Shuggie Bain (2020)
Who wrote it?
Douglas Stuart (1976- ; active 2020- ), born Sighthill, Glasgow, Scotland. The youngest of three siblings, he was raised in poverty by a single mother battling alcoholism and addiction. After his mother died when he was 16, he lived briefly with his brother before moving into a boarding house. He was discouraged from studying English literature at university by a teacher who said it would "not suit someone from his background", and instead studied textiles at Heriot-Watt University and then a masters from the Royal College of Art in London.
He then moved to New York City to begin a career in fashion design, working for a range of brands including Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren for over 20 years. He began writing alongside 12-hour shifts as senior designer at Banana Republic. Prior to the arrival of Shuggie Bain, Stuart had published only a few pieces (an essay on Lithub and a short story in The New Yorker.) Despite favourable reactions, his debut novel was rejected by 32 US publishers and more than a dozen in the UK, many of whom suggested it would be difficult to market.
Shuggie Bain is only the second novel by a Scottish-born author to win the Prize, following How Late It Was, How Late in 1994 by James Kelman, who Stuart cites as a major influence. Stuart now lives in Manhattan with his husband Michael Cary, with his second novel Young Mungo due for publication in 2022.
What's it about?
Shuggie Bain is a deeply personal story, clearly heavily influenced by Stuart’s own childhood, of a caring but “different” child, Hugh “Shuggie” Bain growing up in 1980s Glasgow with his alcoholic mother, Agnes. The book begins with the pair (and Shuggie’s two siblings Leek and Catherine) living with Agnes’ parents and Shuggie’s father “Shug” in Glasgow tenements. Shug moves the family to the isolated mining “scheme” accommodation of Pithill, before abandoning them to move in with another woman. Agnes is glamorous but unfulfilled, taking refuge in alcohol which worsens as her parents die and her daughter marries young and moves to South Africa.
The novel contains a period of hope, when Agnes attends AA meetings and is sober for over a year, during which time she meets a cab driver, Eugene, who is uncomfortable with her “disease” and eventually encourages her to drink a glass of wine with a meal, believing she will be able to control herself and be “normal” as a result. She, of course, relapses into worsening alcoholism. During all of this Shuggie is effectively his mother’s carer, a role which he unquestioningly fills despite the neglect he suffers as a result. Alongside this he is bullied by neighbours, schoolmates and even teachers for his lack of conventional “manly” interests (largely in football and girls.) Eventually he moves back to central Glasgow with his mother, but her condition further deteriorates. Following her death, Shuggie moves in briefly with his brother Leek, but is last seen forming a new life of sorts, aided by meeting something of a kindred spirit in his friend Leanne, with whom he is able to start beginning to talk about and explore his identity.
What I liked
As just about every reviewer has said, this is just a beautifully written novel. Heartbreakingly sad, but filled with warmth and love and able to extract moments of dazzling beauty from the most unlikely situations.
In the wrong hands, this could easily have been an impossibly bleak read. Of course, it’s full of horror - violence, neglect, self-abuse - often shockingly detailed. Yet the humanity on display, notably from its titular character, makes it feel more hopeful and endearing than its subject matter really should allow for.
It’s very even-handed in its treatment of its core characters. There’s undoubtedly a lot of terrible behaviour on display from all sides, but largely its characters’ mistakes and sins are presented relatively neutrally, and as the product of a broken system rather than (entirely) of individual poor decisions.
It feels extremely true. Its basis in a lived reality comes through without knowing any details of Stuart’s biography, but over and above that it is full of tiny insights that go beyond the obvious in revealing the truth behind the suffering of its characters.
In Shuggie and Agnes we have two of the most memorable characters in Booker history. Once encountered, neither will be easily forgotten.
Its treatment of toxic masculinity and Shuggie’s suffering as a result of it is excellent and timely. It’s hard to find a positive male role model in the book’s pages, and even those with ostensible good intentions towards Shuggie are desperate to help him fit in by adopting more characteristically male habits and behaviours. Ultimately it’s Shuggie’s rejection of all of these advances that strikes the most hopeful note of the whole book, finally finding himself an ally (other than his doomed mother) who is willing to accept him for who he is and engage with beginning to understand and build on his own identity.
