Author Talk: Virginia Evans, "The Correspondent"

Darien Library and Barrett Bookstore are thrilled to welcome debut author, Virginia Evans, who will talk about her new book, The Correspondent. Virginia will be in conversation with author, Karen Dukess.

A charming and subtly powerful debut, The Correspondent paints the portrait of a life through a brilliant epistolary format. It takes readers on a moving journey into the life of Sybil Van Antwerp, a retired law clerk whose world is centered around the letters she exchanges with friends, family, and a few famous figures—Joan Didion and Ann Patchett among them—as she tries to make sense of the world around her. 

Sybil is a mother and grandmother, divorced, retired from a distinguished career in law yet still remembered for her sharp legal mind, an avid gardener, and a writer of letters. Most mornings, around half past ten, Sybil sits down to write—to her brother, to her best friend, to the president of the university who refuses to let her audit a class she desperately wants to take, to Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry to share her thoughts on their latest books, and to one person to whom she writes often yet never sends the letters. 

At seventy-three, Sybil has used her letters to make sense of the world and her place in it. But when letters from someone in her past arrive, they force her to confront one of the most painful periods of her life and to recognize that the letter she has been writing for years must finally be read. This journey compels Sybil to examine forgiveness—both of others and of herself—as she seeks to try and move forward. 

As Sybil writes, The Correspondent invites readers into her reflections on aging, memory, and the balance between isolation and connection. It is a striking exploration of the hubris of youth and the wisdom of old age, the power of literature and human connection, and the small yet profound acts that shape a life fully lived. 

Book Group alert:  this one is a must read!

About 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, as well as Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, for her master’s of philosophy in creative writing. She lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with her husband, two children, and her Red Labrador, Brigid. The Correspondent is her first book.

About Karen Dukess

Karen Dukess is the author of The Last Book Party which was an IndieNext and Discover New Writers pick. Her new novel, Welcome to Murder Week, was recently published in June 2025. Karen is also the host of The Castle Hill Author Talks, a series of virtual and in-person interviews with some of today’s most exciting authors. She has a degree in Russian Studies from Brown University and a Master’s in Journalism from Columbia University.