"Major Pettigrew's Last Stand" was a refreshing read when compared to most modern fiction. Not including historical fiction novels, modern fiction often deals with human angst and tragedy. There is also "chick-lit" which is mindless reading typically revolving around a female character's quest to find "Mr Right" in the dating jungle. I am not denying that I have enjoyed novels that have fallen into the above categories; however, I have increasingly become unsatisfied with these forms of modern fiction and have been yearning for a change, which is why I embraced "Major Pettigrew's Last Stand".
The novel is set in England and written by a British author. Simplicity is the essence of the novel, which also characterizes and why I find British productions (television and movies) so appealing. The British have a magical skill of transforming a simple storyline into a riveting yet relaxing production. Such is the case with "Major Pettigrew's Last Stand".
The story is about a retired, widowed Colonel, living in a small English village, who falls in love with an also widowed, Pakastani store owner. The love is not an over-the-top, dramatic love affair but is built on a sweet friendship. They experience barriers in the form of non-acceptance from the local community and family members, but this too is also handled without excess melodrama (with the exception of one family member's dramatic and unnecessary actions in response to his own personal problems at the end of the novel).
In many ways, the novel resembles a modern Jane Austen novel as the author makes astute observations about society's rules and behavior with a similiar witty and satirical style. Each character, both main and secondary (ie. town and family members) come alive not with wordy physical and narrative descriptons, but through their quirks, mannerisms and behavior in a variety of situations.
My favorite character is Mrs Ali, the widowed Pakistani store owner who falls in love with Major Petigrew. I found a kindred spirit in her love of books. " I tell myself that it does not matter what one reads- favorite authors, particular themes- as long as we read something. It is not even important to own the books" She stroked the library book's yellowing plastic sleeve...
I was also charmed and inspired by her nuggets of wisdom such as " The world is full of small ignorances. We must all do our best to ignore them and thereby keep them small, don't you think?" and "I don't believe the greatest views in the world are great because they are vast or exotic. I think the power comes from the knowledge that they do not change. You look at them and you know they have been the same for a thousand years."
This was author's debut novel. The "Random House Reader's Circle" interview, at the end of the novel, with Helen Simonson provided insight into her background, views and inspirations. She was raised in a small English villiage and moved to the U.S. in her teens or early adulthood (similar to me). Like me, she holds idyllic memories of her birth country, recognizing that "Perhaps home is more precious to those who leave. Away from the everyday annoyances of town and family life, we are free to recollect only the good bits and pine for a landscape that we remembers as always bathed in late-summer evening light." She is a source of inspiration, since she started writing "later" in life and I took note of her keen observation about writers "I have slowly come to the conclusion that this struggle to find consistency and a good routine, and to pile up creative work, is the challenge of all creative people. It is what separates the writer from the person who has an idea for a novel if they could just find the time.We also share a similar literary taste, as she identifies both Jane Austin and Edith Wharton as two of her favorite authors. Finally as a person of British origin, she reflects upon her strong connection to the Indian subcontinent noting that "it is an unexpected part of being British that, no matter the rhetoric, we maintain an enduring sense of connection to the Indian subcontinent."
I thoroughly enjoyed "Major Pettigrew's Last Stand" and look forward to reading Helen Simonson's future novels.
No comments:
Post a Comment