If your local bookshop holds a special place in your heart, now is the time to show your appreciation as the search for the Bord Gáis Energy Bookshop of the Year begins. The award aims to recognise those retail stalwarts who connect readers and authors on a daily basis and provide us with endless hours of entertainment.
In Kilkenny five bookshops are looking for your vote, and by taking part you will also be in with the chance to win €1,000 worth of free electricity.
The Kilkenny stores are The Book Centre, Byrnes World of Wonder, Khans, Dubray Books, and Stonehouse Books newly located on Kieran Street.
The Irish book industry employs some 5,000 people in Ireland and is worth approximately €148 million to the economy. We are avid readers buying 14 million books annually, comprising 300,000 different titles. Fiction is our passion, representing 30 per cent of book sales in Ireland, followed by children’s books at 20 per cent. Native Irish publishing accounts for 18 per cent of sales.
The 10 finalists with the most votes across five regions – Ulster, Munster, Connacht, Leinster, and Greater Dublin will be announced, along with all the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards categories, on Thursday October 20. The eventual winner will be revealed at the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards ceremony at the Convention Centre Dublin on November 17. The winning shop will receive €5,000 worth of free electricity.
To vote you must become a member of the Bord Gáis Energy online book club (this is free of charge and will be prompted when you log on to the site ) and each member is only permitted one vote.
The shortlist will consist of 10 bookshops and will be made up of the two bookshops with the most votes from each of the five regions.
