Shuggie Bain vs Young Mungo: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: LGBTQ historical fiction, Working class families, LGBTQ young adult, LGBTQ novels, American literature, Fiction
Shuggie Bain
Shuggie Bain 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…
vs
Young Mungo
Born under different stars, Protestant Mungo and Catholic James live in a hyper-masculine world. They are caught between two of Glasgow’s housing estates where young working-class men divide themselves along sectarian…
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- Young Mungo is the quickest read — about 7 hours vs 9 for Shuggie Bain.
- Shuggie Bain has the widest readership — 204239 ratings behind its score.
- Young Mungo runs the darker storyline; Shuggie Bain stays the lighter read.
How to choose
Scores by source
| Shuggie Bain | Young Mungo | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.3 (204239) | 4.4 (98229) |
| Hardcover | 4.2 (240) | 4.4 (169) |
| Google Books | 5.0 (2) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (775) | 4.5 (241) |
Reception
| Shuggie Bain | Young Mungo | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 204239 | 98229 |
| Editions | 23 | 11 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 202616 |
| Reading it now | — | 7308 |
| Written reviews | — | 14795 |
| Wikipedia attention | 11243 | 6551 |
| Pages | 538 | 416 |