The Summer Before The War

For those of us here who loved Major Pettigrew's Last Stand, the appearance of a new novel by Helen Simonson is truly cause to celebrate. Set in the summer of 1914, it is the story of Beatrice Nash, a fiercely independent and unintentionally fetching Latin teacher who accepts a position at the local grammar school in the seaside village of Rye in East Sussex. She is taken under the wing of formidable matriarch Agatha Kent, who, along with her charming nephews, tries to welcome Beatrice to a town not entirely keen on the idea of a female teacher. But this will be the least of the challenges facing the good people of Rye, as England prepares for a war that will change everything.