Isn’t there something wonderful in that, to think that the story of one’s life is preserved in some way, that this very letter may one day mean something, even if it is a very small thing, to someone.
When we chose an epistolatory novel (winner of Women’s Prize for Fiction) as this month’s Book Club novel, I’m afraid I sighed. But I needn’t have worried. The Correspondent by Virginia Evans 2025 proved to be a very rewarding read and the group absolutely loved it.
The letter writer, Sybil Van Antwerp, is a woman in her ‘70s, divorced and living alone in near the river in Annapolis: now retired, she once had a prestigious career in law. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday she neatly stacks her special writing paper (ordered from England), assembles her fountain pen and writing materials and writes letters – to her brother Felix; her son and daughter; her best friend Rosalie; the unhappy gifted son of an ex -colleague – she will write to anyone, including authors she admires. These letters are punctuated by a continuing unsent letter the recipient of which is only revealed at the end.
Through the letters we gradually learn about Sybil’s life and the griefs and regrets she is coming to terms with – the death of her son Gilbert aged 8; a court case she bitterly regrets and the desertion by her birth mother when she was 14 months old. We learn about the rift between her and her husband, the uneasy relationship with her daughter, but also the warm humorous correspondence with Rosalie, looking back on happy school days together, comparing authors they like and extending sympathy with one another.
She is often acerbic, is known to be stubborn and can be unreasonable. On the other hand, she is witty and enjoys a good laugh as well as being warm and kind, reaching out to help others but finding it difficult to do so with her own daughter. She is also coping with the shadow of impending blindness – a tragedy for a woman who cherishes her independence and whose main pleasure in life is reading and writing.
In the unsent letters she reveals her raw feelings; other letters express her anger at her children when they suggest a retirement apartment, Happy Haven, and when they buy her a DNA testing kit for Christmas. Despite her opposition to the idea, she ‘accidentally’ ticks a box to discover her birth family.
This is a novel of heartache and sorrow, but also humour and love, and even romance. Through her letters Sybil is ultimately able to come to terms with guilt and loss and put right things she feels she has done wrong.
The novel is reminiscent of Elizabeth Strout’s My Name is Lucy Barton as the truth is gradually revealed and things left unsaid are as important as what is said. Many of us enjoyed it so much that we read it twice and it resonated with us on many different levels. We strongly recommend it and hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
Next month’s book is The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout