The best selling American author James Patterson has given £250,000 to dozens of bookshops across the UK, including five in Scotland.
Patterson, best known for his bestsellers starring fictional psychologist Alex Cross, has now given £500,000 in a campaign to encourage children's reading.
In this the second round of donations, Patterson has given grants to Looking Glass Books in Edinburgh, Oswald Street Bookshop in Glasgow, The Ullapool Bookshop, Print Point on the Isle of Bute, and Deeside Books in Ballater.
Patterson, whose books have sold 300m copies, has given donations to bookshops across the UK and Ireland.
More than £130,000 had already been allocated to 73 independent bookshops across the UK and Ireland following the first round of applications in September 2014.
The remaining grant allocation of £120,000 has now been allocated to a further 68 bookshops.
Donations are being used to fund refurbishment and expansion of children's sections, organising bedtime reading projects and pyjama days, to creating a mobile 'book bus'.
The grants will allow carpet, shelving and signs to be replaced as well as store events and book clubs for children.
Any independent bookshop with a dedicated children's book section was eligible for a grant of between £250 and £5,000. In a similar initiative in September 2013, Patterson pledged $1 million (£676,890) to bookshops across the US.
Naomi Berry, assistant at Oswald Street Bookshop, said: "We are really happy to receive some money.
"He are hoping to use it to expand our children's section. It's been a lovely surprise to hear about it.
"We will use it to have more stock for children and also make the area for them more comfortable."
Patterson said another £250,000 will be made available to bookshops.
He said: "I have been completely overwhelmed by just how many people have applied for the grants second time round, and yet again have been impressed and enthused by the calibre of the applications.
"It's been very exciting to see the ideas from the first round in action.
"I have again worked to identify independent bookshops for whom this money may make a difference and I'm excited to follow their progress.
"I can't wait to see what the UK and Ireland's incredible and pioneering bookshops propose for next year."
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