Despite the pressures of rising business rates and living costs, independent bookshops across the UK and Ireland are flourishing through unique community events and specialist expertise. Greater Manchester is a shining example of this resilience, boasting two local shops that have been shortlisted for the 2026 Independent Bookshop of the Year awards.
The Independent Bookshop of the Year awards seek to recognise the best of our traditional, independent bookshops in the UK and Ireland, awarding one bookshop in each region per year. Last year, Simply Books in Bramhall, Stockport, was crowned the North England winner at the Independent Bookshop of the Year awards, and now it is shortlisted once again for 2026. Simply Books has also been joined by the likes of Manchester bookshop The House of Books and Friends, alongside the likes of The Little Ripon Bookshop and Wave of Nostalgia in Haworth as finalists for the North England category.
Included in the 2026 finalists is Birmingham’s The Heath Bookshop, last year’s overall winner. While regional and county winners will be named on March 10, the final announcement for the Independent Bookshop of the Year will take place at the British Book Awards ceremony on May 11. The top bookshop will receive the official title and a £5,000 cheque.
All of the North of England spots, including those in Greater Manchester, shortlisted for the 2026 Independent Bookshop of the Year award:
- Criminally Good Books, York
- House of Books and Friends, Manchester
- Imagined Things Bookshop, Harrogate
- Kemps General Store & Books, Malton & Wetherby
- Sam Read Bookseller, Grasmere
- Simply Books, Bramhall
- The Little Ripon Bookshop, Ripon
- Truman Books, Farsley, Leeds
- Verey Books, Penrith
- Wave of Nostalgia, Haworth
Tom Tivnan, deputy editor of The Bookseller, said: “The most gratifying thing about the 2026 Independent Bookshop of the Year is not just the record number of submissions, but the Grade-A quality of each and every one of them. We all know the current travails of the High Street in general, but indies across the UK and Ireland are meeting the difficulties with grit, innovation and community spirit.”
You can view the full list of 2026 finalists here.