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Is there anything better than a few hours spent leisurely browsing through a bookshop of a Sunday? Bookshops (the quieter the better) are a quiet oasis from the bustling city outside, and time seems to stand still in the best ones. Put your Sunday afternoon to good use this week with a look inside five of Dublin’s best independent bookshops.
Hampton Books is a gorgeous example of how lovely small bookshops can be. The front window, with its vintage-feel shopfront, is regularly updated with new stock, and the shop itself can always be depended on for new releases that might be sold out in larger chains.
The Company of Books is just the place to visit if you want a sense of community from your bookshop. The Ranelagh shop hosts a regular book club and regularly posts recommendations of books, literary events and even TV shows on their Facebook page.
With their original shopfront in Cow Lane in Temple Bar, The Gutter opened their second shop in Dalkey in 2013 and haven’t looked back. Winning the title of Independent Bookshop of the Year in 2017 from The British Book Awards, the Gutter is also great for communal events and updates, and can always be relied on for quick turnaround on orders.
Walking down the quays always draws me into the Winding Stair, and I’ve not been disappointed yet. With a very Parisian/ Shakespeare and Company feel, the Winding Stair stocks literary magazines, zines and notebooks among their extensive range of books and also have a cosy table or two in their shopfront for relaxing with a coffee.
One for the literary buffs. Specialising in 20th century Irish literature, Ulysses Rare Books has a huge selection of rare editions from the Irish greats, including Joyce, Wilde, Yeats and Beckett. The shop also has a lovely family history, starting out in Donegal before moving down to Duke Street in 1988.