidston, Kate Mosse, Tom Kerridge, Joanna Trollope and Prue Leith to name but a few. Stroud Book Festival also supports and promotes writers, poets, illustrators, publishers and booksellers local to Stroud and the surrounding areas. We are always keen to work hand in hand with the wider creative community and make the Festival accessible to as broad an audience as possible.

Stroud Book Festival is committed to inspiring children and young people to tell their stories and become lifelong readers. We work with local primary and secondary schools, along with other community organisations including Stroud Library, to create fun and creative ways to inspire our youngest Festival goers. In 2023, more than 1,400 children joined us at the Stroud Subscription Rooms for two days of events for local primary schools, for events with visiting authors Children's Laureate Joseph Coelho, Maz Evans, Natasah Farrant, Smriti Halls, Tom Percival, and Ken Wilson-Max. 40 classes attended the events virtually, helping us expand our reach across the Stroud District.

Stroud Book Festival presents an annual programme that is inclusive and representative; whether that be of age, ethnic origin, those with additional needs, religious and political belief, sexual orientation and gender identity.