June 18, 2017 Books & Movies

An Imaginary Meeting of Rebecca Taylor and Helen Simonson on The Summer Before the War

Fashion truly has strange bedfellows! When I say that, I am referring to myself. I was reading “The Summer Before the War ” when I received the Rebecca Taylor Resort 2018 lookbook.

Looking at the unusual combination of leather and lace, denim jeans and velvet frocks, it was very easy to discern the romanticism of Rebecca Taylor. Known for her easy going style that are easy to wear, the New York transplant from New Zealand cleverly merged soft and hard, the old world and modern in this collection.

Then, I glanced at the book I was reading and realized that Helen Simonson did the same thing with “The Summer Before the War .” Set in summer of 1914, the year that the United Kingdom entered World War I, Simonson gave readers the idyllic life of the turn of the 20th century England when afternoon teas and garden parties were social events.

Yet, in this tranquil setting, there was also a layer of unrest as political topics like women’s suffrage and of course the war in the continent. So, readers see both the serenity and the harshness of life. It is in this counterpoints that the beauty and sheer genius of the book lies, thus making “The Summer Before the War ” a must-read for bibliophiles.

In the same token, counterpoint is also the theme of the Rebecca Taylor’s Resort 2018 collection as she put flowers in leather and paired denim with cashmere.

And this brings me to my recommendation – when you go on a cruise during the winter months to get away from the cold, make sure you have Rebecca Taylor Resort 2018 and “The Summer Before the War ” in your suitcase. After all, they are a match made in fashion heaven.

  • The Summer Before The War
  • Rebecca Taylor Resort 2018
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The Summer Before the War
by Helen Simonson

Description
Helen Simonson’s beloved, New York Times bestselling debut, Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand, instantly established her reputation as an uncommonly gifted storyteller, with humor, wit, and a sharp eye for character. Now she returns with an equally compelling work of fiction, one that reaches far beyond the small English village in which it is set.

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.

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