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?

Helen Simonson Dear Anne. Thank you for the compliment! My new book, The Summer Before The War, is undoubtedly influenced by E. F. Benson. He was both an inspiration and a barrier to writing about Rye in a humorous way. Because he and his Mapp and Lucia have 'owned' the town for so long. I love those ladies though they permit no compassion to sway them from their battles and they steadfastly refuse to become better people at any time (even when facing death on the high seas). I think Benson is the master of high satire and I'm inspired by his humor. But I do hope to establish my own voice when it comes to compassion and to characters who are flawed and struggling, but real.

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