Shuggie Bain
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Shuggie Bain
Buy Now for $7.99
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Angus King
-
Written by:
-
Douglas Stuart
About this listen
This is the unforgettable story of young Hugh “Shuggie” Bain, a sweet and lonely boy who spends his 1980s childhood in run-down public housing in Glasgow, Scotland. Thatcher’s policies have put husbands and sons out of work, and the city’s notorious drugs epidemic is waiting in the wings.
Shuggie’s mother Agnes walks a wayward path: She is Shuggie’s guiding light but a burden for him and his siblings. She dreams of a house with its own front door while she flicks through the pages of the Freemans catalogue, ordering a little happiness on credit, anything to brighten up her grey life. Married to a philandering taxi-driver husband, Agnes keeps her pride by looking good - her beehive, make-up, and pearly-white false teeth offer a glamourous image of a Glaswegian Elizabeth Taylor. But under the surface, Agnes finds increasing solace in drink, and she drains away the lion’s share of each week’s benefits - all the family has to live on - on cans of extra-strong lager hidden in handbags and poured into tea mugs.
Agnes’ older children find their own ways to get a safe distance from their mother, abandoning Shuggie to care for her as she swings between alcoholic binges and sobriety. Meanwhile, Shuggie is struggling to somehow become the normal boy he desperately longs to be, but everyone has realized that he is “no right”, a boy with a secret that all but him can see. Agnes is supportive of her son, but her addiction has the power to eclipse everyone close to her - even her beloved Shuggie.
A heartbreaking story of addiction, sexuality, and love, Shuggie Bain is an epic portrayal of a working-class family that is rarely seen in fiction.
©2020 Douglas Stuart (P)2020 Dreamscape Media, LLCYou may also enjoy...
-
The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida
- Written by: Shehan Karunatilaka
- Narrated by: Shivantha Wijesinha
- Length: 14 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 18
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 15
Colombo, 1990. Maali Almeida—war photographer, gambler, and closet queen—has woken up dead in what seems like a celestial visa office. His dismembered body is sinking in the serene Beira Lake and he has no idea who killed him. In a country where scores are settled by death squads, suicide bombers, and hired goons, the list of suspects is depressingly long, as the ghouls and ghosts with grudges who cluster round can attest. But even in the afterlife, time is running out for Maali.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Best book I read in years
- By Ola Chalikova on 2024-06-29
Written by: Shehan Karunatilaka
-
The Promise
- Written by: Damon Galgut
- Narrated by: Peter Noble
- Length: 9 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 67
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 56
Haunted by an unmet promise, the Swart family loses touch after the death of their matriarch. Adrift, the lives of the three siblings move separately through the uncharted waters of South Africa; Anton, the golden boy who bitterly resents his life’s unfulfilled potential; Astrid, whose beauty is her power; and the youngest, Amor, whose life is shaped by a nebulous feeling of guilt.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Brilliant
- By Joseph Fantetti on 2021-11-09
Written by: Damon Galgut
-
Prophet Song
- Written by: Paul Lynch
- Narrated by: Gerry O'Brien
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 30
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 25
On a dark, wet evening in Dublin, scientist and mother of four Eilish Stack answers her front door to find the GNSB on her step. Two officers from Ireland’s newly formed secret police are here to interrogate her husband, a trade unionist. Ireland is falling apart. The country is in the grip of a government turning towards tyranny and when her husband disappears, Eilish finds herself caught within the nightmare logic of a society that is quickly unravelling.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Gripping tale
- By Amazon Customer on 2023-12-20
Written by: Paul Lynch
-
The Wind Knows My Name
- A Novel
- Written by: Isabel Allende, Frances Riddle - translator
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Maria Liatis
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5
Vienna, 1938. Samuel Adler is five years old when his father disappears during Kristallnacht—the night his family loses everything. As her child’s safety becomes ever harder to guarantee, Samuel’s mother secures a spot for him on a Kindertransport train out of Nazi-occupied Austria to England. He boards alone, carrying nothing but a change of clothes and his violin.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Poignant and Important
- By Deb Fong on 2023-09-24
Written by: Isabel Allende, and others
-
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop
- Written by: Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan - translator
- Narrated by: Rosa Escoda
- Length: 8 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 6
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5
