Irish bookshops help meet UK demand for Sally Rooney novels

Bookshops in Ireland are helping readers in Britain and elsewhere obtain novels by Irish author Sally Rooney after her UK publisher halted supplies due to complications linked to her support for the Palestine Action group, which is banned in Britain. The books have not been banned, but normal distribution channels in England, Scotland and Wales have been disrupted.

Jenni Doherty, bookstore owner said “Sally Rooney's books, they've just been removed. It doesn't mean they're banned. It's not illegal to read them. It's not illegal to sell them. What has happened is that the distribution channels and access to the books have been denied from their usual sources.”

The continued supply through alternative distributors has brought renewed attention to the author's novels and attracted new readers.