Douglas Stuart: The Making of Shuggie Bain

[@marleneraum4837]

I want to hug Douglas Stuart for writing this book. I wept for Agnes and Leek and Shuggie. I want to hug him for bringing these emotions to the pages of this book. I smiled and wept at the idea of shuggie feeling enough joy to pirouette at the end. Perfect.

[@jennifergargiulo4526]

This novel will indeed break your heart. Reading it now and trying to not race to the end. A big congratulations to the author Douglas Stuart for writing such a beautiful story and bringing to life the memorable characters!

[@beamarin7221]

I’m still recovering from several stabs on my heart… Shuggy’s panic and soul-crashing offer once he realizes he has no money to pay the cab, Leek’s 2-year old art school letter, Agnes’s vulnerability during her first AA meeting, seeing how the mother of Shuggy’s friend is on the street, exactly how Leek predicted Agnes would end, had she not died sooner, the beatings at school, Catherine’s need to remain away… and (too) many more. But it is so well written, that you go through this with full awareness as if it happened to you, and so your own coping mechanisms gear up and, with this, love and laughter. Shuggy Bain is absolutely astounding.

[@lisalove3460]

I've just finished listening to this book over a couple of days and I've never been so touched by a book and I've read hundreds. I really feel a void. Was so nice to have shuggie, leak and Agnes in my life for a wee while. 💙

[@kotkabehemotka]

I just finished Shuggie today. Thank you so much, Douglas. I loved it so much. Beautifully written.

[@sammc2601]

Did anyone catch the movie Douglas mentions as inspiration for Pithead? Just finished the book this morning; began it yesterday. Such beautiful writing it was a book I felt I had to make time to read straight through; the writer and characters deserved that respect. The final Agnes chapter gutted me. I was so happy that Suggie pirouettes at the end; I smiled ear to ear and cried happily for him.

[@jpattarb]

The film he mentions is My Ain Folk directed by Bill Douglas. He says it's part of a trilogy, but with a quick Google search you'll find a link for the film on Vimeo! :)

[@utkarshpanwar8067]

This comment made my day!

[@berglind1860]

About this book - seriously - I have never read such real and empathetic and understanding and loving portrayals of women - I just realised how much I have been missing this in my life 💕

[@karenmccartney9514]

After reading this amazing novel, I feel I know it's characters intimately, especially Agnes. Douglas Stuart has turned a story that could have been another "misery memoir" into a novel about love, endurance and survival. It is authentic, enlightening and unforgettable all the way through.

[@mattheww9317]

I have a feeling this video is about to get a lot more views. Congrats on the booker!

[@praveenraina]

Right bro

[@rumbidzaimunochiveyi7883]

I am here because of the Booker win. 😊

[@georgepetroff867]

Thanks. Great interview. Shuggie Bain is a very endearing, compelling, compassionate, sad, tragic, worthwhile read.

[@hvanderf]

His words bring pictures to my mind and descriptions of the characters and places seem alive and REAL. Thankful for pieces of art like this and am a musician appreciative of fine literature such as this.

[@Mejuz]

Am just now reading Shuggie Bain - and love it! My mum was an alcoholic and we dealt with the many contradictions, the pain, but also the love and joy we (my brother and I) experienced. It was not in Scotland, we grew up in Switzerland, and it was a few years later than Douglas' story's set - so, there are many differences. But there are also a lot of similarities, and it's great to read sb else's fictionalised take their childhood with a beloved & problematic alcoholic parent. Fantastic talk!

[@TANG3RINE95]

Such a great conversation. Thanks for uploading!

[@jakehjortland]

Thank you for this and thank you Douglas! The audiobook is so good!

[@viviengunewardena6600]

A story about love , life , families and Glasgow ……I will miss them a hard read but beautifully written .

[@cmacmenow]

Wonderful, searingly honest and emotionally raw novel that got me through my Covid days and beyond! A dark, resonantly immersive book - but not always dark!-for darker times.With the whisper of better times to come. Read it three times and I'm sure I will again in the Spring.

[@frankpercy5419]

Just finished your novel Douglas and it had me from page one. I'm wrecked-but I'll come back stronger for it.

[@michaelmcclafferty3346]

Just finished reading Shuggie Bain and it’s pure dead brilliant. It’s so immersive and honest. A massive well done to Douglas Stuart and thanks too to Damian Barr for such an insightful interview. If you liked Shuggie, I also recommend ‘Poverty Safari’ by Darren McGarvey.

