Deliver Us from Evie

Award-winning author M. E. Kerr challenges stereotypes in this story about a fifteen-year-old grappling with his older sister’s sexuality
Parr Burrman lives with his parents and his older brother and sister on a farm in Missouri. They’re a typical Midwestern family—except for one thing.
Parr’s father thinks Evie’s going to marry Cord Whittle, who’s had a crush on her forever, and settle down in their hometown to help out with the farm. Instead, she falls in love with Patsy Duff, the gorgeous, privileged daughter of the banker who holds the mortgage on the Burrmans’ property. When rumors start flying about Evie and Patsy, Parr has to contend with the derision of his classmates . . . and when he falls for a girl from a fundamentalist family who fears homosexuality like God’s wrath, he must face his own conflicted emotions. Soon, Parr’s parents—and the whole town—will know the truth about Evie. But it’s Parr who has to deal with the burden of shame when his own behavior leads to a shattering betrayal . . . and a secret he’ll carry to the grave.
Written with grace, humor, and love, and featuring sympathetic characters you won’t soon forget, Deliver Us from Evie is a compassionate, vividly evocative novel by a master storyteller.

This ebook features an illustrated personal history of M. E. Kerr including rare images from the author’s collection.
“So original, fresh and fiery, you’d think that M. E. Kerr, one of the grand masters of young-adult fiction, was just now getting started.” —The New York Times Book Review
“Among the most convincing lesbian characters in young adult fiction, Evie makes a lasting impression. . . . [Parr is] just as finely drawn and memorable. . . . First-rate storytelling with Kerr in absolute control of the narrative.” —School Library Journal
“Kerr skillfully evokes the gritty realities and narrow horizons of farm life in this sensitive portrayal of the lesbian daughter of a rural Missouri family.” —Publishers Weekly
“Movingly dramatized . . . Teens will be swept up in the emotion and immediacy of Parr’s fast-paced narrative, his voice perfectly pitched between wit and melancholy.” —Booklist
“Evie is both convincing and sympathetic. Sensitive, compelling.” —Kirkus Reviews    

M. E. Kerr was born Marijane Meaker in Auburn, New York. Her interest in writing began with her father, who loved to read, and her mother, who loved to tell stories of neighborhood gossip. Unable to find an agent to represent her work, Meaker became her own agent, and wrote articles and books under a series of pseudonyms: Vin Packer, Ann Aldrich, Laura Winston, M. E. Kerr, and Mary James. As M. E. Kerr, Meaker has produced over twenty novels for young adults and won multiple awards, including the Margaret A. Edwards Award for her lifetime contribution to young adult literature.