A year and a half after his first intended visit to the Library in March 2020, AuthorsLive was finally excited to welcome novelist Douglas Stuart to Greenwich Library. He read from and discussed his debut novel "Shuggie Bain," the unforgettable story of young Hugh “Shuggie” Bain, a sweet and lonely boy who spends his 1980's childhood in run-down public housing in Glasgow, Scotland. Thatcher’s policies have put husbands and sons out of work, and the city’s notorious drug epidemic is waiting in the wings.
"Shuggie Bain" is the winner of the 2020 Booker Prize, a New York Times Bestseller, and a Finalist for the National Book Award.
Douglas Stuart was in conversation with Barbara Hoffert of Library Journal.
Shuggie’s mother Agnes walks a wayward path: she is Shuggie’s guiding light but a burden for him and his brothers and sisters. It is, among other things, the story of Shuggie's intense love for his mother, who is, at times, very difficult to love. His older siblings break free from the situation, leaving him to care for her as she swings between alcoholic binges and attempts at sobriety. Shuggie is meanwhile struggling to somehow become the normal boy he desperately longs to be, but everyone has realized that he is “no right,” a boy with a secret that all but him can see. Agnes is supportive of her son, but her addiction has the power to eclipse everyone close to her—even her beloved Shuggie.
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