The Miseducation of Evie Epworth
Extremely funny, quintessentially British, and a lot of heart. The Miseducation of Evie Epworth could quite easily be a classic directed by Richard Curtis.
-Duffythewriter
July 1962
Sixteen-year-old Evie Epworth stands on the cusp of womanhood. But what kind of a woman will she become?
The fastest milk bottle-delivery girl in East Yorkshire, Evie is tall as a tree and hot as the desert sand. She dreams of an independent life lived under the bright lights of London (or Leeds). The two posters of Adam Faith on her bedroom wall (‘brooding Adam’ and ‘sophisticated Adam’) offer wise counsel about a future beyond rural East Yorkshire. Her role models are Charlotte Bronte, Shirley MacLaine and the Queen. But, before she can decide on a career, she must first deal with the malign presence of her future step-mother, the manipulative and money-grubbing Christine.
If Evie can rescue her bereaved father, Arthur, from Christine’s pink and over-perfumed clutches, and save the farmhouse from being sold off then maybe she can move on with her own life and finally work out exactly who it is she is meant to be.
Duffy’s thoughts on The Miseducation of Evie Epworth
The Miseducation of Evie Epworth is the perfect antidote to all the draining, toxic hot air which is bellowing through our TV screens and news feeds right now. I loved Evie immediately, and the cast of characters in her small Yorkshire town were all so unique, larger than life, and fun that I blasted through the book in one afternoon. It’s the most joyous read.
The book follows Evie as she not only tries to figure out just what womanhood means and how it will affect her future, but she also has business at home to attend to. Evie tries an array of left-field ways to get rid of Christine, who started off as a housekeeper at the farm, but who not only has designs on her father but the farm too.
Matson Taylor has captured the character of Evie perfectly, and the little details leave me under no illusion that he has Yorkshire blood in his veins. For a debut novel, I was highly impressed and cannot wait to see what Matson Taylor has in store for us next. The Miseducation of Evie Epworth is definitely one of my favourite reads of the year.
