{"product_id":"the-correspondent-9781405971553","title":"The Correspondent","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e84 Charing Cross Road meets A Man Called Ove in this Radio 2 Book Club pick: a heartwarming, witty story about the life of an extraordinary woman, told through her letters.   In her letters to family and friends we come to know the life of Sybil Van Antwerp: stubborn, cantankerous, opinionated, always steadfast in her belief in the power of the written word.  But as the clock begins to tick for Sybil, the need for a few post-scripts to the life she's led becomes apparent. Fixing her difficult relationship with her children. Taking a final chance at romance. Atoning for an old legal case which has come back to haunt her. And finally, reckoning with a devastating loss that she has spent the last thirty years holding close to her chest.\u003ch4\u003eDetails\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cp\u003eISBN13: 9781405971553\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNumber of Pages: 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEdition: \u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication Date: 04 Aug 2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublisher: Penguin Books Ltd\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication City, Country: London, United Kingdom\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDimensions (cm): 19.8(H)x12.8(L)x2.1(W)230\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWeight (gm): 230\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h4\u003eVirginia 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 studied under tutors including Claire Keegan 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.\u003ch4\u003eReviews\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cb\u003eI was delighted and moved . . . \u003c\/b\u003eEvans does an expert job at making you root for [Sybil] even as you want to give her a timeout . . . \u003cb\u003eMasterful\u003c\/b\u003e * New York Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThis is the novel I'm giving to everyone for Christmas...\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003eThe Correspondent\u003c\/i\u003e is \u003cb\u003ea delight\u003c\/b\u003e: melancholy without being sentimental, warm without being cosy, witty without being silly... The \u003cb\u003ecomparisons to Strout are accurate \u003c\/b\u003ebut this novel also \u003cb\u003ereminded me of Anne Tyler's ability to make the domestic dramatic\u003c\/b\u003e... An ode to a dying art form, and \u003cb\u003eproof that your life is never too decided to make a change.\u003c\/b\u003e -- Laura Hackett * The Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA warm, funny gem of a novel \u003c\/b\u003e. . . It’s a clever conceit, which Virginia Evans uses to great effect in a novel that is melancholic without being sentimental. \u003cb\u003eOne for fans of Elizabeth Strout.\u003c\/b\u003e * The Times, Best Books of 2025 *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSubtly told and finely made\u003c\/b\u003e, \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 \u003cb\u003ea cause for celebration\u003c\/b\u003e -- Ann Patchett, bestselling author of TOM LAKE\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e‘\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eA masterclass \u003c\/b\u003ein how to put words on human frailty. This debut\u003cb\u003e does not put a foot wrong. Smart and clever . . . \u003c\/b\u003eEvans is\u003cb\u003e a confident, competent author in whom we can trust’\u003c\/b\u003e * Irish Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eI can't praise it enough\u003c\/b\u003e. Sybil is such a wonderful character, and the supporting cast so vivid and real. For a book about grief and regret it is also \u003cb\u003eproperly funny\u003c\/b\u003e. It's an \u003cb\u003eabsolute triumph\u003c\/b\u003e -- Clare Chambers, bestselling author of SMALL PLEASURES\u003cbr\u003eOpen-hearted with some, a hedgehog curled tight in a ball with others, \u003cb\u003eI cried more than once as I witnessed this brilliant woman come to understand herself more deeply \u003c\/b\u003eand risk lowering her defences. Both serious and uplifting, in \u003ci\u003eThe Correspondent\u003c\/i\u003e, Virginia Evans shows us \u003cb\u003ewhat a glorious thing growing older can be\u003c\/b\u003e -- Florence Knapp, author of THE NAMES\u003cbr\u003eThis novel is \u003cb\u003ea complete and utter joy.\u003c\/b\u003e -- Ann Napolitano, bestselling author of HELLO BEAUTIFUL\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eI'm kind of speechless at how good this was.\u003c\/b\u003e How\u003cb\u003e unexpectedly perfect and profoundly moving.\u003c\/b\u003e It is so rare that a novel surprises you, but this one certainly did. I loved it. Felt cradled by it. Moved, and hurt, and healed. \u003cb\u003eIt’s a masterclass in the passage of time\u003c\/b\u003e, in showing, not telling. In humility and redemption and how to love. I couldn’t look away. It is genius. It is tender. It has left me bruised, and grateful, and in tears.\u003cb\u003e One of my best reads of the year.\u003c\/b\u003e -- Claire Daverley, author of TALKING AT NIGHT\u003cbr\u003eBeautiful. A \u003cb\u003equietly brilliant \u003c\/b\u003edebut that I didn’t want to put down. Sybil is one of the most \u003cb\u003erounded, real, fascinating\u003c\/b\u003e characters I've read in a long time. -- BETH O'LEARY","brand":"Virginia Evans","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49077107720409,"sku":"9781405971553","price":24.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0502\/9530\/8441\/files\/9781405971553.jpg?v=1786457098","url":"https:\/\/www.arielbooks.com.au\/products\/the-correspondent-9781405971553","provider":"Ariel","version":"1.0","type":"link"}