Irish Book Awards 2011

In February 2010, Bord Gáis Energy and the Irish Book Awards announced an exciting three year partnership. This is part of our overall strategy at Bord Gáis Energy to raise awareness that reading books is a great pastime that anyone can enjoy...anywhere, something we feel very passionate about and know you do too.

The Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards 2011 celebrates the very best of Irish writing both at home and abroad and Bord Gáis Energy is delighted to be the title sponsor of the awards for a second year. The awards support and honour the wealth of Irish talent in the literary world and highlight the contribution of our authors to the international contemporary literary canon.

There are 10 shortlisted categories of books from every genre including Irish fiction and non-fiction to children's books and biographies. The winners of the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards are decided by a public and industry vote which can be cast via the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards website www.irishbookawards.com.

This year's Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards also sees an exciting new category added to the mix; the Bookshop of the Year Award, sponsored by Bord Gáis Energy. To recognise and reward the wonderful work of booksellers throughout Ireland, the Bookshop of the Year Award is voted for by the public who cast votes for the bookshop they feel most deserves to be awarded the accolade of Bookshop of the Year. Votes are cast on the Bord Gáis Energy Book Club and ten wonderful shops (2 from each region) have been shortlisted for the 2011 award.

The winners of all the award categories will be announced at the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Books Awards taking place in the RDS on 17th November 2011.

Last Year's Awards

The Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards have become one of the most important events in the Irish literary calendar and last year's awards saw a stellar gathering of some of the most talented Irish writers come together to celebrate the literary heritage and contemporary accomplishments of this small island, both at home and on the international scene.

The 2010 awards were amiably and ably hosted by Ireland AM's Sinead Desmond and RTE Radio's John Murray and the guest list included over 50 Irish authors and many more industry figures from the publishing world and the media.

Guest of Honour was President McAleese and her husband Martin. Also among the gathering of the great and good were Maeve Binchy, Ryan Tubridy, Cecelia Ahern, Roddy Doyle, Johnny Giles, Cathy Kelly, Amy Huberman, accompanied by her husband Irish rugby captain Brian O'Driscoll, Boy in the Striped Pyjamas author John Boyne, broadcasters Joe Duffy and Matt Cooper, senator Shane Ross and hurler Donal Óg Cusack. Novelists Colum McCann and Emma Donoghue travelled from North America and Canada respectively, with the latter winning the Hughes & Hughes Irish Novel of the Year for her stunning book, Room. Alone with these luminaries, books by hugely talented writers such as Paul Howard (Ross O'Carroll Kelly), Gene Kerrigan, Niamh Sharkey, Derek Landy and Neil Richardson were also rewarded.

Thanks to each and every person who voted, contributing to a very important and significant event that recognised the wealth of literary talent our humble island possesses.