I inherited a stack of exquisitely written love letters that my mother had received from her paramour in the South Pacific in WWII. The pages are neat and the care in each swirl of an S or loop of a Y is evidence that love had been injected into every letter. A secret stash she kept her entire life, I can’t help but think she wanted me, a writer, to discover them one day.
Now, personal letter writing by post has gone the way of the Pony Express in the advent of email. Once considered a beautiful art form in its own right, rife with fine penmanship and loving details etched on crisp stationery, we now tend to communicate as a society through text messages and emails rather than take the time to handwrite and pay to mail a letter.
Many of us have stuffed envelopes from our younger days that are held with ribbons in perpetuity, like relics. First love, fun friendships, and recountings of history itself are spelled out within each sheet. Stacks of old letters fill library archives across the world, tempting us to touch and read them. Those who still use the medium do so artfully, a special note card or holiday card capturing the swoops of cursive.
Evans’ Epistolary Journey
Virginia Evans revives the art of letter writing in her debut epistolary novel, The Correspondent, a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller. Lauded by author Ann Patchett and others, Evans’ ability to relay the intricacies of a life through Sybil Van Antwerp’s purpose-driven letters is remarkable in its breadth.
The reader is taken in by the variety of this former lawyer’s correspondents as her relationship to each person is reflected in the tone and demeanor of the letters she pens. She writes to friends and family as well as a company representative, a college dean, and a troubled teenager, among others. In each string of letters, connections develop despite culture, age, or position.
The complexity in Evans’ writing goes further. Subtle references to Sybil’s personal views and unveiling of her vulnerabilities creates a compelling, hard-to-put-down read. Layer upon layer of complication is added through every missive.
Discovering Vulnerability
Sybil, at 73 years old, is losing her vision and as a result has a terrible car accident that she downplays to her family. Her fear of being placed in a nursing home couches the reality of the totaled car into a forgettable fender bender. Throughout this book, Evans shapes what Sybil writes into a form of honesty that often supersedes the truth.
Also among the recipients of Sybil’s letters are famous authors and a wide variety of her colleagues. Not everyone is a fan of Sybil and her lifelong work with a local judge has not always added positively to that image. She’s made mistakes, regrets particular actions, and pines over missed opportunities. For example, Sybil and her best friend have shaky times but their bond is deep. I thought about my best friend while reading through these letters and how easily precious moments can slip away if we don’t capture them. Evans’ use of these plot points create relatability with the reader.
Older Lovers, Family Roots
Sybil finds herself in a love triangle, one that lays bare her reluctance for intimacy. Adopted, she dreams of her birth mother coming to claim her. In addition, her relationship with her daughter is captured as delicate and strained in its boundaries but through the letters, she discovers a path to healing and self-acceptance.
The Layers Deepen
Sybil also carries a deep grief with her and the source of that pain is revealed through one series of poignant letters. The Correspondent is relevant to anyone who has lived a life filled with friends, foes, associates, and a variety of experiences, including painful losses. We all yearn for connection and Sybil goes to extremes to find it through writing. She uses the letters to build walls between the recipient and herself and says what she wants because you cannot interrupt a letter.
I admired Evan’s word choices and her writing style that pulses life through the book. At times I had to stop and re-read passages because I was lost in their beauty the first time and wanted to read deeper for the meaning the second. The epistolary style stands out, and the prose is crisp, propelling the book forward with an enjoyable cadence. The Correspondent was one of my favorite reads of 2025.
Let’s Have a Conversation:
What are your favorite books of 2025? What themes did they explore? Have you read an epistolary style book before? Do you think The Correspondent would make your stack?