Yeongju did everything she was supposed to, go to university, marry a decent man, get a respectable job. Then it all fell apart. Burned out, Yeongju abandons her old life, quits her high-flying career, divorces her husband, and follows her dream. She opens a bookshop. In a quaint neighbourhood in Seoul, surrounded by books, Yeongju and her customers take refuge. From the lonely barista to the unhappily married housewife, and the writer who sees something special in Yeongju - they all have disappointments in their past.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Easy listening
- By Jane on 2024-04-11
Written by: Hwang Bo-reum, and others
-
The Island of Missing Trees
- A Novel
- Written by: Elif Shafak
- Narrated by: Daphne Kouma, Amira Ghazalla
- Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 119
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 108
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 109
Two teenagers, a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot, meet at a taverna on the island they both call home. In the taverna, hidden beneath garlands of garlic, chili peppers and creeping honeysuckle, Kostas and Defne grow in their forbidden love for each other. A fig tree stretches through a cavity in the roof, and this tree bears witness to their hushed, happy meetings and eventually, to their silent, surreptitious departures. The tree is there when war breaks out, when the capital is reduced to ashes and rubble, and when the teenagers vanish.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Fiction with facts
- By andrew on 2024-10-30
Written by: Elif Shafak
-
The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida
- Written by: Shehan Karunatilaka
- Narrated by: Shivantha Wijesinha
- Length: 14 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 18
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 15
Colombo, 1990. Maali Almeida—war photographer, gambler, and closet queen—has woken up dead in what seems like a celestial visa office. His dismembered body is sinking in the serene Beira Lake and he has no idea who killed him. In a country where scores are settled by death squads, suicide bombers, and hired goons, the list of suspects is depressingly long, as the ghouls and ghosts with grudges who cluster round can attest. But even in the afterlife, time is running out for Maali.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Best book I read in years
- By Ola Chalikova on 2024-06-29
Written by: Shehan Karunatilaka
-
The Promise
- Written by: Damon Galgut
- Narrated by: Peter Noble
- Length: 9 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 67
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 56
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 56
Haunted by an unmet promise, the Swart family loses touch after the death of their matriarch. Adrift, the lives of the three siblings move separately through the uncharted waters of South Africa; Anton, the golden boy who bitterly resents his life’s unfulfilled potential; Astrid, whose beauty is her power; and the youngest, Amor, whose life is shaped by a nebulous feeling of guilt.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Brilliant
- By Joseph Fantetti on 2021-11-09
Written by: Damon Galgut
-
Prophet Song
- Written by: Paul Lynch
- Narrated by: Gerry O'Brien
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 30
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 25
On a dark, wet evening in Dublin, scientist and mother of four Eilish Stack answers her front door to find the GNSB on her step. Two officers from Ireland’s newly formed secret police are here to interrogate her husband, a trade unionist. Ireland is falling apart. The country is in the grip of a government turning towards tyranny and when her husband disappears, Eilish finds herself caught within the nightmare logic of a society that is quickly unravelling.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Gripping tale
- By Amazon Customer on 2023-12-20
Written by: Paul Lynch
-
The Wind Knows My Name
- A Novel
- Written by: Isabel Allende, Frances Riddle - translator
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Maria Liatis
- Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5
Vienna, 1938. Samuel Adler is five years old when his father disappears during Kristallnacht—the night his family loses everything. As her child’s safety becomes ever harder to guarantee, Samuel’s mother secures a spot for him on a Kindertransport train out of Nazi-occupied Austria to England. He boards alone, carrying nothing but a change of clothes and his violin.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Poignant and Important
- By Deb Fong on 2023-09-24
Written by: Isabel Allende, and others
-
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop
- Written by: Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan - translator
- Narrated by: Rosa Escoda
- Length: 8 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 6
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5
Yeongju did everything she was supposed to, go to university, marry a decent man, get a respectable job. Then it all fell apart. Burned out, Yeongju abandons her old life, quits her high-flying career, divorces her husband, and follows her dream. She opens a bookshop. In a quaint neighbourhood in Seoul, surrounded by books, Yeongju and her customers take refuge. From the lonely barista to the unhappily married housewife, and the writer who sees something special in Yeongju - they all have disappointments in their past.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Easy listening
- By Jane on 2024-04-11
Written by: Hwang Bo-reum, and others
-
The Island of Missing Trees
- A Novel
