Muckle Annie — Jan Webster

Annie McIlvanney is desperate to get away from the life of poverty and boredom that she has grown up with in Glasgow â€" a city that is suffering under the effects of the American Civil War. After an afternoon ties her to her Highland love, Hector, Annie is desperate to finish her mission and rejoin him in the Cariboo. Through pitiful conditions along the way however, Annie is left to hand-rear a baby whose mother has died on board the ship... Determined to deliver the baby safely to his father, Annie continues her journey and ends up working for him, but it soon becomes clear that the father has fallen in love with Annie, urging her to stay. Dedicated to Hector, Annie fights the desire to stay in safety, and after a treacherous and dangerous journey, she is finally reunited with Hector, who soon strikes gold. Just as the two find a life of domestic harmony and contentment, Hector is taken by Indians, causing Annie's heart to suffer a second blow... Through varying relationships with those she meets along the way, the novel follows Annie's maturation into a wise adult in charge of her own fate. Jan Webster evokes emotion and empathy for the characters in this novel, whilst painting a vivid picture of the harsh but colourful lives of the Cariboo pioneers. A glimpse into the world post the Civil War. JAN WEBSTER was bom in 1924 in Blantyre, in the heart of the Lanarkshire coalfields. She was educated at St John's Grammar School, Hamilton, and Hamilton Academy and sold her first short story when she was just seventeen.