These are independent reviews of the products mentioned, but TIME receives a commission when purchases are made through affiliate links at no additional cost to the purchaser.
In Young Mungo, the second novel from Douglas Stuart after his Booker Prize-winning 2020 debut Shuggie Bain, a burgeoning secret love between two young Scottish men is threatened by the harsh realities of their working class community. Stuart’s story centers on Mungo and James, two friends turned lovers from different religious backgrounds who must hide their relationship from their families and their peers in their Glasgow neighborhood, where the code of masculinity is as narrow as it is strict. Adding to their adversity is Mungo’s turbulent home life, where he fields abuse from his mother and observes his brother’s actions as the leader of a local gang. —Cady Lang
Buy Now: Young Mungo on Bookshop | Amazon
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Why Trump’s Message Worked on Latino Men
- What Trump’s Win Could Mean for Housing
- The 100 Must-Read Books of 2024
- Sleep Doctors Share the 1 Tip That’s Changed Their Lives
- Column: Let’s Bring Back Romance
- What It’s Like to Have Long COVID As a Kid
- FX’s Say Nothing Is the Must-Watch Political Thriller of 2024
- Merle Bombardieri Is Helping People Make the Baby Decision