- Written by: Elif Shafak
- Narrated by: Daphne Kouma, Amira Ghazalla
- Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 119
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 108
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 109
Two teenagers, a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot, meet at a taverna on the island they both call home. In the taverna, hidden beneath garlands of garlic, chili peppers and creeping honeysuckle, Kostas and Defne grow in their forbidden love for each other. A fig tree stretches through a cavity in the roof, and this tree bears witness to their hushed, happy meetings and eventually, to their silent, surreptitious departures. The tree is there when war breaks out, when the capital is reduced to ashes and rubble, and when the teenagers vanish.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Fiction with facts
- By andrew on 2024-10-30
Written by: Elif Shafak
-
Milkman
- Written by: Anna Burns
- Narrated by: Bríd Brennan
- Length: 14 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 171
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 153
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 152
In this unnamed city, to be interesting is dangerous. Middle sister, our protagonist, is busy attempting to keep her mother from discovering her maybe-boyfriend and to keep everyone in the dark about her encounter with Milkman. But when first brother-in-law sniffs out her struggle and rumours start to swell, middle sister becomes "interesting" - the last thing she ever wanted to be. To be interesting is to be noticed, and to be noticed is dangerous. Milkman is a tale of gossip and hearsay, silence and deliberate deafness. It is a story of inaction with enormous consequences.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
By far the worst I've bought
- By Tanya van Niekerk on 2019-03-20
Written by: Anna Burns
-
One Puzzling Afternoon
- Written by: Emily Critchley
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Sastre
- Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 26
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 21
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 21
It is 1951, and at number six Sycamore Street, fifteen-year-old Edie Green is lonely. Living with her eccentric mother and her mother's new boyfriend, she is desperate for something to shake her from her dull, isolated life. So when the popular, pretty Lucy Theddle befriends Edie, she thinks all her troubles are over. Even though Lucy has a secret, one Edie is not certain she should keep. Then Lucy goes missing. Now in 2018, Edie is eighty-four and still living in the same small town, when one afternoon she glimpses Lucy Theddle, still looking the same as she did at fifteen.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Intriguing story. Character ddevelopment and excellent narration. Satisfying ending..
- By C McDonnell on 2024-11-01
Written by: Emily Critchley
-
West with Giraffes
- A Novel
- Written by: Lynda Rutledge
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 47
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 41
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 42
Woodrow Wilson Nickel, age 105, feels his life ebbing away. But when he learns giraffes are going extinct, he finds himself recalling the unforgettable experience he cannot take to his grave. It’s 1938. The Great Depression lingers. Hitler is threatening Europe, and world-weary Americans long for wonder. They find it in two giraffes who miraculously survive a hurricane while crossing the Atlantic. What follows is a twelve-day road trip in a custom truck to become Southern California’s first giraffes. Behind the wheel is the young Dust Bowl rowdy Woodrow.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Slow burn
- By kayla polachuk on 2024-12-18
Written by: Lynda Rutledge
-
The Kill Artist
- Written by: Daniel Silva
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 11 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 89
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
After the assassination of his wife and son, Gabriel Allon retires from his brutal anti-terrorist career and loses himself in his previous cover job: art restoration. But when Tariq al-Hourani, the Palestinian terrorist responsible for his family’s death, begins a killing spree designed to destroy Middle East peace talks, Gabriel once again slips into the shadowy world of international intrigue. In a global game of hide-and-seek, the motives of Gabriel and Tariq soon become more personal than political.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Dady101
- By Daddy#1 on 2023-03-23
Written by: Daniel Silva
-
Boy Parts
- Written by: Eliza Clark
- Narrated by: Eliza Clark
- Length: 8 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 51
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 39
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 39
Irina obsessively takes explicit photographs of the average-looking men she persuades to model for her, scouted from the streets of Newcastle. Placed on sabbatical from her dead-end bar job, she is offered an exhibition at a fashionable London gallery, promising to revive her career in the art world and offering an escape from her rut of drugs, alcohol and extreme cinema. The news triggers a self-destructive tailspin, centred around Irina's relationship with her obsessive best friend and a shy young man from her local supermarket who has attracted her attention....