I would also strongly commend Stuart’s descriptions of the physicality of the anxiety experienced by Shuggie. It’s clearly graphically based on his own lived experience, and something I’ve never seen tackled so well in any other novel.
While we know Stuart himself managed to transcend his upbringing, I think it’s positive that we leave Shuggie without necessarily knowing his final destination. It leaves a note of openness and thoughtfulness to the novel’s conclusion, while also avoiding cliched tropes in other working class novels (such as the otherwise great Seventies winner, Saville, where the hero ends the novel off to “that London” with a bunch of poetry books in hand.)
What I didn’t like
Probably only really the fact that I could have read so much more of it!
It goes without saying that for many readers, there will be triggering content present here. For pretty much any reader, there will be moments that shock and even anger. Those are typically the most powerful moments of the novel, but obvi0usly won’t be easy for many. Eugene’s behaviour in encouraging Agnes’ relapse is particularly harrowing to read, and the part that almost had me literally screaming “NOOOO!!!” at the book’s pages in frustration.
Food & drink pairings
Special Brew, unrefrigerated, in a mug
Tinned custard
Booker promo, Covid style.
Fun facts
After the previous year’s controversy, the judges came to a quick and unanimous decision over the 2020 winner. Apparently “further guidelines” were added post-2019 (around a requirement for a majority vote to avoid future ties) - but given that there was already technically a rule in place to prevent this dating back to 1992, I’m not fully sure how much we can trust that this is a final “problem solved” on that particular issue…
Stuart has dual American/British citizenship, making him he third “American” winner of the Prize since the rule change, but of course he would have been eligible anyway due to his Scottish birth, so that sort of renders the point a bit irrelevant. More worthy of note is perhaps the fact that five out of the six nominees had US citizenship of some sort.
Normally announced at a formal dinner in London’s Guildhall, due to the ongoing Covid-19 Pandemic, the 2020 winner was announced in a BBC broadcast from the Roundhouse in Chalk Farm, north London, with the shortlisted authors joining by video link from their homes around the world
Four of the six nominees in 2020 were for debuts, presumably a record.
American independent production company A24 have bought the rights for a television adaptation, with Scott Rudin and Eli Bush as producers and Stuart himself set to adapt the novel.
Vanquished Foes
Diane Cook (The New Wilderness)
Tsitsi Dangarembga (This Mournable Body)
Avni Doshi (Burnt Sugar)
Maaza Mengiste (The Shadow King)
Brandon Taylor (Real Life)
The Women's Prize went to Maggie O'Farrell's Hamnet, which triumphed in a list including 2019 Booker winner Girl, Woman, Other and Hilary Mantel's The Mirror and the Light - the final part of her Cromwell trilogy in which the previous two novels were both Booker winners, but this one didn't even make the shortlist.
Context
In 2020:
Covid-19 pandemic dominates pretty much everything, leading to global lockdowns, disruptions and major event cancellations and postponements, as well as the largest recession since the 1930s
Simultaneously a terrible year for climate change, with major bushfires in Australia and US amongst the headline incidents
Murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis leads to protests across the US and around the world against racism and police brutality
First impeachment trial of US President Trump in January
United Kingdom formally withdraws from the EU on January 31st, with a transition period expiring on December 31st (a trade agreement is achieved just a week before this final deadline)
Postponement of major events include Euro 2020, Copa America, Eurovision Song Contest, Tour de France, Tokyo Olympics, among many others
Costa Rica is first central American country to legalise same-sex marriage
China introduces sweeping legislation aimed to suppress the Hong Kong democracy movement
Russia passes legislation which could allow Putin to remain in power until 2036
Massive explosion caused by unsafely stored ammonium nitrate devastates Beirut
Africa declares polio eridicated in the continent
Japan's longest-serving PM Shinzo Abe resigns due to ill health
New Zealand's Labour Party under Jacinda Ardern wins landslide second term
Joe Biden elected as 46th President of the USA
US formally withdraws from Paris Agreement on Climate Change and Open Skies Treaty with Russia
Rapid development of Covid vaccines, with Pfizer/BioNTech the first to be approved for use in December in the UK
Hilary Mantel, The Mirror and The Light
Ali Smith, Summer
Barack Obama, A Promised Land
Nomadland
Promising Young Woman
Tenet
Dua Lipa, Future Nostalgia
Taylor Swift, Folklore / Evermore
The Weeknd, After Hours
J Hus, Big Conspiracy
Life Lessons
Addiction is a bad old business
Toxic masculinity: also awful
Hope resides in unlikely places
Score
9.5
Wonderful book, and absolutely up there with the best winners.