[@balmuis]

I loved this book, reading it with our bookclub in the Netherlands. My first book with some glaswegian was buddah dah which I bought years ago when on holiday in Scotland, something completely different but I loved it as well

[@krishnathapa177]

Namaste... must be wonderful novel .. just bought this afternoon in Kathmandu...

[@avrilridge9055]

Such a great book. A classic. A hard read at times (emotions got the better of me) but he had you rooting for Agnes, Shuggie and Leek. So gutted when Agnes fell off the wagon. I was hoping she'd make it.

[@jojojam6012]

Stuarts portrayal of these Glaswegians who are constantly reminded that even nothing is too much for them reads like Dantes Inferno. Funnily enough it's also a heartwarming book.

[@c.vanroosen5545]

What a fantastic, brilliant guy!

[@ashwiniabhyankar5109]

Have reached The East End now. Shuggie takes you through a range of emotions. Hard to believe it's a debut novel. Well deserved - the Booker Prize!

[@robertopetrazzuolo4749]

You are AMAZING, Stuart! I can't wait to start reading your book! Greetings from Italy :)

[@robertopetrazzuolo4749]

I did read it, btw. I literally....necked it down, lol And I absolutely LOVED every single page! Well done, I am sure you will go places!

[@fionaodea5098]

Great interview!

[@mikhailareads7405]

Great convo!

[@T1marias]

My review: Shuggie Bain is the youngest of three siblings who is the main carer for his alcoholic and drug addict Mother, Agnes in a poor working class district in Glasgow and starts in the 1940's right upto the 1990s. There was not much work left in the town as the steel works and ironworks had closed down. Shuggie has other demons to wrestle with which includes his sexuality as he is known to be very effeminate. When Shuggie goes to school he is bullied and is left starving because the bullies have taken his lunch. He suffers from anxiety every time he comes through his own front door as he does not know what state his Mother, Agnes will be in. This is a sad story which will move the reader to tears as Shuggie struggles to take care of his Mother when his Father leaves them for another woman their world falls apart in more ways than one. Agnes relies on Government benefits to feed her brood but first and foremost the money was spent on alcohol and little happy pills to get her through each day. She relies on catalogues and buy now pay later schemes in order to furnish the home and clothe her children which pushes her into more debt. We see the well dressed and articulated Agnes at the beginning of the book who takes pride in her appearance but after Shug her husband left her and the children in order to not only make a new life with another woman but to break Agnes so that no one else would want her. Loved the humour in this book too for instance page 43, a passenger in Shug's taxi cab talks about her boys losing their jobs and she talks about the unemployed going to South Africa to build boats and Shug tells her no they go to South Africa to mine diamonds. She then replies "Well I don't care what they mine, they could be pulling licorice out a black man's arse for all I care. But they should be working here at home in Glasgow and earning their mammy's cooking." This book is so moving and Douglas the author brings the family to life on every page.

[@RubenDario-hr4iq]

I can't wait to read that novel.

[@plmurphy78]

Does anyone know who the Irish woman talking about climate change is in the intro? Thanks

[@edbookfest]

It's Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. There's a video of a live event with her on the ebookfest's channel if you're interested..

[@plmurphy78]

@@edbookfest much appreciated

[@transferdatathreewally24]

Shuggie has something precious. He has hope. He is gentle and orderly as well. The last line about doing a little dance. Hope surpasses all riches in my opinion. The mother was perhaps overly indulged it would seem. Alcohol is such a waster of people. So, I don't say poor old shuggie. Shuggie has insight and hope.

[@thefabfin]

Forget "Glasgow's Miles Better"! "Women are the strength of Glasgow"''s miles, miles better

[@daughterofclair]

I am so enjoying reading this beautiful book. The only problem I have found is that the writer consistently uses the verbs “sat” and “stood” incorrectly, which is somewhat jarring. I struggled to fathom how these errors had ever got past an editor, then discovered it was published in America. I find this odd, as Americans are much better at teaching grammar than we have been, historically, in the UK.

[@caspos1987]

Can I just say that Shuggie Bain being labelled as “gay novel/gay literature” is fucking infuriating to me. It’s not a “gay” book. It’s more than that!

[@engelberthumperdinck7366]

Good read next try THE INCREDIBLE RISE OF A GORBALS GANGSTER BRILLIANT AMAZON BOOKS COLIN MACFARLANE

[@robi9558]

A book mainly about hate - not love. The focus is the catastrophic consequences of hate inflicted by Shug and Eugene.