Looking for the best letters books? Or a page-turning epistolary novel?
You’re in the right place!
There’s something truly magical about letter writing. Maybe it’s that each letter has a clear audience. Or that the medium tends to keep things concise. Or that you can read them in neat, bite-sized chunks.
Whatever it is, from the famous to the literary, from the personal to the shared, there’s little doubt that some of the wisest and wittiest words ever written have been delivered in handy, correspondence-shaped packages.
That’s why, in this list of book recommendations, I’ve collected the greatest letter books and epistolary novels ever written; a treasure trove of insights from the world’s very best writers distilled into missives to readers and friends.
Whether you’re here for enjoyment or inspiration or instruction; whether you’re a here as a writer or editor or just to read you’ll find the very best letters books pre-ranked and organised below.
I hope you enjoy them, I hope they inspire you and I hope you find what you’re looking for.
And until next time, read daily, read widely and read well,
Arthur “An Animal That Writes Letters” Worsley
P.s., Not sure what to read first? I’d start with books #1, #3 and #14.
The 30 Best Letters Books And Epistolary Novels Ever Written
Why these books of correspondence and epistolary novels? The best letters books below are the top picks from my master database, ranked by a combination of Goodreads rating, the number of Goodreads reviews and first publication date. The goal is to give a good balance of what’s most loved, what’s most popular and what’s delivered timelessly relevant advice.
Think something’s missing? Leave a comment or email me and I’ll add it to the next round of updates. I honestly love hearing from you so please, do get in touch!
- Letters from a Stoic (-49), Seneca
256 pages. Rated 4.3 over 14,800 reviews on Goodreads. - The Screwtape Letters (1942), C.S. Lewis
223 pages. Rated 4.2 over 279,200 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters to a Young Poet (1929), Rainer Maria Rilke
80 pages. Rated 4.3 over 39,400 reviews on Goodreads. - The Letters of Vincent van Gogh (1914), Vincent van Gogh
528 pages. Rated 4.0 over 67,300 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters from Father Christmas (1943), J.R.R. Tolkien
111 pages. Rated 4.2 over 9,200 reviews on Goodreads. - Letter from the Birmingham Jail (1963), Martin Luther King Jr.
35 pages. Rated 4.7 over 4,000 reviews on Goodreads. - My Dearest Friend (1840), Abigail Adams
Letters of Abigail and John Adams
508 pages. Rated 4.2 over 2,100 reviews on Goodreads. - The Habit of Being (1978), Flannery O’Connor
Letters of Flannery O’Connor
640 pages. Rated 4.5 over 1,700 reviews on Goodreads. - Jane Austen’s Letters (1932), Jane Austen
672 pages. Rated 4.2 over 2,400 reviews on Goodreads. - The Adams-Jefferson Letters (1959), Lester J. Cappon
The Complete Correspondence Between Thomas Jefferson and Abigail and John Adams
690 pages. Rated 4.3 over 1,100 reviews on Goodreads. - Tiny Beautiful Things (2012), Cheryl Strayed (Summary)
Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar
A heart thumpingly raw, vulnerable and powerful collection of letters and advice on the power of love, of forgiveness and of finding growth in the darkest of places – by award-winning writer, Cheryl Strayed.
304 pages. Rated 4.3 over 50,300 reviews on Goodreads. - The Letters of Vita Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf (1965), Louise DeSalvo
480 pages. Rated 4.3 over 1,300 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters of John Keats (1954), John Keats
448 pages. Rated 4.4 over 400 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters from a Self-Made Merchant to His Son (1902), George Horace Lorimer
364 pages. Rated 4.1 over 1,100 reviews on Goodreads. - The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (1981), J.R.R. Tolkien
502 pages. Rated 4.2 over 5,200 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters Home (1975), Sylvia Plath
502 pages. Rated 4.2 over 2,600 reviews on Goodreads. - A Literate Passion (1965), Anaïs Nin
Letters of Anaïs Nin Henry Miller, 1932-1953
448 pages. Rated 4.2 over 1,900 reviews on Goodreads. - Anne Sexton (1977), Anne Sexton
A Self-Portrait in Letters
433 pages. Rated 4.3 over 1,600 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1928), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
320 pages. Rated 4.2 over 200 reviews on Goodreads. - Letter to His Father (1952), Franz Kafka
127 pages. Rated 3.9 over 13,000 reviews on Goodreads. - The Complete Letters of Oscar Wilde (1962), Oscar Wilde
1,270 pages. Rated 4.3 over 300 reviews on Goodreads. - The Letters of Virginia Woolf (1975), Virginia Woolf
Vol. One, 1888-1912
566 pages. Rated 4.3 over 600 reviews on Goodreads. - Selected Letters (1925), Marcus Tullius Cicero
288 pages. Rated 4.0 over 600 reviews on Goodreads. - The Bach Reader (1945), Hans T. David
A Life of Johann Sebastian Bach in Letters and Documents
474 pages. Rated 4.4 over <100 reviews on Goodreads. - Magick Without Tears (1954), Aleister Crowley
528 pages. Rated 4.1 over 1,000 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters to Children (1985), C.S. Lewis
128 pages. Rated 4.2 over 1,900 reviews on Goodreads. - Beethoven (1960), Ludwig van Beethoven
Letters, Journals and Conversations
281 pages. Rated 4.4 over <100 reviews on Goodreads. - Letters to a Young Contrarian (2001), Christopher Hitchens
141 pages. Rated 4.1 over 9,100 reviews on Goodreads. - Lord Byron (1972), Lord Byron
Selected Letters and Journals
408 pages. Rated 4.4 over <100 reviews on Goodreads. - Selected Letters III (1971), H.P. Lovecraft
1929-1931
451 pages. Rated 4.4 over <100 reviews on Goodreads.
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