The Correspondent is a deeply moving, epistolary novel that peels back the layers of Sybil Von Antwerp’s life, exploring such topics as grief, guilt, aging, family dynamics, love, generosity, and even octogenarian dating. The author skillfully and poignantly portrays a broad spectrum of life experiences solely through the mechanism of written correspondence. Well done, Ms. Evans!

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Let’s see if I can do justice to a summary of The Correspondent.

79-year-old Sybil Van Antwerp has lived a full but – like all of us – imperfect life. She was once an accomplished law clerk for a high-profile judge at a time when that was considered groundbreaking for a woman. She juggled those responsibilities with being a wife and mother, but with notable flaws. The death of her young son sent her into a spiral of guilt that led to the end of her marriage.

She has always been an avid correspondent, using letters and emails to organize her thoughts and try to make sense of the world, much like some people use journals for the same purpose. But the joy of writing will be taken from her soon by impending blindness.

At this point in her life, blindness isn’t the only thing she’s grappling with. The death of her ex-husband and the judge she used to work for hit her hard and remind her of her own mortality. Also, a ghost from her legal career comes back to haunt her, forcing her to face the truth of what she did. And her son gives her a membership to a DNA registry as a way to encourage her to find out about her birth family (she was adopted but always felt a sense of rejection). Oh, and two elderly men are romantically interested in her.

Throughout the course of the book, the reader is treated to Sybil’s thoughtful and eloquent correspondence with her kids, siblings, friends, a teenage boy she befriended, the Dean of a local University, a customer service agent at the DNA registry, strangers like authors Ann Patchett and Larry McMurtry, and the son of a man she should have shown mercy to all those years ago when she was a law clerk.

As someone who has never enjoyed letter writing, I found her efforts both exhausting and admirable. It made me wish (a little) that I had been a better correspondent through the years, but not enough to change my behavior.

We also get to read the responses from the recipients of her letters and emails, some of which are grateful for her generosity and some angry at her faults. On the one hand, she helps a Syrian immigrant get a job that is far more suited to his engineering background than the customer service position at the DNA registry. On the other hand, we learn that her daughter isn’t sharing life events like miscarriages and IVF with Sybil because the two aren’t close. Kind to strangers and distant with family – I’m sure there are plenty of psychological studies about that behavior.

I think the theme that stood out to me the most was that self-examination and personal change can happen throughout one’s life, even when you’re pushing 80. Sybil had the wherewithal to recognize that she committed a wrong decades earlier and the grace to apologize. I hope I can be like Sybil as I grow older.

I highly recommend The Correspondent, especially the audio version. Maggi-Meg Reed is the perfect voice of Sybil and the supporting “cast members” are terrific, as well.

Thanks for the recommendation, Buck and Renee!

If you’ve read The Correspondent, what did you think? I’d love to hear your opinion!