posted on 09 Mar 2023

Meg and Merlin by Tanya Landman, illustrated by Sònia Albert

We rate this author very highly at the Letterpress Project and have reviewed several of her books designed for young adult readers here and here. 

This is the third instalment in this popular series aimed at horse riding enthusiasts published by Barrington Stoke. I must confess that I have never been a horse lover, even as a child, and so will try to focus on the overall appeal of the characters and plot which are enhanced by dynamic black and white illustrations throughout. 

Despite the fact that I haven’t read the previous two instalments of the story, the author managed to endear me to Meg, the central character who seems to be a quiet, sensitive ten year old girl who is desperate for more independence. She knows that her parents always worry about her going out with Merlin, the horse she looks after, but wants to prove to them that she is more than capable of spending a long day in the countryside with her friend Sam, who is a year older and a much more experienced rider.

I rather sympathise with her mum’s view of the horse ‘as if he was a bomb that might explode at any moment.’ But armed with a picnic packed by her mum plus a mobile phone with clear instructions to call for help if anything goes wrong, Meg is confident to begin her adventure. We also get the clear message that she has very caring parents who trust her to make good decisions.

We do, however, get a glimpse that there is some tension between Sam and her mother, who is always more critical of her daughter’s riding technique. She snaps instructions at both girls as they leave the house and seems to be looking in a judgemental way at Meg’s scruffy second-hand riding clothes in a way that makes her feel embarrassed.

Once all the adults have disappeared off the scene, the two friends relax and find lots to talk and laugh about together as they ride with their well-behaved ponies. After a wonderful day in the sunshine, Meg leaves Sam and happily sets off back home, but then everything starts to unravel. She soon realises that she is horribly lost because she hasn’t been concentrating. Merlin is spooked by a motorbike and then a spikey twig that gets tangled in his tail and her mum’s phone is smashed. How will she ever find her way home to safety? 

Part of the solution lies in her trusting relationship with Merlin who clearly responds to her gentle handling and the affection she has always shown to him. He is an important character in the story as the author gives him a voice from the outset. We learn that he is very excited to be with Meg but that he is quite a nervous creature who sees potential danger around him. At the beginning of their journey to meet Sam he mistakes a mossy log for a crocodile and is tensed to run away, but Meg keeps him calm by using a steady voice.

This happens again as they meet ‘dozens of deadly dangers’ but they arrive at Sam’s house unscathed. So the author conveys an early warning that Merlin might just panic if he is frightened, but that Meg is probably able to cope.  When they are enjoying the day with their friends, he gains some confidence and manages to leap across a stream resulting in him 'huffing and puffing and holding his head high as if he wanted a medal for his bravery’.  But he finds the journey back home alarming:

‘Thorns were claws. Teeth. Something was hanging on to his tail, trying to jump onto his back! Trying to kill him’!

The long ordeal is a vividly described and frightening episode in the story, but it brings Meg and Merlin closer together when it is all over. She decides not to tell her parents about what has happened on the way home which pulls the readers into the secret. After all, should you tell your parents every detail of your life when you are ten years old? I certainly didn’t! 

Strongly recommended for children with a reading age of 7 and above.

 

Karen Argent

February 2023