Shuggie Bain

I can get a lot of reading done lately. I'm grateful I have access to the cloud library which is where I found Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart. The author wrote this story, set in Glasgow, Scotland, based on his mother and his childhood. The story is heart breaking because Shuggie takes care of his mother, Agnes, more than she takes care of him. Shuggie is the youngest of three children. The older children abandoned all hope of helping their train wreck of a mother with her alcoholism and set off on their own. Agnes tries to be sober and is able to do that for short periods before going back to her lager and spending all the money on liquor. Shuggie tries but he can't keep Agnes from self-destructive behavior. This book would be almost too heart breaking to read except the love Shuggie has for his mother, for life, for his family balances the sadness with beauty.