ATTENTION READERS, BOOKWORMS and all round bibliophiles, as the longlist for the public’s favourite bookshops in Ireland has been revealed.

A total of 12 bookshops across the country have been included in the An Post Bookshop of the Year category at this year’s Irish Book Awards – with the winner in store to receive a €15,000 prize.

The annual event celebrates and promotes Irish writing and authors.

Previous winners of the Bookshop of the Year are Derry’s Little Acorns Bookstore, Halfway Up the Stairs in Greystones, Co Wicklow and Kennys Bookshop and Art Gallery in Galway.

The longlist of twelve bookshops around Ireland for 2025 in alphabetical order are:

• Antonia’s Bookstore, Trim, Co Meath
• Bridge Books Dromore, Co Down
• Castle Book & Card Centre Castlebar, Co Mayo
• Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop, Co Galway
• Chapters Bookstore, Dublin 1
• Genius Juniors, Ennis, Co Clare
• Leaf and Bower, Ballincollig, Co Cork
• Liber Bookshop, Sligo town
• Tales for Tadpoles, Bray, Co Wicklow
• The Book Centre, Waterford
• The Company of Books Ranelagh, Dublin 6
• The Maynooth Bookshop, Co Kildare

To make the longlist, bookshop customers were asked to vote for their favourite bookshops and explain the reason for their choice.

They will be whittled down to a shortlist of six bookshops on 22 October with the overall winner announced at the An Post Irish Book Awards on 27 November.

An independent judging panel will now run the rule over the chosen dozen to decide on the shortlist.

Chairperson of the An Post Irish Book Awards Larry Mac Hale said the awards are a way of paying tribute to bookshops as the “cornerstone of many communities across Ireland”, playing a central role for their towns and cities.

“More than just shops, they are cultural havens that spark creativity and foster a love of reading for people of all ages,” Mac Hale said.