Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson

With a slight breeze whispering through the screen door on a beautiful Texas Fall day, we met in Diana's home.  We gathered around her cozy kitchen table enjoying each other's company and a satisfying lunch of chicken salad pitas, fresh honeydew melon, and samosas.  Samosas are a stuffed pastry and popular snack in the Indian Subcontinent, and were mentioned in our book this month.  The samosas were a first-time experience for most of us and proved to be quite tasty.  Our taste buds were then delighted with a limoncello cake and some actual limoncello to drink along with it...for digestive purposes only, of course!  

How To Make LIMONCELLO:  Finely grate the zest of 12 lemons. In a large jar, combine the zest and one 750 milliliter bottle good vodka. Seal tightly and place in a cool, dark place for 2 weeks.  In a small saucepan over medium heat, dissolve ½ cup sugar in ½ cup water. Let chill.  Using a sieve lined with cheesecloth, set over a bowl, strain the vodka mixture. Stir the sugar syrup into it. Use a funnel to pour into a 1-liter bottle and seal. Place in a cool, dark place for 1 week, then chill in the freezer until ready to serve.


  Synopsis:
Major Pettigrew is a retired, older gentleman who appears to be complacently set in his ways.  However, when the Major's only brother unexpectedly dies, in steps Mrs. Ali to shake up his world and set the Major on an adventure he could not have anticipated.  New and interesting characters enter his life and the Major finds himself stretching beyond his usual stiff and proper British response to handle these new people and the situations they create within his village life.  It is a story of romance, but also a lesson on tolerance, true friendship, and the value in taking a risk when necessary.

Comments:
The majority of us agreed that this book started out rather slow and so we had some difficulty motivating ourselves to continue to read.  Perhaps it was because the main character, Major Pettigrew, himself was rather slow moving, dry, and more of an observer in his own life in those beginning chapters.  However, as the Major became more involved and the characters began to develop and grow, we found ourselves lured into this story.

As stiff, regimented, judgemental, and proper as the Major was at the start of this book, it was a delight to see him transformed into a more tolerant, forgiving, bold, likeable man.  It is amazing what a woman can do to a man!  Mrs. Ali was a lovely woman, but her intellect was what we felt made her most attractive as the Major fell in love with her.  She was a kind and humble woman who strove to peacefully exist in two different cultures:  British and Pakistani.

In sharp contrast to the Major, we were not any more pleased with Roger's character at the end of the story as we were at the beginning.  We found the Major's son to be self-centered, greedy, and quite plainly a jerk.  He did not treat his father with respect and as it turns out, he was not too respectful of the women he dated, either.  It appeared that he used women to help better his position in life or to impress others.  We agreed that the following quote was an apt summation of the difference between the father and the son:  Roger - "It's called the real world.  If we refused to do business with the morally questionable, the deal volume would drop in half and the good guys like us would end up poor.  Then where would we all be?"  Major - "On a nice dry spit of land known as the moral high ground?"

We truly liked Grace's character.  Although timid and unsure of herself when around Daisy, Grace had her moments of boldness.  She showed genuine love for the Major when she urged him to go after Jasmina even as he was awkwardly attempting to claim his intentions to Grace of settling down with her.  As one of the FAB girls stated, "Grace saved the Major from himself!"

The Churchills and the family feuding and friction they created was an interesting topic of discussion for our group.  Although we could not fathom putting material possessions ahead of relationships, a few of us had familial stories to share of similar incidents.  (Now any relatives of ours who read the blog will be extremely curious, but I will say no more!)

As a group we objected to the interjection of the old lady who stabbed Amina with the knitting needles.  We laughed in agreement when Diana said it reminded her of one of Disney's evil characters.  She appeared to be out of character with the story and setting.

Most Memorable Quotes:
Humorous / p. 168 - "You are a most astonishing man," [Jasmina] said, and [the Major] realized he had inspired a sense of trust and indebtedness that would make it entirely impossible for an honorable man to attempt to kiss her anytime soon.  He cursed himself for a fool."

Serious / p. 341 - The Major talks to Abdul Wahid on the edge of the cliff: "I think we wake up every day with high intentions and by dusk we have routinely fallen short.  Sometimes I think God created the darkness just so he didn't have to look at us all the time."

FAB Rating:
**** (4 out of 5 stars)
There was great variation in the characters and their development throughout the story.  With so many characters in the story, the author still managed to make even the minor ones such as Brian and Alice interesting and memorable.  The descriptions of the English countryside and cottages were vividly beautiful.