Messy Press wins Bologna Prize for Oceania
Aotearoa New Zealand children’s publisher Messy Press has won the 2026 Bologna Prize for the Best Children’s Publishers of the Year in the Oceania region, announced as part of the Bologna Children’s Book Fair.
Messy Press cofounders Erica Harrison and Adam Thompson said, “We’re blown away by winning the Bologna prize. We were delighted to be shortlisted amongst so many amazing publishers we admire, so winning the prize as a relative newcomer was incredible.”
Publishers shortlisted in the Oceania category included Australian publishers Affirm Press, Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing and Wild Dog Books, and Tahitian publisher Au vent des îles.
On the New Zealand Books website, the Messy Press team wrote, “We create vibrant and captivating, illustrated children’s books to inspire and entertain young, creative minds around the world. The messy rat logo represents our restless ambition to create mischief and joyfulness.”
Organised by the Bologna Children’s Book Fair (BCBF) and the Italian Publishers Association (AIE) in partnership with the International Publishers Association (IPA), the prize awards those publishers who have “most distinguished themselves for their professional and intellectual skills” in 6 areas of the world.
The winners of the prize in each region are:
- Africa: Saaraba Éditions (Senegal)
- Asia: Bronze Publishing (Japan)
- Caribbean, Central and South America: Lecturita Ediciones (Argentina)
- Europe: Éditions La Doux (France)
- North America: Tundra Books (Canada)
- Oceania: Messy Press (Aotearoa New Zealand).
More information is available on the Bologna Prize website.
Messy Press is announced as the Oceania winner of the Bologna Prize. Credit: Australian Publishers Association.
Category: Local news
