Annan Water

by Kate Thompson

Michael first sees Annie one morning on the banks of Annan Water, when he is out exercising two horses from his parents' stables. That first impression of her never leaves him. She triggers in him a desire to get to know and understand her and in doing so, to understand himself. Complicated by the fact that he is haunted by the tune and words of a song about the Annan Water, he finds there is no easy answer to the way he must go: to get to know Annie seems as impossible as interpreting the words of the song. Michael's parents make endless demands on Michael's skill as a rider and his innate sympathy for horses. (They had become a dealer's yard, not a family.) Coupled with this he finds himself totally at odds with his companions and teachers at school. With its fascinating background of horse dealing, Kate Thompson enlarges the range of settings of her novels. But at its core lies a theme about which she feels deeply and of which she has repeatedly proved herself a master -- she explores the need for the young person on the brink of adulthood to find independence and meaning in life. A gripping story unresolved until the very last page.

Genres: Young Adult

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Kate Thompson is an award-winning writer for children and adults.She has lived in Ireland, where many of her books are set, since 1981. She is the youngest child of the social historians and peace activists E. P. Thompson and Dorothy Towers. She worked with horses and travelled in India before settling in the west of Ireland with her partner Conor. They have two daughters, Cliodhna and Dearbhla. She is an accomplished fiddler with an interest in Irish traditional music, reflected in The New Policeman.

While Kate Thompson's children's fiction is primarily fantasy, several of her books also deal with the consequences of genetic engineering.

She has won the Bisto Children's Book of the Year Award four times, for The Beguilers, The Alchemist's Apprentice, Annan Water and The New Policeman. The New Policeman was also awarded the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, the Whitbread Children's Book Award and the Dublin Airport Authority Children's Book of the Year Award for 2005.

Reviews

[Nic · Rating 4 out of 5]

A harrowing finish.

[Deirdre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting modernised take on a traditional folksong. Two teens deal with their issues by throwing themselves into the world of horses and horse jumping. Michael is trying to deal with the loss of his sister and home while his friend Annie has serious home issues.

I found it largely unsatisfying, the two teens never really came to life for me and the story felt forced into the song rather than flowing from it. Not a bad read but didn't leave me happy with the story and to be brutally honest the end left me feeling like it was tacked on.

[Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not that impressed really. I felt the story was just starting to get really good when it finished. A bit Meh! to be honest.

[Michelle Moloney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book over a year ago. I have read about 100 since, and yet, I still think of Annan Water daily.

[Anna Snyder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Simple but poignant story, and I appreciate how it pulled back from the gloom at the last possible moment. I've been reading too many gloomy books of late.