The Correspondent

It seems everyone was reading The Correspondent, by Virginia Evans, last year, and with good reason. I thoroughly enjoyed this epistolary novel. It made me cry, and I haven't cried over a book in a very long time. Swept away by emotion, I happily bestowed five GoodReads stars on this gem.

Because the novel is entirely letters, it was a pretty quick read with many pages less than half filled with text. I did read a printed copy rather than an audio, which I often opt for when reading contemporary fiction, and I'm glad I did. I would have found it irritating to listen to the same addresses repeatedly.

I found I could relate to Sybil--not so much with regards to the specifics of her life (I am not divorced, I have good relationships with my adult children, and I love to travel, especially outside the US, and I have never had to suffer the grief of a child of mine dying), but I am of her general age (a bit younger actually, but that will change!) and disposition (to a degree). I enjoy writing letters to friends, although I would never presume to write to an author.

I did love the fact that she corresponds with Joan Didion and reached out to Stephen King, Larry McMurtry, and Diana Gabaldon, among others, providing her take on their books and what their stories have meant to her. As a reader, I did enjoy hearing about what she was reading and why.

I liked the story arc--how she became friends with her neighbor, how she fought with and then reconciled with both her daughter and her best friend. How she was finally able to acknowledge the mistakes she made in her professional life, as clerk and confident to a judge. How she finally was able to confront the truth about how her son died. I think in the end Sybil's story is about accountability...and the courage to be accountable.

I heard that Jane Fonda will be playing Sybil Van Antwerp in a movie version, which I think is terrific. I don't think it will be difficult to shift media on the story. There is so much good stuff there to work with.

I tried to find Evans's earlier book, Within the Walled City, but it appears to be out of print, and my usual sources are coming up dry. I have to stop in at the library this afternoon, so I may ask if they can find it anywhere. I cannot imagine that it will stay out of print long--with the success of The Correspondent, I'm sure her publisher wants to ride those coattails with anything else she has written.

Happy Belated Earth Day 

I meant to spend yesterday in the garden, but life had other plans in store for me. I still need to plant spinach, lettuce, and peas as well as finish cleaning the flower beds and prepping the veg beds. 

The native garden is flourishing--I'm hoping for early flowers!