20/06/2008 06:00:00
Dundee is expecting book lovers to descend upon the city in their thousands this weekend for the Dundee Literary Festival.
In its second year, this year's festival features guests such as Ian Rankin, James Kelman and Rosamunde Pilcher and promises to demonstrate that Dundee is capable of enjoying culture as much as Scotland's more traditional festival cities, like Edinburgh.
The BBC reports that the festival's Director, Anna Day, stated: "People have this view of Dundee that we don't enjoy culture in maybe the same way as Edinburgh, but it's not true - Dundonians love reading.
"We've got the highest level of book buying in Scotland, so people do love books and I think it is shown because it's a really well supported event."
The Dundee Literary Festival will not limit itself to celebrating books and authors that have already gained success in publishing, but will also offer visitors the chance to attend workshops on creative writing, getting published and writing for television.
The festival will close with an event dedicated to the development of comic books and graphic novels - from their origins to what the future may have in store for them.
The Tayside festival is not the only literary celebration getting underway in Scotland this weekend, however. In the south of Scotland, the fifth annual Borders Book Festival in Melrose will enjoy similar events, including the addition of the new Scottish Book of the Year awards.
In fact, book festivals take place in major Scottish cities throughout the year. In August, the International Book Festival in Edinburgh will bring visitors from across the world to celebrate its 25th year, while in March, Glasgow's first book festival, Aye Write!, enjoyed a successful third run.