BOOK OF THE MONTH
Shuggie Bain: A Novel
Winner of the 2020 Booker Prize, Shuggie Bain is a stunning debut novel by a masterful writer telling the heartwrenching story of a young boy and his alcoholic mother, whose love is only matched by her pride. Recalling the work of Édouard Louis, Alan Hollinghurst, Frank McCourt, and Hanya Yanagihara, Shuggie Bain is an epic portrayal of a working-class family that is rarely seen in fiction.
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Community Reviews
This one was hard to rate... 4 stars for the story and some of the writing. 2 stars for the sludge of endless bad things and the just overall depressing story of such a young kid. I don't mind a sad story, but this was such an odd mix of heavy and light - what Shuggie dealt with was so heavy, but it was written with such a light hand. It felt aloof and unemotional, which was weird considering everything Shuggie dealt with.
It was also hard to feel anything for his mother. Especially once we got some of her back-story, which was quite lovely compared to everything else. I still enjoyed this one. Just not enough to give any more than 3 stars. Perhaps I missed some of the nuance intended from the author...?
It was also hard to feel anything for his mother. Especially once we got some of her back-story, which was quite lovely compared to everything else. I still enjoyed this one. Just not enough to give any more than 3 stars. Perhaps I missed some of the nuance intended from the author...?
I actually really enjoyed this, although it's definitely poverty porn at its finest. The people and the landscape are unrelentingly bleak - the place is horrible, the people are horrible and yet somehow it takes hold of your imagination and you find yourself strangely enjoying it. Very well written too - I can see why it won The Booker.
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