{"product_id":"the-correspondent","title":"The Correspondent","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Subtly told and finely made, \n\u003ci\u003eThe Correspondent \u003c\/i\u003eis a portrait of a small life expanding. Virginia Evans shows how one woman changes at a point when change had seemed impossible. That change, like this novel, turns out to be a cause for celebration.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Ann Patchett\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\" \n\u003ci\u003eThe Correspondent \u003c\/i\u003eis at turns amusing and, poignant and ultimately, a pleasure to read. This moving novel unfurls its truths one letter at a time, filling in a complex and memorable picture of one woman's life. Like a handwritten letter at its best, \n\u003ci\u003eThe Correspondent\u003c\/i\u003e is meant to be savored.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Charmaine Wilkerson, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eBlack Cake\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"This novel is a complete and utter joy.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Ann Napolitano\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Evans's enchanting epistolary novel revolves around prickly septuagenarian Sybil Van Antwerp . . . [with] a dash of mystery that keeps the pages flying.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"The word-of-mouth bestseller of 2025 might be this quietly dazzling epistolary novel, which calls to mind Susie Boyt's 'Loved and Missed, ' another book that was passed around like a beloved recipe. . . . Note by note, Sybil's world takes shape, raising poignant, timely questions about mercy and how we're all connected.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \"Book of the Week\"\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"The charming debut from Evans takes the form of letters and emails exchanged by a divorced and retired woman with her friends, family, foes, and literary idols. . . . the detailed connections between each character are brilliantly mapped through the correspondence. It adds up to an appealing family drama.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"The circus of beautifully drawn characters, who receive and respond to Sybil's letters, is vibrant and rich. Sybil has survived trauma, grief, and lost love. The letters are so deliciously crafted, Sybil's life itself becomes a work of art.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Adriana Trigiani, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Good Left Undone\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"I finished this wonderful, wonderful book in tears, and had to take a moment--several moments--to pull myself together. . . . Equal parts sorrow and quiet joy, the stuff of life, it will make you laugh, it will make you cry, it will make you reflect, as all the best novels do.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Fran Littlewood, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author of \u003ci\u003eAmazing Grace Adams\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"I can't praise it enough. Sybil is such a wonderful character, and the supporting cast so vivid and real. For a book about grief and regret it was also properly funny. It's an absolute triumph.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Clare Chambers, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eSmall Pleasures\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eShy Creatures\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Thank you, Virginia Evans, for a life beautifully told in letters, for creating a character whose mind struggles with her heart in a most intriguing, sympathetic, witty, and binge-worthy way.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Elinor Lipman, author of \u003ci\u003eMs. Demeanor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\" \n\u003ci\u003eThe Correspondent\u003c\/i\u003e is the rarest of debuts with not a misplaced word or beat missed. Moving, funny and exquisite, it is a masterpiece in human frailty.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Anne Griffin, #1 Irish bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eWhen All Is Said\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"What a lovely novel, I fell in love with the eloquent, stubborn Sybil, such a wonderful character.\" \n\u003cb\u003e--Margot Livesey, \u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ebestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Flight of Gemma Hardy \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eThe Road from Belhaven\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Charming, engrossing, and deeply moving, Evans's novel explores the way everyday choices and relationships shape a life and shows it's never too late to form new connections, make amends, or even fall in love.\" \n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e--Booklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eVirginia Evans\u003c\/b\u003e is from the east coast of the United States. She attended James Madison University for her bachelor's in English literature, as well as Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, for her master's of philosophy in creative writing. Now she lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with her husband, two children, and her Red Labrador, Brigid.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e#1 \u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES \u003c\/i\u003eBESTSELLER - OVER TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD - Discover the word-of-mouth hit hailed by Ann Patchett as \"A cause for celebration\"--an intimate novel about the transformative power of the written word and the beauty of slowing down to reconnect with the people we love.\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\"This novel is a complete and utter joy.\"--Ann Napolitano, author of \u003ci\u003eHello Beautiful\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Quietly dazzling.\"--\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"I cried more than once as I witnessed this brilliant woman come to understand herself more deeply.\"--Florence Knapp, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Names\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eIn development as a major motion picture\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eWINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION - LONGLISTED FOR THE CENTER FOR FICTION FIRST NOVEL PRIZE AND THE ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL - A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR, \u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post, Boston Globe, Elle, Christian Science Monitor, She Reads\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ci\u003e\"Imagine, the letters one has sent out into the world, the letters received back in turn, are like the pieces of a magnificent puzzle. . . . Isn't there something wonderful in that, to think that a 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?\"\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFilled with knowledge that only comes from a life fully lived, \n\u003ci\u003eThe Correspondent\u003c\/i\u003e is a gem of a novel about the power of finding solace in literature and connection with people we might never meet in person. It is about the hubris of youth and the wisdom of old age, and the mistakes and acts of kindness that occur during a lifetime. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSybil Van Antwerp has throughout her life used letters to make sense of the world and her place in it. Most mornings, around half past ten, Sybil sits down to write letters--to her brother, to her best friend, to the president of the university who will not allow her to audit a class she desperately wants to take, to Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry to tell them what she thinks of their latest books, and to one person to whom she writes often yet never sends the letter. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSybil expects her world to go on as it always has--a mother, grandmother, wife, divorcee, distinguished lawyer, she has lived a very full life. But when letters from someone in her past force her to examine one of the most painful periods of her life, she realizes that the letter she has been writing over the years needs to be read and that she cannot move forward until she finds it in her heart to offer forgiveness. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSybil Van Antwerp's life of letters might be \"a very small thing,\" but she also might be one of the most memorable characters you will ever read.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/span\u003e 12\/01\/2024 pg. 1 (EAN 9780593798430, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e 03\/15\/2025 (EAN 9780593798430, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 03\/24\/2025 (EAN 9780593798430, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eBooklist\u003c\/span\u003e 10\/22\/2025 (EAN 9780593798430, Hardcover) - *Starred Review\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Crown Publishing Group (NY)","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496293040406,"sku":"9780593798430","price":33.6,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9780593798430.jpg?v=1783059168","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/the-correspondent","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}