Tables of books waiting for new readers at a book market. Photo by Tom Hermans on Unsplash
Book lovers in Bangkok, get ready. The 31st Book Expo Thailand 2026 opens this week, and it is one of the best places in the city to find something new to read. Whether you are learning Thai, improving your English, or both, a big book fair is a fun way to give your studies a fresh boost.
Here is what you need to know, plus some easy Thai phrases and smart tips to help you shop like a language learner.
Book Expo Thailand 2026: The Key Facts
- Dates: Friday 23 October to Sunday 1 November 2026 (ten days)
- Time: 10am to 9pm every day
- Place: Halls 5 to 7, LG Floor, Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre (QSNCC)
- Getting there: MRT Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre station, Exit 3
- Theme: "Unread Messages"
- Organiser: The Publishers and Booksellers Association of Thailand (PUBAT)
The fair has seven zones. You will find general books and fiction, comics and teen reads, children's and educational books, second hand titles, and a foreign language section with English and Japanese books. The last fair in March was a record breaker, with more than 1.5 million visitors, and over seven in ten of them were Gen Z. Reading is clearly cool again in Thailand.
In Thai, people often just call it งานหนังสือ (ngaan nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ), which means "the book fair". If a Thai friend says "ไปงานหนังสือไหม" (bpai ngaan nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ mái), they are asking "Do you want to go to the book fair?"
Useful Thai Phrases for the Book Fair
A book fair is a perfect place to practise real Thai, because every booth has a friendly seller. Try these phrases. Add ครับ (kráp) if you are a man or ค่ะ / คะ (kâ / ká) if you are a woman to sound polite.
- หนังสือ (nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ): book
- นิยาย (ní-yaai): novel
- หนังสือการ์ตูน (nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ gaa-dtuun): comic book
- หนังสือเด็ก (nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ dèk): children's book
- หนังสือมือสอง (nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ mʉʉ sɔ̌ɔng): second hand book
- หนังสือภาษาอังกฤษอยู่ตรงไหน (nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ paa-sǎa ang-grìt yùu dtrong-nǎi): Where are the English books?
- มีหนังสือสองภาษาไหม (mii nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ sɔ̌ɔng paa-sǎa mái): Do you have bilingual books?
- เล่มนี้ราคาเท่าไหร่ (lêm níi raa-kaa tâo-rài): How much is this one?
- ลดราคาไหม (lót raa-kaa mái): Is there a discount?
- ขอถุงด้วย (kɔ̌ɔ tǔng dûay): A bag too, please.
Quick tip: เล่ม (lêm) is the classifier for books. So "two books" is หนังสือสองเล่ม (nǎng-sʉ̌ʉ sɔ̌ɔng lêm). Using the right classifier makes you sound much more natural.
How to Choose Books That Help You Learn
With thousands of books in one place, it is easy to buy too many and read none. Here are some smart ways to choose books that will really help your language skills.
1. Pick something a little easy
If you need a dictionary for every line, you will get tired fast. Choose a book where you know most of the words on a page. Children's books, comics and graded readers are great for beginners in both Thai and English.
2. Look for bilingual books
Books with Thai on one page and English on the other are gold for learners. You can read in your target language and check the meaning quickly without stopping for long.
3. Read a book you already know
Love a story in your own language? Buy the Thai or English version. Because you already know what happens, your brain can focus on the words and grammar.
4. Visit the foreign language zone
Thai learners of English can find English titles in the foreign language section. It is a good chance to pick up an English novel, a self help book or a book for IELTS or TOEIC practice.
Turn Your New Books Into a Reading Habit
Buying books is the fun part. Reading them is where the learning happens. Try these simple habits:
- Read 10 minutes a day. Short and regular is better than long and rare.
- Keep a small word list. Write down 3 to 5 new words per session, not every word you do not know.
- Read out loud. This helps with Thai tones and English pronunciation at the same time.
- Talk about it. Tell a friend or your teacher about what you read. Speaking about a book is excellent practice.
The theme of this year's fair is "Unread Messages", a nice reminder of all the stories waiting for us. Maybe your next unread message is a book in a new language.
Want Help With Your Thai or English Reading?
At Bubble Language School, our teachers can help you choose the right level of reading and practise speaking about what you read, in Thai or in English. If you would like to know more about our classes, we would love to hear from you. Message us on LINE Official @ibe_education, email admin@bubblelanguageschool.org, call 092 854 5564, or visit bubblelanguageschool.org. Happy reading!