Shuggie Bain: A Novel

Behold, the heart of Shuggie Bain, Douglas Stuart’s ’s achingly beautiful 2020 debut of the same name. Glasgow’s young Shuggie, who “wasn’t really one or the other”--Catholic or Protestant, boy or man, right or “no right”--is nonetheless fastidiously loyal to his alcoholic mammy. Twice-divorced Agnes Bain can initially hide the wreckage of “the drink.” Vibrant, well-spoken, and pretty, at first Agnes doesn’t show lines on her face, water in her eyes: “Every day with the makeup on...she climbed out of her grave and held her head high...put on her best coat, and faced the world. When her belly was empty and her weans were hungry, she did her hair and let the world think otherwise.”Neighbors gossip and teachers fret, but really, “no one sees the flying woman.” Everyone leaves her: Agnes’ husbands and lovers, her daughter, her son. But Shuggie sees her. He’ll never leave. “I’d do anything for you,” he tells Agnes, when she trades buying him food for more of her drink.After one too many lagers unravels Agnes’ life like the “toe to waist” run in her Pretty Pollys, though, Shuggie—having devoted his school days to buying her lager with food money, putting her to bed, and believing her promises to “give up the drink” and “get a job like other mammies”—wonders, “Why can’t I be enough?”Every child of an alcoholic has asked herself that question. And if anything were ever enough to pull a parent from alcoholism, it would Shuggie—a selfless, earnest, honest, boy whose optimism is exceptionally buoyant. Shuggie is nothing if not wholly dedicated to Agnes’ happiness, her survival. But then, every child of an alcoholic knows that even the most perfect daughter or son is no cure for the urge to drink. Anyone who’s watched their parent stumble through the door, slur meaningless yet wicked insults, reach for another drink while their child goes hungry in belly and soul knows they aren’t as important as the next bottle or can, who takes off their parent’s shoes mid-day and tucks them into bed—these readers will weep.And, at Shuggie’s side, like the coins he feeds and robs and feeds the electric meter, they’ll believe the promises to quit, hold out hope the AA will keep them clean, be the parent till the parent can gets back on his or her feet. The reader flinches at the blatant truths, and at the ‘skills’ with which Shuggie ‘survives’ ten years in the “new economy of the scheme”—the Eighties. Starved, neglected, abused, molested, and isolated, Shuggie wears his suffering on his jumper. But also, he knows Agnes doesn’t want to live like this.Stylistically, the omniscient narrator uses heavy metaphor to put images into context young Shuggie can understand. Every “like” and “as” at once clarifies otherwise ungraspable, while distancing Shuggie from reality. From the opening line—“The day was flat,” throughout the central “limpet” theme, onto the conclusion, where, “like a tugboat,” Shuggie nudges his friend’s shoulder, metaphor gives Shuggie a lens through which he can understand his world. And it is his world. Time is measured by plastic ponies and little green men.Stuart’s portrait—equally Shuggie’s and Agnes’—is imperfect. It’s sometimes rugged, always raw. But an exceptionally tight, polished tale wouldn’t make any sense. Readers who know the drink firsthand can relate. And those who are fortunate not to know the drink, they will forever see alcoholism differently. This is a story of empathy.

