Letter writing is a lost art. Initially having given way to email, even that has fallen by the wayside, replaced by ever briefer and more impersonal forms of communication. It’s not something one is likely to think about often, if ever, but reading Virginia Evans’ epistolary debut novel The Correspondent one can’t help but feel a romantic nostalgia for at least a partial return to this more eloquent and thoughtful means of conversation.

Sybil Van Antwerp has spent much of her 70-plus years of life writing letters (and more than a few e-mails) to her family and friends, as well various organizations and businesses she had need to deal with and even the occasional best-selling author. The latter don’t always write back, but her back and forth with the others is used to tell the story of her final years.

In these missives she reckons with her lingering grief and guilt over a long-ago tragedy and the ways it harmed and ultimately ended her marriage. She keeps her friends, her brother, her son, and her somewhat estranged daughter abreast on her day-to-day life while receiving updates on theirs in return. She unexpectedly finds herself contending with two possible suitors. She strikes up a friendship with a customer service representative and a university dean after initially unpleasant encounters with both and even shares her darkest thoughts with Joan Didion as her twilight years quickly prove to be some of her most eventful.

This style of book won’t be for everyone and each of the characters’ voices hew a little too similar to each other, but Evans’ eloquent and charming prose is such a joy to read that most won’t mind. Sybil is one of the best characters in recent memory; witty, wise, and unafraid to speak her mind though still vulnerable and caring. The style leaves the reader with the impression of having gotten to really know her and lends the turning of the final page a sense of great loss.

Sadness aside, this is a beautiful tale of a life well-lived that reminds us of how much there is to discover and enjoy in the world no matter how long we’ve already been in it. A love letter to the written word and a true treat for bibliophiles. ★★★★★