Perfect for Book Clubs, The Correspondent is multi-layered, unputdownable, discussable, and reflective literary fiction in epistolary format.

Are you looking for your next great book club selection?
Are you a book club host in charge of discussion questions?
Check out this book club kit for The Correspondent.

I have noticed that visitors frequently arrive at this website as a result of searching for book club discussion questions. Occasionally, I will address certain discussion possibilities for book clubs in my reviews, but I have not created specific posts that book club members could use as a resource. Thus, a new feature is born: Book Club Kits. I’m grateful to Jo @ JoLindsdell for the inspiration and encouragement and for modeling what this post might look like. (Jo has several book club kits to check out!)
Book Club Kits will be posted in the feed as I create them but will live under a Menu Tab. This is the FIFTH but not the last! I envision maybe four per year (one per quarter) and each one will be one of my five-star reads.

Let me know what you think! Does a Book Club Kit interest you?

Previous Book Club Kits: West With Giraffes, Go as a River, James, and The Boys of Riverside (nonfiction).

***Reading beyond this point will reveal SPOILERS.***

Book Club Kit: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.
**This post contains SPOILERS**

Book Information:

Genre: Literary Fiction
Categories: Epistolary, Family Life, Friendship, Adoption, Marriage/Divorce, Grief, Career
Setting: Maryland (USA)
Publisher: ‎ Crown Publishing
Publication Date: April 29, 2025
ISBN-10 : 0593798430 ISBN-13 : 978-0593798430
ASIN : B0CYXX3PX1
Number of Pages: 291
Purchase Link
(audio format is fabulous!)
Content Consideration (TW): child death (in the past and recalled in the present), grief
Age: Adult
My Reading Experience: The Correspondent gave me a “book hangover” in the best possible way. The main character (Sybil) is relatable, quirky, opinionated, and brilliant. I found it unputdownable and compelling, and I finished it in two days (could have been one if I hadn’t started it later in the day). As soon as I finished, I wanted to share the book with all my reading friends. It has already earned a spot on my best-of-year list and lifetime-favorites list.
Link to my 5 Star Review

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Awards

2026 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence longlist
#2 in Amazon’s Best Books of 2025 List

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My Summary of The Correspondent

Sybil Van Antwerp is retired from a brilliant career in law and has always considered herself a correspondent. She uses letter writing as a form of self-expression and a way to make sense of the world. She enjoys her daily letter-writing routine where she writes to her brother, her best friend, the troubled child of a colleague, authors of books she reads, her neighbor, other assorted individuals that come into her life, and to one unnamed person. Through this varied and often forthright correspondence, we become acquainted with Sybil and her opinions, feisty personality, deepest regrets, and the sources of her grief and regrets.

“But the worst dream, the one that repeats, is that I sit down at the desk to write and there is the stack of letter writing paper, there are my pens, there are the envelopes, and I’m pawing at them like a cat, but I cannot pick them up…I can’t write.”

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The Format: Epistolary

“Epistolary comes from a Greek word, epistolē, which means “letter.” Epistolary is a literary genre pertaining to letters, in which writers use letters, journals, and diary entries in their works, or they tell their stories or deliver messages through a series of letters. Though the usual format of epistolary is letters, writers sometimes use other forms of document such as newspaper clippings and diary entries. Recently, writers also use electronic documents like emails, blogs, radio broadcast, and recordings.” ~Source

Think of Sybil’s characterization in The Correspondent as a large puzzle that has yet to be assembled. Each letter is a puzzle piece that fits with another piece. At story’s end, you will have a brilliant portrait of Sybil!

Nonfiction Pairing

You might enjoy a nonfiction pairing! Syme’s Letter Writing by Rachel Syme

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About the Author of The Correspondent, Virginia Evans

Virginia Evans is from the east coast of the United States. She attended James Madison University for her bachelor’s in English literature. After starting a family, she went back to school for her master’s of philosophy in creative writing at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, where she had the good fortune to study under Carlo Gébler, Eoin McNamee, Claire Keegan, Harry Clifton and Kevin Power. She now lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with her husband, Mark, two children, Jack and Mae, and her Red Labrador, Brigid.

