--- description: Find out why Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart is on TIME's list of the must-read books from this year. title: 'Shuggie Bain' Is One of the 100 Must-Read Books of 2020 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0938f7d7e70c1a3d/698a140e86f68e4f726ef651/best-books-2020-Shuggie-Bain.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Nov 09, 2020 # Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart by [TIME Staff](/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  In 1980s Glasgow, much abandons Hugh “Shuggie” Bain’s mother: her charming, abusive husband; the elder two of her three children, who choose to save themselves as she descends further into alcoholism; her dream of owning a house with a front door. In this heartbreaking debut novel by Douglas Stuart—the only [2020 book](https://time.com/5773086/best-books-february-2020/ "undefined") that was both shortlisted for the Booker Prize and a National Book Award finalist—Shuggie is left to look after her as she continues to descend into tragedy. But Shuggie himself is struggling as he attempts to make sense of his sexuality and to determine his own lot in life as everyone around him suspects he is “no right.” Together, their story provides a beautiful portrait of how the Scottish working class persevered through the scarcity of Thatcherism—imperfections be damned—with an abundance of love. **Buy Now:** _Shuggie Bain_ on [Bookshop](https://bookshop.org/a/4973/9780802148049 "undefined") | [Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0802148506/ref=as%5Fli%5Fqf%5Fasin%5Fil%5Ftl?ie=UTF8&tag=time-books-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=0802148506&linkId=906c44bf10949b3da225671b0f9c1a0c "undefined") 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. Shuggie Bain: 100 Must-Read Books of 2020 ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2020/5904317/shuggie-bain/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2020/5904317/shuggie-bain/"},"headline":"'Shuggie Bain' Is One of the 100 Must-Read Books of 2020","datePublished":"2020-11-09T20:03:54.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-02T23:44:20.927Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2020/5904317/shuggie-bain/","keywords":["E-Commerce","Books","list"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0938f7d7e70c1a3d/698a140e86f68e4f726ef651/best-books-2020-Shuggie-Bain.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0938f7d7e70c1a3d/698a140e86f68e4f726ef651/best-books-2020-Shuggie-Bain.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/must-read-books-2020/5904317/shuggie-bain/","name":"'Shuggie Bain' Is One of the 100 Must-Read Books of 2020"}}]}] ```