Stephanie Sullivan: Review - The Correspondent

November 04, 2026

TITLE: The Correspondent

RATING: ★★★★

Summary (from Goodreads): Sybil 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.

Sybil 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.

REVIEW: I have heard so many wonderful compliments on The Correspondent from my library patrons, so I decided to see for myself what the fuss was all about. Well...I am so glad I did. I read this book in one day, so that should give you a little indication of how much I enjoyed it. I adored the main character, Sybil Van Antwerp, from the very beginning. She reminded me a lot of Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory. I'm not sure exactly why, but perhaps it was her straightforwardness - that tendency to say things outright without considering first how it might effect others - but it isn't done with a vicious spirit. Sybil wasn't a big fan of change and expected things to stay as they were, and she just spoke her mind when that didn't happen. Nothing wrong with that. Her love of writing letters was endearing to me because I had many pen-pals during my teenage years, and I miss it so much, but I do feel like letter writing is starting to make a comeback. (I've even considered it myself and have already checked into several global pen-pal clubs). The secondary characters in The Correspondent are noteworthy too, because they all come with their own backstory and history, and they tie the story together so beautifully. I would highly recommend this book, and I'm so glad I took a chance on it. I know it will stay with me a long time.

1 comment:

Lark November 4, 2026 at 4:26 PM
I tried to read this one because I generally love epistolary fiction, but I got halfway through and quit. I wasn't enjoying the characters, and struggling to find the story. Glad you ended up liking it more!
ReplyDelete
Replies