Iain Banks

The terribly sad news of the death of Iain Banks, following his recent cancer diagnosis, is a dreadful loss for Scotland and for book lovers all over the world. Iain’s first novel – The Wasp Factory – once read, never forgotten. Its horrifying conclusion about the identity of the main protagonist, is one of the most memorable in 20th Century Scottish writing. If that was some ending then, “It was the day my Grandmother exploded” was some beginning. A memorable first line to “The Crow Road”, sitting alongside Complicity, The Bridge and many others as amongst the most engaging, humourous and thoughtful novels of the time. And while Iain was clearly, undeniably, unashamedly and proudly Scottish, his novels, though often set in his homeland, had international appeal. As a book lover from Scotland, Iain was definitely Iain, never Banks. His friendly, avuncular, chummy nature could set an audience at ease, whether at a book festival or in a pub. He was in many ways the man next door, but he had a talent which set him apart, even from fellow writers. It seems sad to consider that his forthcoming novel ‘The Quarry’ will not be followed by any others. His vivid imagination was undoubtedly already working away on new plots and we have been cheated of the product of his remarkable, fertile mind. At the age of only 59, in a profession from which few retire, Iain could easily have produced a further dozen to twenty novels, especially if he had kept up his incredibly book a year productivity. If you do one thing this year, read or re-read at least one of Iain’s novels. You won’t regret it.