Sunday, November 28, 2010

Monday Mailbox/Review: Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson


Monday Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted in November by  Knitting and Sundries. Anyone can play along. Just leave a link to your MM at the hosting blog and follow the links to other blogs to see what books are finding their way to mailboxes around the world.
Caveat: participation in MM can cause your tbr list to grow exponentially. *Penguin at mailbox, a copyrighted image, is used with permission from Club Penguin.*

Only one book showed up last week but what a wonderful book it is! I started it Saturday and finished up the few remaining pages yesterday.  I so hated to see it end! The title is Major Pettigrew's Last Stand , a British comedy of manners and romance by Helen Simonson.

Major Pettigrew, a somewhat fussy and old-fashioned pedantic widower,  finds himself in a world that has lost it's sense of decorum and appropriate behavior and he doesn't like it one little bit. He still lives in his own little world of responsible behavior living the way generations of Englishmen have done in the past with a sense of duty to family and country. So when his brother dies suddenly and  Major Pettigrew is on the receiving end of a small act of kindness by the local shopkeeper, Mrs. Ali, his world is turned upside down.

Mrs. Ali not only shares his grief at the loss of a beloved spouse but the love of classic books, especially Kipling's works. She is also a woman who holds duty and responsibility to family in the highest regard. Realizing how lonely he has been since his wife Nancy died, Major Pettigrew seems to relax a little bit in Mrs. Ali's company. The two embark upon a friendship that soon blossoms into more much to the chagrin of the surrounding neighborhood and the local golf club. Even their own families have their share of doubts about a relationship at their age; never mind their cultural differences. The Major and Mrs. Ali finally concede they are not ready to be put on a shelf to just live out the rest of their lives alone. Behaving a little out of character for these two sensible people, some decisive action is called for and what a delightful story ensues!

Here's just one of my favorite quotes:

"Careful, careful," he said, feeling a splash of scalding tea on his wrist. "Passion is all very well, but it wouldn't do to spill the tea." 

Oh, heaven forbid!

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand is one of the most charming first novels I've read in a long time. I'm not really sure what I expected, but what I found was a comedy of manners filled with characters who felt so real to me it's as if I know them in real life. Simonson vividly brings the retired Major Ernest Pettigrew and Mrs. Ali to life on the pages and she does so with realistic dialogue and quite a bit of quiet humor. The Major's changing and sometimes strained relationship with his ambitious adult son, Roger, is an added bonus to the plot. I truly enjoyed my little sojourn in the British village of Edgecombe St. Mary and hope to get a chance to visit there again. Ms. Simonson, please give us more!
Highly recommended 4.5****

Disclosure: A review copy of the book was provided by Random House through GoodReads.

21 comments:

  1. My local bookseller loves this book, so I'm not surprised you did too!

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  2. I have heard so many good things about this book. I may have to read it one of these days. Glad you liked it so much.

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  3. I don't think I've read a negative thing about this book. Nice review. I read somewhere that it's a great audiobook so I may listen at some point.
    I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving and you and TBG are relaxing.

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  4. I loved this book and even my husband loved it, but I get the impression that the younger the blogger, the less likely that person is to like the book!

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  5. Sounds like a sweet book :) happy reading

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  6. This book was so very good. I am glad you liked it too.

    My mailbox is also up and I would appreciate if you could visit.

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  7. How efficient you are! This sounds like a charming book.

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  8. Can't wait to read this! My mother loved it and gave me her copy.

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  9. I almost picked this up at my library the last time I was there..well, now I will have to!!! I'm going tomorrow and if they still have it this one is coming home with me!!

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  10. Oh, lucky you! This book is on my wishlist! Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for visiting my Mailbox!

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  11. This sounds like an interesting story!

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  12. I received for review Season of Seduction by Jennifer Haymore from The Book Tree.

    Although the widowed Lady Rebecca has sworn off marriage, men are another matter. London's cold winter nights have her dreaming of warmer pursuits-like finding a lover to satisfy her hungry heart. Someone handsome, discreet, and most importantly as uninterested in marriage as she is. Someone like Jack Fulton.

    A known adventurer and playboy, Jack seems like the perfect choice. There's just one problem: Jack isn't interested in an affair. He needs the beautiful, mysterious Lady Rebecca to be his wife. And he doesn't have much time to persuade her. A secret from Jack's past is about to surface, and by Christmas Day he'll be either married to Rebecca or dead.

    ***

    I received for review A Very Simple Crime by Grant Jerkins from Berkley Trade.

    A twisting debut novel of murder and dark family secrets from a riveting new voice in crime fiction.

    A murdered woman. A grieving husband. And their son-a mentally handicapped adult with a history of violent outbursts. A very simple case. Or is it?

    Leo Hewitt, an Assistant DA once blamed for setting free a notorious child-killer, is eager to redeem himself with this intimate and grisly crime. As he digs below the surface he discovers more than he ever anticipated-including an emotionally disturbed wife, a husband who'd do anything to escape his disastrous marriage, and an accused young man with no apparent means of defense. But with each shocking new revelation, Leo is only led deeper and deeper into the darkness-an inescapable trap of blood bonds and twisted family secrets.

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  13. Would you believe I've had this book for nearly a year, but still haven't gotten to it. Thanks for the reminder & happy reading!

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  14. I have seen this book around but haven't looked into too much. After reading your post I think it will have to go on the wish list!

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  15. I so loved this book!!! I'm hoping the author may have at least one more to bring us more charm from this delightful couple. I think it is one of the 'sleepers' of the year. I also listened to it on audio....it's a fantastic read either way.

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  16. This has been on my wishlist for quite awhile and I'm so glad to hear that you enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to reading it.

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  17. I have wanted to read this but then keep forgetting. I'm off to download sample to my Kindle right now!

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  18. I've though about reading this book for awhile and I think I will put it on my every growing tbr pile. I am glad to have found your blog.

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  19. This book sounds like one I'd like too. I appreciate books that feature characters somewhere near my age. Love the quote about passion and tea - lol.
    Hope you're taking good care of yourself.

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  20. This sounds wonderful and your quote made me laugh out loud. If there is ever a week where I receive just one book, I'd want it to be as good as this one sounds! Thanks for sharing!

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  21. This is one that I passed on initially, but now I've reconsidered. So happy to see you loved this one Kaye.

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