Website: https://www.virginiaevansauthor.com/

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Author Interviews:

Interview with Cindy Burnett: Thoughts From a Page podcast.

Interview with Meg @Meg’s Reading Room podcast. get link

BBC Interview (Sara @The Radio 2 Book Club)

Brett @Behind the Stack youtube interview

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Reviews:

Kirkus Review

Publisher’s Weekly

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Book Flights/Companion Reads:

A few of my favorite epistolary novels include Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, Meet Me at the Museum (even though the ending was unsatisfactory), Kate & Frida, 84 Charing Cross Road, and Last Christmas in Paris.

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Book Club Discussion Questions:

(The author shares her own book club questions at the end of the book. My questions are a supplement to those and are listed in no particular order. They contain spoilers because I assume you’ve read the story.)

1.

This story celebrates written correspondence. Describe your experience with letter writing. Do you have a special writing spot? A favorite pen? Do you write and/or save letters? Have you written a letter you’ve never sent? Maybe a journal serves the same purpose.

2.

Sybil is retired and has deteriorating eyesight. If you are not already retired, can you envision yourself in retirement? What will bring you meaning and purpose? Explain how correspondence, even with strangers, offers Sybil a sense of connection, relevance, and purpose. She has difficulty accepting how her eye diagnosis will affect her well-being when she can no longer write or read letters. How would you cope? Is there something more proactive that Sybil can do to prepare herself?

3.

How do you relate to Sybil’s view of the seasons of life? Can you connect to Sybil’s notion that life consists of four seasons? Which season of life are you in currently? Can you relate to her sentiment of coming in off the cold and windy road of life occasionally to find comfort? Have you experienced this? Do we recognize these times of respite in the moment or only in retrospect?

“I have found it to be absolutely astounding, all the trouble living has turned out to be.”

4.

Grief is a strong theme throughout the story. Sybil continues to grieve and grapple with a devastating loss that happened decades earlier. Do we ever recover from deep loss, or do we learn to live with it over time? Were you surprised at Sybil’s account of the tragedy? Did your view of Sybil change after she reveals the details of the accident? What are your thoughts about the unsent letter?

5.

Sybil thinks of letter writing as the “original form of civility.” She laments the transient nature of emails, texts, and voicemails. I remember my mother sitting down faithfully once a week to write letters to her parents. Our great-grandchildren will have few letters to treasure. Does this motivate you to write more letters? Do you think the older generation in your family would rather have a letter or a text? Do you think a handwritten note is one simple way to honor our grandparents and great-grandparents? A personal story: One of our young adult grandsons read the book Tuesdays with Morrie. The next week, we received an email with the subject line “Tuesdays with Grandparents.” The book motivated him to value his connection with us. We’ve treasured this email communication every week for a few years now. I’m not sorry that it’s not in handwritten form. In fact, it’s almost easier to save and store in electronic folders than physical mail. Generations differ but the heartfelt intent is the same. What are your experiences with electronic versus handwritten communication? Do you save letters?

6.

Do you admire Sybil and her ability to be direct or to address certain behaviors? In this case, sexism:

“A good punch line is a good punch line regardless if delivered by a man or a woman. You sound like an old fool with comments like that one.”

7.

Were you worried about DM and the stalking? Did you think this was resolved in an interesting and satisfying manner?

8.

What caused the strained relationship between Sybil and her daughter, Fiona? What is the best way to improve this relationship? Or is the hurt too deep? What happens when two people feel equally hurt and justified in their anger?

9.

Have you submitted your DNA for analysis? Were you surprised when the story took this turn?

10.

Why would Sybil, who is usually direct and initiates communication with strangers, be passive about important things like attending Daan’s funeral or answering his lovely letter or visiting her daughter?

11.

Have you written to an author? Which author would you write to?

12.

Do you feel it’s important to hear our parents’ backstories? What value do backstories have for parent/adult child relationships? Do you believe apologies are important and healing? What is your opinion of Sybil’s apologies?

13.

What threatens Sybil’s strong relationship with Rosalie? Can you understand the conflict from both perspectives? Is there something to be learned from their reconciliation process? Do you consider Rosalie’s actions or lack of disclosure a betrayal? Have you ever had to confront and handle betrayal?

