Irish Book Week 2026: Saturday 17 – Saturday 24 October

Irish Book Week is an innovative partnership between Bookselling Ireland and Publishing Ireland. It launched in 2018 with huge succes. 

Associated with the Books Are My Bag campaign, and timed to maximise the potential of the Irish publishing schedule, the campaign message is tailored to the home market. Irish Book Week is backed by the Booksellers Association with a point of sale kit, social media plan and media coverage courtesy of Crotty Communications.
Irish Book Week celebrates the contribution that bookshops make to Irish culture, the economy and the revenue, and aligns with Ireland’s internationally recognised status as a country of books.

If you have events planned for Irish Book Week be sure to brand them Irish Book Week to help create the feel of a nationwide festival, and attract local and national media attention.

Booksellers Association members may opt in or out of participating in Irish Book Week at any point. Please email Emma Bradshaw if you would like to check if you are registered to participate, or if you would like to change your participation.

Booksellers can find 2026 digital resources here. 
Publishers can find 2026 digital resources here. 

Campaign Artwork
The stunning artwork for this year’s campaign was created by Paddy Donnelly, who has also come on board as a campaign Ambassador. Paddy is a bestselling Irish author and illustrator living in Belgium. Paddy grew up on the beautiful north coast of Ireland, surrounded by stories of mythical giants, magical creatures and shape-shifting animals. His storytelling reflects his love of nature and animals. He has published over 30 children's books, including Fox & Son Tailers, Badger Books, The Golden Hare, The Upside-Down Lighthouse and The Vanishing Lake. Paddy has four times been nominated for the Carnegie Medal for Illustration and The Golden Hare was the An Post Irish Book Awards - Children’s Book of the Year Junior, 2024. His books have been published in over 25 languages worldwide.
 
Ambassadors
Joining Paddy as Ambassadors this year are Catherine Doyle, Shane Hegarty, Carina McNally and Séamus Ó Tuama.
 
Catherine Doyle grew up beside the Atlantic Ocean in the west of Ireland. Her love of reading began with great Irish myths and legends, and fostered in her an ambition to one day write her own. She holds a first class BA in Psychology and a first class MA in Publishing from the National University of Ireland, Galway, and is the author of the YA Blood for Blood trilogy. The Storm Keeper’s Island was her debut middle-grade novel and was inspired by her real-life ancestral home of Arranmore Island, where her grandparents grew up, and the adventures of her many seafaring ancestors. After living in Dublin City for two years, Catherine is now based in Galway but spends a lot of her time in London and the US.
 
Shane Hegarty lives near Dublin with his family. He has been writing stories for children since 2015, when his middle-grade fantasy book Darkmouth was published. Shortlisted for the Waterstones Children's Book Prize, the An Post Irish Book Awards and the Bord Gáis Irish Book Awards, this series has been sold into 20 territories worldwide. Shane is also the author of the bestselling series Boot, which was nominated for the Sainsbury's Children's Book Prize, the An Post Irish Book Awards and was chosen as an UNESCO Dublin City Of Literature Citywide Read, as well as The Shop of Impossible Ice Creams: Big Berry Robbery, which was shortlisted in the Laugh Out Loud Book Awards 2025. When not writing, Shane likes reading, running and carrot cake (not all at the same time).
 
Carina McNally is an Irish author, journalist and playwright from the Beara Peninsula, Co. Cork. Her work draws on the Irish landscape, history and folklore. She is the author of the historical novel Mithim.
 
Séamus Ó Tuama is the Principal of NI's first Irish-medium school. He brings extensive post-primary teaching and leadership experience, supported by qualifications in Celtic Studies, Education (M.Ed.), and Science (M.Sc.).  He is the author of Béal Feirste: Belfast - A Family's Story of a Community Struggle. 
 
Irish Book A Day
Throughout the week we’ll be inviting the Irish book trade and readers to join in with #IrishBookADay, posting about a different theme each day:
Saturday 17 October – Share an Irish bookshop
Sunday 18 October – Share an Irish language book
Monday 19 October – Share an Irish debut book
Tuesday 20 October – Share an Irish book you read recently
Wednesday 21 October – Share an Irish book that you bought in a local bookshop
Thursday 22 October – Share a book set in Northern Ireland
Friday 23 October – Share a book you want to read from the An Post Irish Book Awards Shortlist
Saturday 24 October – Share an Irish book you discovered at a bookshop event
 
Make sure to tag us on social media @booksellingireland and use the hashtag #IrishBookADay

For more information about Irish Book Week, contact Emma Bradshaw at the Booksellers Assocation

For PR, please contact Mary or Maria at Crotty Communications  

Thanks to all of our sponsors, Argosy Books, Gill Books, The O’Brien Press, National Book Tokens, Hachette UK, Penguin Random House UK, HarperCollins Publishers, Pan Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, DK, Bloomsbury, Canongate, Usborne, Scholastic, Faber & Faber, Bonnier Books UK, Profile Books, Walker Books, Ingram Content Group, ÁIS (Áisíneacht Dáileacháin Leabhar).