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting as a piece of literature, but not for everyone
- By Cori on 2022-08-22
Written by: Eliza Clark
-
The Birth House
- Written by: Ami McKay
- Narrated by: Geneviève Steele
- Length: 11 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 11
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 8
The Birth House is the story of Dora Rare, the first daughter to be born in five generations of Rares. As a child in an isolated village in Nova Scotia, she is drawn to Miss Babineau, an outspoken Acadian midwife with a gift for healing. Dora becomes Miss B.’s apprentice, and together they help the women of Scots Bay through infertility, difficult labours, breech births, unwanted pregnancies and even unfulfilling sex lives.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A must read/listen
- By Amazon Customer on 2023-05-31
Written by: Ami McKay
What listeners say about Shuggie Bain
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- john kelly
- 2021-01-23
A Stark story from a Mean City.
Oh but for the grace of God. There go I.
A seriously de-industrialized city, the outside world moving on. Shuggie and company are among the many who suffered the depravities of a society that was essentially a full time existence of drink, sleep, work, more drink. Like many youth of that time he would likely improve his lot. Just not within 400 miles of that city.
A great read. It brought back many many memories. The narrator has done an excellent job,
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Shelley Smelly Jelly Belly
- 2021-06-10
Brilliant
A poignant story of deprivation, poverty, and addiction, but most of all, love, (And an unflinching indictment of the ravages of Thatcher’s Britain). Beautifully, sensitively written; pain and violence tempered by compassion and good humour. A terrific read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Roger
- 2021-10-01
Shuggie Bain
This is a beautiful and heart breaking novel. A coming of age story of sweet Shuggie and his alcoholic mother Agnes. Vibrant and descriptive prose. Stuart is a wonderful story teller. I wish I could give the audio version 10 stars.
I hope there’s a sequel. AMAZING
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Miss mac
- 2022-11-25
Truly captures the place and time
Captivated from the first sentence. Took me right back to my childhood in the west coast of Scotland in the 50s. The writing is wonderful and so is the narration, he captured the essence of the language as it was spoken. cudos to both writer and narrator.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- J Rae
- 2021-02-09
Beautiful, sad and heart-wrenching story!
I couldn’t stop crying and laughing while listening to this audiobook. Couldn’t stop listening to it period. Tragic but beautiful coming of age story where you end up really emotionally investing in the main characters. Narrator did a phenomenal job, perfectly portrayed the Glasgow accents and vernacular. It is easy to see how this book one the Booker Prize. This book could appeal to a wide range of audiences.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kelly C
- 2021-01-08
Beautiful
What a beautiful sad story. Well written- so detailed and I enjoyed the narrator so much! I loved his version of each character. I loved Agnes and Snuggie, constantly reminded me of my relationship with my own son and I must have hugged him a million times while listening to this. Agnes...I loved “hoor master”!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story3 out of 5 stars
- maneatee
- 2021-07-06
Good read, great reader
This is a grim tale of the Glasgow schemes, rich with atmosphere and dread for the well-being of wee Shuggie, brutally bullied and beleaguered by neighborhood boys because of his "difference" and struggling to look out for the drunken ruin that is his mother. This seemed like a long drawn out story - I wondered what the dialect looks like on the page and how easy it would be to read without an "ear" for the accent. However, the voice actor was superb and kept me enthralled to the end. On balance, worth a listen.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Arif A.
- 2021-03-13
Great story and narration
Absolutely intimate and personal story of love, grief and loss and life eventually. And super realistic narration! Loved it.
However, I found it hard to understand the speeches of some characters speaking with an accent. Not saying thats a fault of the narrator. Probably because of my unfamiliarity with the accent.
Anyway, thanks to the writer, narrator and everyone involved. It touched me deeply and will stay with me for some good time I can tell.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- camallis
- 2021-04-26
Loved it.
The characters are alive. They are real. The story captures you into the lives and humour and heartbreak of everyone of them, especially Shuggie and his mother. The narration was perfect as well. I couldn’t stop listening and within a few days had devoured the entire book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- maureen,maureen
- 2021-02-21
An exceptional narrator
I had to listen twice - such a sad and descriptive of the time that families experienced. Could’ve been a true story. The narrator gave so much empathy to the listener.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful