Early 1980s. Glasgow is in decline, Thatcher's policies have plunged entire families into unemployment, and everyone is trying to survive by any means necessary. Agnes Bain had higher expectations for life. She dreams of something greater: her own house, a life with greater luxuries, like the ones she sees in magazines, anything that could somehow brighten her own gray life. She tries to maintain her dignity by staying well-groomed and beautiful, but ultimately turns to alcohol, finding increasing relief in it.

When her husband leaves her, Agnes and her three children find themselves in a dead end, in this broken city. And as she sinks deeper and deeper into alcoholism, the children will be forced to leave, to save themselves. But little Shuggie stays. And he never stops hoping. He hopes that the days to come will be better, that his mother will be saved. And at the same time, he struggles to find his identity, to understand who he is and why everyone treats him as something different. A deeply moving story about addiction, poverty, and sexuality, but above all a story about love.

Douglas Stuart, with raw yet tender writing, speaks of tolerance, abuse, and broken families. But through the darkness, he reveals to us the light, the devotion, and ultimately, hope.