By Cos Barnes/Special to OutreachNC

When I heard Helen Simonson speak about her debut novel several months ago at the Country Book Shop in Southern Pines, I knew I would love Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand. Six-feet-tall and with that compelling English accent, the author spoke endearingly of her character as if he were a familiar uncle or a much-loved college professor.

I pictured the 68-year-old retiree, who had lost his wife six years previously and his only brother, Bertie, just recently, in a tweed jacket with patches on the sleeves, sipping tea made to his exact prescription. I pictured his home, Rose Lodge in Edgecombe, St. Mary, a small village in the English countryside with rolling hills and thatched-roof cottages. I pictured his many books, which he quoted from often, carefully arranged and probably catalogued on his book shelves. I also recognized the snobbishness, which is characteristic of this age and locale.

His actions displayed his politeness, his breeding and his love of ritual and honor. And he was quick with a quip. When told by his son’s girlfriend, his son really had an eye for design, and could be a decorator, the major’s retort was, “Really? That’s quite an accusation.” Stir into the mix his son, Roger, who in disposition and outlook is the decided opposite of the major, Mrs. Ali, the Pagistani shopkeeper from the village, and the myriad of characters who inhabit the neighborhood. Then add in the members of the flower guild, golfers who play with the major and the gossipers who dissect all the happenings, yet care for each other after years of longtime friendship.

Woven into the story is the major’s love of the Churchhill shotguns. One was given to him by his father at his death, the other to his brother Bertie. The shotguns were to be reunited when one of the brothers died and bequeathed theirs to the other. The fear is that Bertie’s wife and daughter will sell the Churchill. Read it to see how the shotguns fare.

A tender love story develops between the major and Mrs. Ali; however, they have to overcome the mores of the Pagistani relatives and the conceptions of the major’s son, his neighbors and his friends. Love can overcome cultural barriers. The main characters prove with delicacy and sensitivity.