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Online Fiction Book Group

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

2021-04-07 18:30:00 2021-04-07 19:30:00 America/New_York Online Fiction Book Group Good conversation, friendly faces and great books - that's what book group is all about. We're looking forward to seeing you at our lively and engaging online book discussion. Online Programs -

Wednesday, April 07
6:30pm - 7:30pm

Add to Calendar 2021-04-07 18:30:00 2021-04-07 19:30:00 America/New_York Online Fiction Book Group Good conversation, friendly faces and great books - that's what book group is all about. We're looking forward to seeing you at our lively and engaging online book discussion. Online Programs -

Good conversation, friendly faces and great books - that's what book group is all about. We're looking forward to seeing you at our lively and engaging online book discussion.

Meetings take place via Zoom. Registered participants will be emailed meeting information prior to the event starting.

Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart

eBook | eAudiobook | Print 

This is the unforgettable story of young Hugh "Shuggie" Bain, a sweet and lonely boy who spends his 1980s 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 drugs epidemic is waiting in the wings. Shuggie's mother Agnes walks a wayward path: she is Shuggie's guiding light but a burden for him and his siblings. She dreams of a house with its own front door while she flicks through the pages of the Freemans catalogue, ordering a little happiness on credit, anything to brighten up her grey life. Married to a philandering taxi-driver husband, Agnes keeps her pride by looking good—her beehive, make-up, and pearly-white false teeth offer a glamourous image of a Glaswegian Elizabeth Taylor. But under the surface, Agnes finds increasing solace in drink, and she drains away the lion's share of each week's benefits—all the family has to live on—on cans of extra-strong lager hidden in handbags and poured into tea mugs. Agnes's older children find their own ways to get a safe distance from their mother, abandoning Shuggie to care for her as she swings between alcoholic binges and sobriety. Meanwhile, Shuggie is 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.

A heartbreaking story of addiction, sexuality, and love, Shuggie Bain is an epic portrayal of a working-class family that is rarely seen in fiction.

AGE GROUP: | Adults (18+) |

EVENT TYPE: | Book Groups |

TAGS: | |

Online Programs


Hours
We're closed Sunday March 31 due to Easter
Mon, Mar 25 12:00AM to 11:30PM
Tue, Mar 26 12:00AM to 11:30PM
Wed, Mar 27 12:00AM to 11:30PM
Thu, Mar 28 12:00AM to 11:30PM
Fri, Mar 29 12:00AM to 11:30PM
Sat, Mar 30 12:00AM to 11:30PM
Sun, Mar 31 Closed
(Easter)

About the branch

Online Programs from the Toledo Library