14.

What do you think of the thoughtful ways Sybil connects with others? Her eye doctor? Her neighbor? The Kindred guy? Her colleague’s troubled son? Did you wonder why she has more difficulty connecting with her daughter?

15.

This is not a story to be rushed through. The author thinks of the story as a puzzle that readers are slowly putting together until we reach the end and we have a complete portrait of Sybil. Was your reading experience like this? Did your first impression of Sybil change throughout the book? Do you think the author’s multilayered characterization fully captures this complicated person?

“I know you think of me as your mother only, but please remember, inside I am also just a girl.”

16.

Were you surprised by the multilayered aspect of the story? For example, sight is a curious juxtaposition. As her eyesight diminishes, her insights and understanding of relationships increase. Also, grief is an important theme of the story. For you, what is the most important message in the book? Is there an underlying theme that permeates everything else?

17.

What did you think of her romantic interests? Are you Team Theodore or Team Mick? Was the resolution to this dilemma satisfactory?

18.

How do you interpret the cover? Does the cover have more meaning after reading (in the last couple of pages) the last letter from Sybil?

19.

What connections did you experience in reading this story? I think that making personal connections enhances the reading experience. I connected in several ways, profoundly enhancing the story and explaining my 5-star rating and book hangover.

20.

If you were to recommend The Correspondent to a friend or fellow reader, what superlative would you use to describe the book or your reading experience?

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Quotes:

“I think of life rather like a long road we walk in one direction. By and large, a lonesome walk out in the wildness of hills and wind. Mountains. Snow. And sometimes there is someone to come along and walk with you for a stretch, and sometimes you see in the distance some lights and it heartens you, the lone house or maybe a village, and you come into the warmth of that stopover and go inside. Maybe you have a warm supper and stay a night or maybe you stay there a few years.”

“The stretches on the high, windblown road are far commoner than the stopovers in comfort, and aren’t we always trying to get back to the happier times?”

“Reaching out in correspondence is really one of the original forms of civility in the world.”

“Isn’t there something wonderful in that, to think that a story of one’s life preserved in some way, that this very letter may one day mean something, even if it is a very small thing, to someone?”

“I remember always finding it odd the way people had of speaking around and around a thing rather than directly to the thing, and I was often punished for insolence and rudeness.”

“I believe one ought to be precious with communication. Remember: words, especially those written, are immortal.”

“Sometimes, the easiest inroad is to begin with a thank you, for a gift or a kindness or a letter. Then take it from there. Answer every question they’ve asked, and ask your own, and you will have created a never-ending circuit of curiosity and learning.”

“I know you think of me as your mother only, but please remember, inside I am also just a girl.”

“I have found it to be absolutely astounding, all the trouble living has turned out to be.”

“My life has been some strange balance of miraculous and mundane.”

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A Themed Book Club Party

Sybil loved her garden, so a floral theme is easy and lovely! Theodore brought her roses every year on her birthday, so you could do something with roses.

Extras

Favors could include a seed packet, a special pen, or a small stationery set.

Pilot Frixion Clicker Erasable Pens, Macron pens, Mini Stationery Sets, Seed packets.

Themed Snacks

Sybil and Theodore enjoy pastries and cakes from a German bakery. One item they enjoy is strawberry streusel cake. Here is a recipe if you can’t find a German bakery near you.

If you are looking for more than a snack and need a menu option, the author suggests Crab Cakes. Crab cakes are a dish at the center of a long joke. Sybil is asked to dinner in Texas to eat crab cakes. She’s offended because she’s from Maryland, the land of perfect crab cakes.

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My book reviews and Book Club Kits are FREE!
Sharing my posts and reviews is a wonderful way to support my blog. Donations help offset the costs. Thanks in advance!

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QOTD:

Have you read The Correspondent, or would you consider it for your book club?
Do you find this book club kit helpful?
Let me know if you end up using it for your book club and how it goes.

ICYMI: How to start a book club.

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Happy Reading Book Buddies!

“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke

“I love the world of words, where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes

“Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

“I read because books are a form of transportation, of teaching, and of connection! Books take us to places we’ve never been, they teach us about our world, and they help us to understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley, Top Shelf Text

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