I cautiously approach any declaration of having recently read the best book in years. However, that’s exactly what I’m prepared to do with this review of Virginia Lewis’ “The Correspondent”. I’ll freely note the particular affinities I have for this type of novel aren’t for everyone. However, it is a truly touching work of the human condition.
In Lewis’ 2025 debut novel we find a main character and letter-writer named Sybil Van Antwerp. This septuagenarian is a prolific epistolarian whose life of correspondence ranges from the pedantic back-and-forth with close family and friends, but also includes patterns of ambitious outreach to famous writers and celebrities.
The entirety of the novel is presented in the format of letters. Those written to and from the main character of Sybil. While there are a handful of interstitial writings that are labeled as “not sent”, it is admirable how Lewis maintains a swiftly paced narrative without interjecting expository interjections. This is part of the brilliance of the book, but goes almost unnoticed due to the depth of character development.
I found myself relating to Van Antwerp and her late-life patterns of reminiscence, while steadfastly getting-on with life in that ur-WASP way of a tawny blue-blood matriarch. I suspect there are plenty of folks who know a Sybil type character as an aunt, mother-in-law, grandma or otherwise. Although, there’s something about the mix of her life’s impressive backstory along with an aging physical descent, that’s the reason for the universal appeal of this story.
A golden-hued final-years tale of a repentant heart isn’t new. If that is the core theme of this story, it wouldn’t be enough to have landed so strongly in my reviews. Perhaps it’s the mix of classic themes in a very relevant setting – the story arch is from 2012 – 2019 – and the pre-Covid nature that make it just so darn believable. I wonder if most readers, like me, will finish this one feeling good that Ms. Van Antwerp was spared the experience of the pandemic. If so, like most great stories, this one leaves us thinking just as deeply after we close the back flap as while we were reading it.
Penna Book Reviews 