Top 10 Contemporary Scottish Books

Hotel World

Ali Smith

A beautiful and exhilarating book.

Morvern Callar

Alan Warner

The dark story of Morvern Callar, told in her own distinctive, unforgettable words, takes the reader from the Highlands of Scotland to the resorts of southern Spain.

Dark

A L Kennedy

This moving novel about the brutality of war never becomes overly bleak due to the beauty and dark humour of Alison Kennedy's writing.

The Testament of Gideon Mack

James Robertson

Gideon Mack is a church minister who doesn't believe in God or an afterlife. Until one day he meets someone who might be the Devil himself. . . .

Clara

Janice Galloway

An award-winning book about the life of Clara Schumann, wife of the composer Robert Schumann, mother of his five children and a talented musician in her own right.

Lanark

Alasdair Gray

Often described as one of the finest novels written in English, Lanark is a completely unique, sometimes surreal evocation of Glasgow.

Trumpet

Jackie Kay

Jackie Kay's fascination with jazz inspired this unusual and heartbreaking love story.

Behind the Scenes at the Museum

Kate Atkinson

A playful and often poignant story of an ordinary, yet often extraordinary, family from the 1950s to the present day.

How Late it Was, How Late

James Kelman

This Booker Prize-winning novel is a compelling and darkly humorous story of Glasgow life told through the experiences of ex-convict Sammy.

Personality

Andrew O'Hagan

A brilliant examination of fame, Andrew O'Hagan's novel follows a child star's journey from a fish and chip shop on the Isle of Bute to the celebrity circuit in London.