| Public details: I Will Always Write Back is a dual-perspective memoir. Through alternating narratives, Caitlin and Martin tell the story of how they became pen-pals in 1997 and eventually lifelong friends. The memoir features excerpts from real-life letter correspondences between the two narrators as well as their present-day accounts of past events.
Caitlin is a student at Pennfield Middle School in Pennsylvania whose class selects pen-pals. Martin, who lives in Mutare, Zimbabwe, receives a pen-pal letter from Caitlin and writes her back. They promise to write each other regularly, no matter what happens.
During their correspondence, Martin’s father loses his job and the family struggles to come up with the funds to keep Martin in school. This devastates Martin, who has big dreams to study at a US university. He can no longer afford postage to write Caitlin, taking odd jobs wherever he can find them to help feed his family.
Caitlin and her parents help Martin stay in high school and attend Villanova University, where he meets Caitlin in person. |
