The Summer Before the War

A Novel

By: Helen Simonson

Narrated by: Fiona Hardingham

Length: 15 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times best seller

"A novel to cure your Downton Abbey withdrawal... a delightful story about nontraditional romantic relationships, class snobbery and the everybody-knows-everybody complications of living in a small community.” (The Washington Post)

The best-selling author of Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand returns with a breathtaking novel of love on the eve of World War I that reaches far beyond the small English town in which it is set.

Named one of the Best Books of the Year by The Washington Post and NPR

East Sussex, 1914. It is the end of England’s brief Edwardian summer, and everyone agrees that the weather has never been so beautiful. Hugh Grange, down from his medical studies, is visiting his Aunt Agatha, who lives with her husband in the small, idyllic coastal town of Rye. Agatha’s husband works in the Foreign Office, and she is certain he will ensure that the recent saber rattling over the Balkans won’t come to anything. And Agatha has more immediate concerns; she has just risked her carefully built reputation by pushing for the appointment of a woman to replace the Latin master.

When Beatrice Nash arrives with one trunk and several large crates of books, it is clear she is significantly more freethinking - and attractive - than anyone believes a Latin teacher should be. For her part, mourning the death of her beloved father, who has left her penniless, Beatrice simply wants to be left alone to pursue her teaching and writing. But just as Beatrice comes alive to the beauty of the Sussex landscape and the colorful characters who populate Rye, the perfect summer is about to end. For despite Agatha’s reassurances, the unimaginable is coming. Soon the limits of progress, and the old ways, will be tested as this small Sussex town and its inhabitants go to war.

Praise for The Summer Before the War

“What begins as a study of a small-town society becomes a compelling account of war and its aftermath.” (Woman’s Day)

“This witty character study of how a small English town reacts to the 1914 arrival of its first female teacher offers gentle humor wrapped in a hauntingly detailed story.” (Good Housekeeping)

“Perfect for readers in a post-Downton Abbey slump...The gently teasing banter between two kindred spirits edging slowly into love is as delicately crafted as a bone-china teacup.... More than a high-toned romantic reverie for Anglophiles - though it serves the latter purpose, too.” (The Seattle Times)

©2015 Helen Simonson (P)2015 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"At once haunting and effervescent, The Summer Before the War demonstrates the sure hand of a master. Helen Simonson's characters enchant us, her English countryside beguiles us, and her historical intelligence keeps us at the edge of our seats. This luminous story of a family, a town, and a world in their final moments of innocence is as lingering and lovely as a long summer sunset." (Annie Barrows, author of The Truth According to Us and coauthor of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society)

"Helen Simonson has outdone herself in this radiant follow-up to Major Pettigrew's Last Stand. The provincial town of Rye, East Sussex, in the days just before and after the Great War is so vividly drawn it fairly vibrates. The depth and sensitivity with which she weighs the steep costs and delicate bonds of wartime - and not just for the young men in the trenches, but for every changed life and heart - reveal the full mastery of her storytelling. Simonson is like a Jane Austen for our day and age - she is that good - and The Summer Before the War is nothing short of a treasure." (Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife and Circling the Sun)

"Narrator Fiona Hardingham breathes life into a huge cast of characters.... She's especially adept with accents; the American author who is trying to downplay his heritage sounds appropriately ambiguous, and a Belgian refugee who speaks halting, heavily accented English is convincing.... This is storytelling at its finest, with a narration to match." (AudioFile)

A Masterful and Self-assured Second Novel

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand is a hard act to follow, and The Summer Before the War is very different in both language and tone — far more formal. Yet despite being set nearly 90 years apart, these two books share a common theme of characters striving to overcome the restraints and expectations of small town life in England. I was surprised that Simonson decided to do an historical novel for her second effort, and it's a masterful work. She paints an intricate picture of a society straining to evolve away from Victorian standards, and a doomed generation made more poignant because we know what is about to happen to them and how profoundly the war will change society in the following decades. I agree with other reviewers who have noted the slow pace of the narrative, but that didn't bother me. This isn't a fast-paced, action-packed thriller; it's character-driven literature that builds a complete world through the accumulation of details, vivid characterization and relationships. You won't be disappointed.

Engrossing, moving, and uplifting

Often in historical fiction I find that authors infuse too much of a modern thought process into their characters, or else make them so much an example of the time period being written about that they become flat. This book is one of the rare ones that seems to do a very good job of creating characters that are truly a part of their time and yet able to question some of what is acceptable socially. Feminism, class, and relationships are touched on in a very believable way. Different views are successfully portrayed in well rounded characters. The story line touches on many harsh realities, but in a way that still allows a belief that life is not hopeless. A very satisfying story. The performance was excellent, it's just hard for a person to have a truly believable voice for characters of the opposite gender, and sometimes I was distracted by the female voice for a male character. Worth listening to, nonetheless.

Interesting Narration

At times, Fiona’s reading was mechanical, pausing over long at commas, stopping where the text should have been fluid. I would become certain that it was a computer generated reading, and then suddenly the reader would become more natural again.

A moving capture of innocence just before experience crashes into it

Some authors write characters so sympathetic, you feel their loss as keenly as if they were your own friends. I cried ugly tears more than once. I will miss the characters in this book, and it may be awhile before I can start another one. Wartime stories are always heartrending, given we know how the war part of the stories ends - with the useless deaths of the young. But this story did honor to those who died, and conveyed such a sincere sorrow at the whole of war, it didn’t feel in the least gratuitous (Mr. Tillingham represented the vulture who preys on others’ grief to find a good story). Not least important, given this was an Audible book, was the other character - the reader. She was incomparable - managed to clearly convey the personalities of the characters with sometimes the slightest of vocal changes. Really well done.

This is a book for those who appreciate the human side of history, not just the factual events. This novel is about the people - those who fight wars and those who live through sending their loved ones off to fight. To borrow from Frances McDormand’s Emmy Award speech, Sometimes all you need is a good story, well told. That’s what this book is.

Beautiful

I don't remember a time I laughed so at the ridiculousness of propriety, gasped at the indignity to the women of the period and cried so unashamedly. What an absolutely beautiful book. It painted such a wonderful picture of the time and terrible tragedy and loss of war. The narration was absolutely lovely, capturing the character of each player so beautifully. I'm so grateful for the time I spent on this novel.

Gripping story of the horrors of war

Despite the fact that the srory line was predictable, the writing and fleshing out of characters was so well done as to make it a very worthwhile read. The narrator was excellent as well.

A favorite!

I have now read/listened to this 3 times. I loved returning to the well developed characters including that of the town of Rye. A beautifully written, historical novel.

Great read

Would you listen to The Summer Before the War again? Why?

This is a great book. It drew me in from the start. The characters come alive, story line good. Narrator is excellent too.

Excellent

After reading Major Pettigrew I have searched and anticipated another treasure from Mrs. Simonson and this story lives up to all my expectations! I am sure I will listen to it many times and hope for more!

Well written, well read

I was thoroughly absorbed in this picture of England before the war. The resilience of both men and women facing not only the horrors of war, but also the barriers of class, sexism, intolerance and social injustice. Strong characters, well drawn, show how life was changing as the war approached, and as it wore on. A very satisfying listen.