Agnes’s alcoholism robs Shuggie and Leek of their childhoods. instead of living like normal children, the two brothers live in a constant state of anxiety, never knowing what they are going to come home to. Shuggie spends most of his childhood avoiding school to take care of Agnes when she is on a drunken bender. Shuggie and Leek Frequently go hungry because Agnes spends most of their money on alcohol. The constant state of anxiety and fear manifests itself in Shuggie as digestive issues: he is frequently on the verge of soiling himself. Agnes’s abuse drives Catherine to move out, abandoning Leek. Leek holds on as long as he can, but the strain of being the “man of the house,” the one keeping things together for everyone’s sake, becomes too much. He leaves for good when Agnes kicks him out.

Shuggie becomes a victim in other ways because of his mother’s absence. He is sexually abused first by an older boy named Johnny and later by a taxi driver. He faces constant bullying from other children, and following the departure of Leek, is often alone. Because he has grown up in such turmoil and must always look out for his mother, Shuggie puts off developing his own identity.