There’s been a lot of positive press around Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart. And, it won the Booker Prize. It’s the story of a broken family in Glasgow and how the children, particularly the youngest, cope with their mother’s alcoholism. At the same time, Shuggie struggles with his own sexuality. It was a wonderful book, so so sad, yet such a good story. I wondered from the acknowledgments if it was autobiographical. It seems that it is. I plan to spend some more time reading about Douglas Stuart. My only complaint (and the reason I didn’t give it 5-stars) was again, as with the last one I read, the length. It was unnecessarily long, though again, the back third was gripping enough to keep it going. Be prepared, though, it’s just startlingly sad. Knowing the author’s outcome gives it more hope, but…