Helen Simonson
Dear Sussan,
SPOILER ALERT. Just warning my readers before proceeding. Agatha Kent was inspired by a Kipling story "The Gardener" in which an aunt who raised her nephew visits his grave in a World War One war cemetery and the gardener says revealingly (as in the epigraph to my epilogue) "come I will take you to your son.' I wondered who the woman in Kipling's tale really was. Like her, Agatha's 'nephew' may be more to her than her friends suspect. Agatha's fiancé died on his way to their wedding - and she was shipped off to her sister's house where, a few months later, her sister had Daniel. I enjoyed knowing more about Agatha than my readers and it informed how I wrote about her - and her attitudes. But at the end of the book it seemed to me that the women were all 'mothers' with a mother's burdens and that biology almost seemed inconsequential in the love and sorrow felt by all. By the way, such secrets of birth continue in my book. Celeste's child will have Daniel's name. Best regards, Helen S.
SPOILER ALERT. Just warning my readers before proceeding. Agatha Kent was inspired by a Kipling story "The Gardener" in which an aunt who raised her nephew visits his grave in a World War One war cemetery and the gardener says revealingly (as in the epigraph to my epilogue) "come I will take you to your son.' I wondered who the woman in Kipling's tale really was. Like her, Agatha's 'nephew' may be more to her than her friends suspect. Agatha's fiancé died on his way to their wedding - and she was shipped off to her sister's house where, a few months later, her sister had Daniel. I enjoyed knowing more about Agatha than my readers and it informed how I wrote about her - and her attitudes. But at the end of the book it seemed to me that the women were all 'mothers' with a mother's burdens and that biology almost seemed inconsequential in the love and sorrow felt by all. By the way, such secrets of birth continue in my book. Celeste's child will have Daniel's name. Best regards, Helen S.
More Answered Questions
Janet
asked
Helen Simonson:
My book club read Major Pettigrew when we first started a about 3 years ago. Last month we read The summer Before the War. Our book club had such a great discussion. You tell such wonderful stories. I have loved both books. How do you come up for the idea for your books? Do you enjoy writing in that era? I'm looking forward to your next book.
Anne
asked
Helen Simonson:
I was interested to see that you do not list E. F. Benson as one of your influences, as he is one of my favorite authors. I love the Lucia series. I was a bit concerned when I started reading "Major Pettigrew's Last Stand" for fear that your book would come up short, but I thoroughly enjoyed it! I found it to be sort of like an updated E. F. Benson novel. Do you feel that is an apt comparison?
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