In September, the book discussion group at The LGBT Center in NYC had a fabulous group of both live and Zoom attendees to discuss this novel.One reader sent me an email saying that he couldn't attend the discussion because it was too sad and disturbing, and a few of the attendees said that they were having a hard time finishing it because of the subject matter. But even those who had a hard time with the content thought that it was very well written and deserved the 2020 Booker Award.A few readers also had problems with the dialect and Scottish slang. We decoded a few terms determining that "messages" are errands, "jankey" is run-down and undesirable, "jakey" is an old homeless alcoholic, and "papped" is beat down. Even the slang in the novel is sad and depressing.Each chapter is a standalone story that advances the fall of  Shuggie and/or his alcoholic mother Agnes. The depiction of co-dependency and alcoholism is accurate, thorough, and sad.One of the most common criticisms was that the novel should have been called "Agnes Bain" since it was more about her than Shuggie. I think that the novel was largely told from Shuggie's point of view, even if some of the chapters include information that only Agnes could have known. She would have told Shuggie these stories, at some point. There was also a criticism that (especially for a queer group), there wasn't enough gay content for Shuggie, but Shuggie is very young, pre-pubescent, and he's clearly an outsider in a number of ways, including his sexuality. And the two incidents where he's abused (by Bonny Johnny and the cab driver) are enough.The other common criticism was that the novel was too long. Some of the stories don't especially contribute to the Agnes-and-Shuggie narrative (such as Catherine’s attack and near-rape, and Leek's misadventure while stealing copper) and only contribute to the feeling of "poverty porn" in the novel.There was also a complaint that some of the stories seem to be "gilding the lily." (What's the opposite of this? "Soiling the lily" or "fouling the compost heap"?)  Shuggie's stories seem integral and make him seem heroic at times. A few of Agnes' stories (such as her throwing a trash can through the window and hiding under the coats after her attack at the New Year's Eve party) seem contrived and unconvincing. On the other hand, the story of Agnes and the now-sober garage attendant, who quickly and accurately identifies Agnes as a fellow drinker looking to hock her coat, rings very true. Outside  her year in AA, Agnes' story is an endless horror show, and we can debate how many times this has to be repeated.Having said that, there is some joy and humor in the story: Agnes and Shuggie steal flowers for their garden, Eugene takes Agnes to a Wild West-themed club, Shuggie makes friends and helps a girl with a similarly alcoholic mother, and some exchanges with Agnes' drunken girlfriend Jinty are very funny (including "You know there is a big difference between enjoying a quiet drink and selling yourself for a prescription, don't ye think?")The novel "The End of Eddy" by Edouard Louis, which we read a few years ago, contains a similar amount of violence and homophobia, but in France. In US culture, the first two-thirds of the movie "Moonlight" suggest a "Shuggie Bain" level of poverty, but in Miami and with drugs rather than alcohol.We generally agreed that this is a sometimes tough but definitely worthy read. We're looking forward to reading Stuart's follow-up novel "Young Mungo," a gay love story, which is also getting great reviews.

An outstanding debut indeed. It's a gripping study of a little boy's relationship with his alcoholic mother. It's plain, artless and very genuine, bleak but not devoid of love and hope, full of true emotions. Definitely worth giving a try.

It is a long time since a novel has had such a profound effect on me. The book tells the story of a boy’s childhood and teen years in the rather rough-and-tumble world of Glasgow in the 1970s and 1980s. Shuggie grows up in a grim, lower-class environment, in which the ordinary difficulties of life are magnified by the unemployment and economic woes brought on by the policies of Margaret Thatcher. Despite his intelligence, Shuggie senses that he is “different” without fully understanding how or why. His dysfunctional family consists of a dissolute father, who soon abandons the family, a step-brother and step-sister neither of whom is particularly close to him, and his mother to whom he is absolutely devoted. Unfortunately, his mother is also an alcoholic and her disease provides the prime motivation for the events of the novel. It would be incorrect to say that I “enjoyed” the novel for it is hard to enjoy such a tale of unrelieved woe. Shuggie’s attempts to deal with the problems of his family while simultaneously surviving in an unsympathetic and occasionally violent world are heart-wrenching. The author’s skill at recreating the events of Shuggie’s life and at capturing the atmosphere of the era (in, at times, a wonderful Scottish dialect) make this an unforgettable read.

While reading this book, I remembered "For Bread Alone", a biography by Mohammad Chokri, in which he talks about his brutal childhood in Morocco. Since then, I had that question: if this child had been born in a developed country, would things have been different? Shuggie Bain answers my question by saying: not necessarily.The novel is a coming-of-age story about a child growing up in a poor workers' class in Scotland during the 1980s and 1990s. Shuggie suffers while being in a dysfunctional family. His mother suffers from alcoholism after the father left her for another woman. The novel explores the themes of poverty, violence, drugs, sexuality, prostitution and of course alcoholism. I felt the protagonist's pain on each page while looking for love, safety and belonging, which every child wants. Another thing: I do not usually prefer to have LGTBQ+ themes in a novel because this topic has become more like a check list to please the current audience. But in this novel, it was essential to include it to enforce the theme of alienation among peers, especially since people were not really that open towards this community during that period.Highly recommended!

The Book beautifully depicts the scenario of 90’s Glasgow. It is a warming book about a never-give-up relationship between a mother and a son. How far can Shuggie go for his alcoholic mother to provide a better life for her? Penned down exquisitely by Stuart

I really liked the book and I recommend it to everyone. The story is nothing new, alcoholic mother with gay son, but it's written in a fantastic, incredible way. Some chapters are pule style, you will always remember them. Maybe with 100 less pages it would have been more perfect, but you will never regret reaing this book.

An absolutely brilliantly written book set in Glasgow in the 80's about a son's relationship with his addict mother. It made me cry and laugh, the portrayal of poverty, abuse and addiction told through the eyes of a child is heartbreaking