A short literary trip to Ireland
Ireland may be one of the smaller book markets that we measure, but it consistently sets itself apart from its larger neighbour, championing new and emerging fiction (often from Irish writers, but not always) as well as locally focused non-fiction, alongside the smash hits that resonate across borders. In the first half of 2026, the top ten print books in Ireland only have one title in common with the UK bestsellers, The Housemaid by Freida McFadden, and of the other seven fiction titles in the list, five are from Irish authors, while the top non-fiction book is all about Ireland. Narrowing down to books published this year (excluding World Book Day £1 titles), seven of the top ten come from Irish names, with Liz Nugent, Maggie O’Farrell and Cathy Kelly joined by Andrea Mara, Deardhla Mescal, Sheila O’Flanagan and Katriona O’Sullivan.
The fiction dominance in the bestsellers above points to the wider market patterns, with adult fiction posting the strongest performance in Ireland this year. Thanks to 11% growth in the first half of 2026, fiction has gained nearly 3% of volume sales compared to 2025, increasing its share to 36% of the Irish print market, its highest on record at the mid-year point.
So what’s behind the fiction surge? A little bit of everything, actually, as nearly all categories are up; even just in the top ten above, we see general, crime & thriller, romance and historical fiction all represented. The largest category not within the top ten is science fiction & fantasy, although combining the original and film tie-in editions of SF bestseller Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir would boost it into the bestsellers. Sarah J. Maas brings the fantasy side of SFF to the leading authors for the year, making a repeat appearance within the top ten fiction names.
Half of the bestselling fiction authors were also in the list for the first half of 2025, and those that weren’t (bolded in purple) largely show the impact of adaptations, with Maggie O’Farrell, Gege Akutami, Rachel Reid and Elle Kennedy propelled into the top ten, alongside top author Freida McFadden also getting a cinematic boost. That’s of course combined with new titles, although Chloe Walsh, Sarah J. Maas and Claire Keegan have all managed to hold onto spots despite no new books in 2026.
In the non-fiction author ranks, Katriona O’Sullivan has risen to the top this year, up from fifth a year ago, helped by new book Hungry as well as continued popularity for Poor. More than half of the top ten are either Irish or have books focused on Ireland, especially among those who weren’t in the top ten a year ago (bolded in blue), with the exceptions coming from the self-help & personal development shelves (Mel & Sawyer Robbins, James Clear and Charlie Mackesy).
Non-fiction overall isn’t quite as successful as fiction this year, with purchases down 3% for the first half of 2026, but a few significant areas are defying that, featuring those top authors. History books are in growth, led by The Shortest History of Ireland by James Hawes, while Katriona O’Sullivan has the top two books in auto/biographies, followed by Rory by Alan Shipnuck, all contributing to the category’s year-on-year increase. Cookery books are also up, with The Irish Mammy Cooks Cookbook by Orla Drumgoole at the top of the list.
Children’s & YA sits between the fiction and non-fiction stats this year, with purchases up just slightly compared to mid-2025. The two largest categories, middle grade fiction and picture books, are performing better, while cosy colouring has doubled YA general interest books year-on-year.
And thanks to the cosy colouring craze, Coco Wyo has joined the top ten children’s & YA authors for 2026 so far, with J.K. Rowling and Rick Riordan also marking differences from the 2025 list (bolded in pink). The children’s list is more dominated by American and British authors than we see in the other sectors, although both Sheena Dempsey and Leona Forde represent Ireland within the top 20 authors. The leading (non-£1) book for the year is The Seriously Epic Holiday of Lottie Brooks, boosting the fiction side, while classics Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney and The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle along with Julia Donaldson’s list drive the top of the picture books chart.
A lot can change from now to December – nearly 60% of print book purchases in 2025 came from the latter half of the year – so this is by no means the final picture. We’ve already seen plenty of fluctuations in the first six months, and you can see how the bestsellers have moved around in this animated graph. The exciting reality of the book market, there’s always another potential bestseller on the horizon, and the Irish market continues to feature much to be excited about.
Based on data extracted from the NielsenIQ BookScan Irish Consumer Market (ICM) to 27 June 2026. For more information, please contact infobookresearch@nielseniq.com.
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