Book of the Month: John of John by Douglas Stuart

We are tremendously excited to offer you the chance to win one of five copies of Douglas Stuart's new novel John of John, in hardback, thanks to Picador.

To be in with a chance of winning this book from the Booker Prize-winning author of Shuggie Bain, answer the question at the bottom of this page by 11.59pm on 30 June 2026.

All entrants must reside in the UK and full terms and conditions apply.

Check out our competitions page to find more giveaways.

About John of John by Douglas Stuart

Out of money and with little to show for his art school education, John-Calum Macleod takes the ferry home to the island of Harris to find that not much has changed except for him.

In the windswept croft where he grew up, Cal resumes his old life, caught between the two poles of his childhood: his father John, a sheep farmer, weaver, and pillar of their local Presbyterian church, and his Glaswegian grandmother Ella, who has kept a faltering peace with her son-in-law for decades.

While Cal wonders if any lonely men might be found on the barren hillsides of home, John is dismayed by his son’s long hair and how he seems unwilling to be Saved. As the seasons pass, everything is poised to change as the threads holding together the fragile community become increasingly entangled.