For the An Post Irish Book Awards’ “bookshop of the year” award, book lovers are invited to honour their favourite shops by nominating them.
Kenny’s Bookshop in Galway won the title the previous year, and this year marks the second year that book stores are recognised as part of the yearly awards.
The organisers say the category is designed to acknowledge the significant role played by independent bookshops and local branches of bookshop chains in helping their local communities enjoy books.
A section of the An Post website now allows people to nominate people for the gong. They will also have the choice to give an explanation for their selection.
Readers can also enter by scanning the QR code in their preferred bookshop and following the instructions. Those who submit a nomination will be entered into a draw to win a €100 book voucher.
Entry deadline is September 2 at 5 p.m. The 12 book stores in Ireland that receive the most votes will subsequently be added to a longlist and asked to submit a written entry.
The 12 stores will be visited by mystery shoppers as part of the judging process. Then, on October 20, a shortlist of six establishments will be decided upon and made public.
The overall winner will be revealed at the awards show on 23 November. The shop that lands the award will receive a trophy and a prize worth €5,000 from An Post Commerce.
John Treacy, Chairperson of the An Post Irish Book Awards, said the prize was created to acknowledge the role bookshops play in their communities’ cultural and social lives.
“The holy trinity of bookshops, writers and readers is a wonderful alliance we should all support, so I’d very much encourage everyone to support their local bookshop and vote for them in the An Post Bookshop of the Year category,” Treacy said.
Other categories in the An Post Irish Book Awards include Novel of the Year, Children’s (Junior and Senior), Cookery, Crime Fiction, Popular Fiction, Non-fiction, Sports, Short Story, Poetry, Teen and Young Adult and Irish Language.