Ranking to date:
Lincoln in the Bardo - George Saunders (2017) - 10
The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro (1989) - 9.5
Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie (1981) - 9.5
Disgrace - J. M. Coetzee (1999) - 9.5
The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Richard Flanagan (2014) - 9.5
Shuggie Bain - Douglas Stuart (2020) - 9.5
Girl, Woman, Other - Bernardine Evaristo (2019) - 9
The Line of Beauty - Alan Hollinghurst (2004) - 9
Moon Tiger - Penelope Lively (1987) - 9
A Brief History of Seven Killings - Marlon James (2015) - 9
The White Tiger - Aravind Adiga (2008) - 9
Sacred Hunger - Barry Unsworth (1992) - 9
Oscar & Lucinda - Peter Carey (1988) - 9
The Sea, The Sea - Iris Murdoch (1978) - 9
Life & Times of Michael K. - J. M. Coetzee (1983) - 9
The God of Small Things - Arundhati Roy (1997) - 9
Schindler’s Ark - Thomas Keneally (1982) - 9
The Inheritance of Loss - Kiran Desai (2006) - 9
Life of Pi - Yann Martel (2002) - 8.5
Bring Up The Bodies - Hilary Mantel (2012) - 8.5
The Bone People - Keri Hulme (1985) - 8.5
How Late it Was, How Late - James Kelman (1994) - 8.5
Troubles - J.G. Farrell (1970, "Lost Booker") - 8.5
The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes (2011) - 8
The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood (2000) - 8
Possession - A. S. Byatt (1990) - 8
Wolf Hall - Hilary Mantel (2009) - 8
The Testaments - Margaret Atwood (2019) - 8
Milkman - Anna Burns (2018) - 8
The Sellout - Paul Beatty (2016) - 8
Saville - David Storey (1976) - 8
The Luminaries - Eleanor Catton (2013) - 8
The Sea - John Banville (2005) - 8
The Siege of Krishnapur - J.G. Farrell (1973) - 8
Vernon God Little - DBC Pierre (2003) - 7.5
The English Patient - Michael Ondaatje (1992) - 7.5
The Finkler Question - Howard Jacobson (2010) - 7.5
Rites of Passage - William Golding (1980) - 7.5
The Gathering - Anne Enright (2007) - 7.5
True History of the Kelly Gang - Peter Carey (2001) - 7.5
Offshore - Penelope Fitzgerald (1979) - 7.5
Last Orders - Graham Swift (1996) - 7
The Elected Member - Bernice Rubens (1970) - 7
The Conservationist - Nadine Gordimer (1974) - 7
Holiday - Stanley Middleton (1974) - 7
Heat & Dust - Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (1975) - 6.5
In a Free State* - V.S. Naipaul (1971) - 6.5
Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha - Roddy Doyle (1993) - 6
G. - John Berger (1972) - 6
The Famished Road - Ben Okri (1991) - 6
Something to Answer For - P. H. Newby (1969) - 5.5
The Ghost Road** - Pat Barker (1995) - 5.5
Staying On - Paul Scott (1977) - 5
Amsterdam - Ian McEwan (1998) - 5
Hotel du Lac - Anita Brookner (1984) - 4.5
The Old Devils - Kingsley Amis (1986) - 4
*Read in later condensed edition.
**Third part of a trilogy of which I hadn’t read pts 1&2
Next up
It’s (for now at least) the last one! 2021 winner The Promise by Damon Galgut will mark the end of my journey, a mere 18(ish) months after it began…
