Famous for our pitch-perfect patter and tall tales, it's no great surprise that some of the best Scottish books ever written are set in Glasgow.
Many of the novels are gritty narratives detailing the triumph and travails of ordinary folk, with the occasional smattering of murrderr (insert Taggart-style accent here) and mystery to keep us on our toes.
To celebrate Book Week Scotland, here is our rundown of Glasgow Live's favourite reads that feature our fair city.
The heart of Glasgow - Jack House
Perhaps one of Glasgow’s greatest ambassadors, Herald columnist Jack House was Mr Glasgow and spent his life telling the city’s stories. Packed with these little anecdotes, ranging from the mundane to the momentous, The heart of Glasgow is more than just a history book but a love affair in print and a fitting record of a great writer’s works.
The Dear Green Place - Archie Hind
1960s Glasgow is artfully drawn by Hind in this story of wannabe writer and working-class hero Mat Craig. Mat hails from a large family who look down on his literary aspirations. The novel documents his inner conflict as he shelves his dream to work in a slaughterhouse, only to eventually pack it all in pursuit of his calling. A tragic tale that ponders the conflict between social obligations and the pursuit of art.
Laidlaw - William McIlvanney
It begins with one of the most gripping, stylish openings, a breathless sprint that sets Scotland’s greatest crime novel off at a frantic pace. Others will point to the likes of Ian Rankin and Denise Mina and argue that they are more deserving of that accolade. But this is where ‘Tartan Noir’ all began and you can vividly picture Glasgow in every scene.
How late it was, how late- James Kelman
You could really have picked a number of books by James Kelman but his 1994 Booker Prize winner is an obvious choice. Telling the story of Sammy, a man who wakes up blind after a beating, it is a grim and completely gripping tale of poverty and hopelessness in Glasgow. It is also written entirely in the vernacular, with Kelman paving the way for the likes of Irvine Welsh and other Scots writers.
Buddha Da - Anne Donovan
This tale of a Glasgow painter's religious awakening is written entirely in the local dialect - which can appear impenetrable to the uninitiated. A lyrical observation of an ordinary man's struggles to bridge the gap between his personal life and his spiritual curiosity, a chance meeting with a Buddhist monk leads to Jimmy seeking more out of life than the mundane but it's a journey that wreaks havoc on his family life.
The Cutting Room - Louise Welsh
Another writer who sets up Glasgow as the perfect backdrop for another unnerving thriller. The discovery of a pornographic snuff collection sets the protagonist off on a quest to find out the identity of the woman in the images. It also sends him into the darkest recesses of the city. A film of the book, which was set to star Robert Carlyle was briefly floated and sunk, which is unfortunate because the Cutting Room is a story worthy of a movie adaptation.
Driftnet - Lin Anderson
Another great Glasgow crime novel and one of those ideas that just grabs you from the outset. A forensic scientist is called to investigate the death of a young rent boy, found strangled by a silk rope. But is he the son she gave up for adoption 17 years earlier? Driftnet became the first of eight novels to feature the main character, Rhona MacLeod.
Young Adam - Alexander Trocchi
Set on Glasgow’s canals, the protagonist, a drifter and failed writer called Joe, finds the body of a young woman floating in the water and is connected to her thereafter. But as the story develops, an existing thread between the two is found. A grim and bleak tale that leaves a lasting impression and like his other great work, Cain’s Book, reflects the writer’s own experiences.
The Thistle and the Grail - Robin Jenkins
This might just be the greatest piece of football fiction ever written. Okay, so Drumsagart isn’t Glasgow, but it’s Lanarkshire and, for the purpose of this article, that’s close enough. The book tells of their toiling local team’s pursuit of ‘the Grail’, the Scottish Junior Cup and of the many subplots and intrigues that surround their season. Don’t make the mistake of thinking this is some impenetrable sporting tome, it’s life - as everyone on the west coast of Scotland knows it.
Garnethill - Denise Mina
Another exploration into the dark underbelly of Glasgow, Denise Mina's suspenseful thriller is the first in her gripping Garnethill trilogy. When Maureen O'Donnell finds her married lover and former therapist murdered in her flat all signs point to her as the perpetrator. That she is a former psychiatric patient with an accusatory alcoholic mother and overly fond of a dram herself does nothing to help her case. Determined to clear her name but doubting her own version of events, Maureen charts the victim's last days and is plunged into the murky depths of deceit, murder and scandal.
Lanark - a life in four books - Alisdair Gray
Set in Glasgow and the sunless town of Unthank, a facsimile of it's sister city, Gray's surreal allegorical novel Lanark has been hailed as one of Scotland's finest literary works. Detailing a modern vision of hell, the novel charts the protagonist's search for love in a stark and largely loveless world. Fantasy and reality fuse in this chaotic romp that hooks you from it's opening sentence. Prepare to be entertained and occasionally confused - but in a good way.