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Secondhand and Antiquarian Bookshops in the UK and Republic of Ireland

News:
George Stacpoole Antiques has closed
new listing Celtic Bookshop Limerick
new listing Vincent's Limerick
new listing SVP Castle Connell

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Appointment necessary   Appointment necessary
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Celtic Bookshop/LIMERICK/2 Rutland Street
Celtic Bookshop  Open at advertised times
2 Rutland Street  LIMERICK  V94 DX89
tel: 061 401 155  e-mail
Open: Wednesday - Saturday 12.00 - 5.00
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Long-established bookshop with very good second-hand stock on all aspects of Ireland and Irish culture.

This fine shop has been a mainstay of the second-hand book trade in this part of Ireland for many years. Contacting it by any method has proved very difficult and there is currently no functional website or up-to-date online information. The owners prefer to focus on acquiring and selling books rather than responding to enquiries. But the shop has such a good stock that its continued omission from TBG is too undesirable a state of affairs to be allowed to continue, not least because the entire county of Limerick has otherwise become something approaching a wasteland for second-hand book buyers and collectors. So I am grateful to other booksellers in Limerick city (which has some very good shops that sell only new books) who are familiar with the Celtic Bookshop and who were very helpful in sharing their knowledge of it. Most of what follows has been gleaned from them.

The shop's speciality is, overwhelmingly, books on Ireland, on which it has some superb stock. Its selection of books on Irish history, archaeology, topography, mythology, natural history, culture and religion is very comprehensive and of excellent quality. Also books in the Irish language, as well as an impressive range of works by Irish poets, dramatists and novelists. To a lesser extent, there are also books on other Celtic lands. Old Irish maps and prints are also stocked. The shop, which is on two floors, is in the city centre, just across Mathew Bridge. It is opposite the Hunt Museum, near Arthur's Quay, a 15-minute walk from Limerick (Colbert) railway station and the bus station.  Booker T 04.07.25

SVP/CASTLECONNELL/4 Bruach na Sionna
SVP  Open at advertised times
4 Bruach na Sionna  CASTLECONNELL  V94 WE14
tel: 087 693 5580  e-mail   
Open: Monday - Friday 9.30 - 5.00, Saturday 12.00 - 5.00
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Charity shop with quite a good selection of books.

St Vincent de Paul’s Castleconnell branch, which reopened in January after a prolonged closure for renovation, has one of the charity's better selections of books. That said, the stock is not huge, but there is some decent quality, especially among the fiction. Quite a lot of popular paperback novels, as might be expected, but also literary fiction and a decent selection of classics. The non-fiction is patchier, but there are some good titles among the history, topography and Irish interest books. Also quite good for children's books. Note that, rather unusually, the shop is closed on Saturday mornings, as it has been decided to restrict the hours to those that could be reliably covered.

Castleconnell is a small town, with a population of just over 2,000, on the banks of the River Shannon, about seven miles north-east of Limerick city and almost on the border with Co. Tipperary. Castleconnell railway station, on the Limerick-Ballybrophy line, is a very short walk from the shop, but there are only two trains in each direction daily. The town can also be reached by the 323 Limerick-Nenagh bus route, which runs every three hours.  Booker T 12.03.26

Vincent_s/LIMERICK/16 Thomas Street
Vincent's  Open at advertised times
16 Thomas Street  LIMERICK  V94 YD71
tel: 061 514 534 and 085 747 9513  e-mail   web   
Open: Monday - Saturday 9.15 - 5.00
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Charity shop with a decent-sized stock of books.

The Society of St Vincent de Paul, a Catholic charity that helps the poor and needy, has more than 200 Vincent's/SVP shops in Ireland. Among these are one standalone bookshop (Midleton, Co. Cork), one branch where there is a large bookshop within the premises (Roscrea, Co. Tipperary), and two branches in which books occupy an entire floor (Terenure in Dublin, and Tullamore, Co. Offaly): all four are listed on TBG.

Although almost all of the charity's general shops have second-hand books for sale, few have enough to warrant a TBG listing. In Co. Limerick, however, there are two that do: this branch at Thomas Street in Limerick city and the shop at Castleconnell (also listed).

Here at Limerick, there is a fair-sized stock, at low prices (from €1 upwards). There is a good choice of fiction, predominantly in paperback. Mass/mid-market novels are in the majority, but there are also quite a few literary titles and a couple of shelves of older hardbacks. The non-fiction is fairly typical charity-shop fare, with the occasional better title. Travel, Irish interest and cookery are among the larger categories. Also a large and good selection of children's books. The shop is in the city centre, about a ten-minute walk from Limerick (Colbert) railway station and the bus station.  Booker T 12.03.26
As a postscript to the above, there are in fact two standalone Vincent's/SVP bookshops, not just one. The second is at Clonmel, Co. Tipperary (and is listed on TBG). The charity's shops seem to attract donations of quite a good standard, and those with significant book offerings would be worth checking out.  Booker T 13.03.26