INTRODUCTION
The proposer said that the author was born in Glasgow in 1977. Douglas Stuart was brought up in Sighthill in the East End of Glasgow and went to school in Pollock. Having never known his father he was brought up by his mother who was an alcoholic. He grew up incredibly poor, raised on benefits, the queer son of a single mother who died of her addiction when he was only 15.
He then lived alone in a bedsit and took responsibility for his education. He was bullied at school and underperformed. He was interested in writing from an early age but never received encouragement.
He gained the qualifications required to study at Heriot-Watt School of Textiles and Design in Galashiels and then went on to obtain an MA degree from the Royal College of Art in London. He was headhunted by Calvin Klein and moved to New York 20 years ago. He is married to Michael Carry and still lives in New York.
“Shuggie Bain” was written over a period of ten years. Stuart stresses that it is not autobiographical but is a work of fiction.
He writes about poverty, addiction and homophobia, all of which he has experienced. He acknowledges that “I come from what I write about” but insists the story is fictional.
The book was written in Stuart’s spare time as a means of healing. Writing was a pleasurable activity for him and he had no thought of the book being published.
It was rejected by 32 publishers before being picked up by Grove Atlantic in the USA and then Picador in the UK. It is to be translated into 34 languages and a television adaptation is planned.
Stuart has written short stories published by the New Yorker titled “Found Wanting” and “The Englishman” He has also had work published by the Lit Hub. His second book titled “ Loch Awe “ has been written but not yet published.
He is only the second Scottish Booker Prize winner over the 51 years of its existence. The first was James Kelman for ” How late it was, how late”, winning the Booker in 1994.
The proposer chose the book for a number of reasons:
. At the time of reading it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
Speaking about the novel, he said “I did not expect it to win. I thought that the Glasgow dialect would prove to be incomprehensible to American readers. Californian friends have since advised me that their book reading group had no trouble deciphering the meaning of words or phrases and that they enjoyed the challenge.
- It describes living in Glasgow in the 80’s. A time and place I am familiar with. My mother’s family living and working in the tenemented suburbs of the city described in the novel.
- It explores the corrosive impact of alcoholism on both the individual and family. Circumstances I am also familiar with.
- I read the only other Scottish Booker prizewinner written by James Kelman “How late it was, how late”, a book exposing the grim underbelly of Glasgow. Stuart refers to Kelman as an inspiration, stating that the book “ changed my life”.
- I listened to the book on Audio and was captivated by Angus King’s use of strong Glasgow accents to bring the story to life.
- I was totally enthralled by Stuart’s descriptive powers and gripped by his characterizations.”
The images of place and grinding poverty were juxtaposed with the overarching power of love and in combination they painted a vivid picture of life on the edge.
Critics have generally been complimentary but some have thought the book would have benefited from better editing. In their view the book is overly long and deploys more adjectives than necessary.
DISCUSSION
Following on from the proposer’s indication that he was familiar with the background of Glasgow at the time the book was set in the 1980s, quite a few members indicated similar familiarity with some aspects of the background. Others however indicated the setting was wholly outside their experience. In the reviewer’s assessment, those with some familiarity with the subject matter were more disposed to like and appreciate the book than those without such experience.
Some members with some experience of communities such as described in the book considered that the portrayal was a bit grim, unremittingly bleak, and overdone slum porn.
The impression given in the book was that the conditions people were living in were not their responsibility in any respect. The book displayed a sense of victimhood.
Not all people in such communities were addicts and criminals; indeed most were hard working and keen to get an education and job.
Originally the book had been a series of vignettes of Glasgow life over which the author had labored for many years to bring to its current status. There was some debate as to whether the author had written a ‘Glasgow’ novel. The author had grown up in a Catholic family but the sectarianism of the time was underplayed and the emphasis of the book was very much about personal relationships within a family bubble, in particular the magnificent portrayal of Shuggie and his mother.
Some members approached the book with trepidation. At first sight it fitted into the popular genre of misery memoirs about family dysfunctionality, poverty, alcoholism and growing up gay in a hostile society.
Despite the subject matter, most members enjoyed and appreciated the book. It was perceptive, remarkably well written with well described characters and riveting scenes. It was formalized realism with a musical energy. Comparisons with Hardy and Dickens were mentioned. There was discussion of the significance of the different dust jackets in the UK and US editions. It was not all grim; Glasgow humour was noticeably present. The ending was very effective.
For most, these qualities outweighed the depressing subject matter which made the book a hard read. For some members though the book was too depressing to be enjoyable and one member as a result could not complete the book though acknowledging the excellence of the writing.
There was majority agreement that the book was too long, over descriptive and repetitive. Nevertheless most members considered the book as a fine novel which had been well worth reading..
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