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I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives

by Martin Ganda

A six-year correspondence across continents

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Paperback New English

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Awards & Recognition

  • Bestseller

    New York Times bestseller

    The metadata describes this book as a New York Times bestseller.

AlbakiReads Editorial

A six-year correspondence across continents

Beginning with a classroom pen-pal assignment, the exchange between Caitlin in Pennsylvania and Martin in Zimbabwe grows into a friendship documented here as a dual memoir. Their letters bring together everyday details—sports, family, school—with the differences in the circumstances each describes. The book’s account is anchored in the correspondence itself, tracing how an assigned connection became significant in both young people’s lives. Its social context includes poverty, as reflected in the book’s subject classification and the description of Martin’s school receiving only a small number of letters for its students.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Teens and young adults interested in memoirs about friendship and correspondence
  • Readers curious about connections between young people in the United States and Zimbabwe
  • Readers interested in social topics related to poverty and schooling

Themes

Cross-cultural friendshipLetter writing and connectionPoverty and schoolingAdolescence and personal growth

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - The true story of an all-American girl, a boy from Zimbabwe, and the letter that changed both of their lives forever.

It started as an assignment. Caitlin had never even heard of Zimbabwe when everyone in her class was told to write a letter to an unknown student in a distant place. Excited for the first time about homework, she went home that night and wrote about her favorite color and what sports she played, and asked her mystery pen-pal about life in Zimbabwe.

Martin had never heard of Pennsylvania when he read Caitlin's letter. He was lucky to even receive a pen-pal letter--his class only received ten letters for fifty kids! But as the top student, he got the first one. He wrote Caitlin back, talking about his siblings and soccer and saying he hoped she wrote again.

These letters were the beginning of a correspondence that spanned six years and changed two lives. In this compelling dual memoir, Caitlin and Martin recount how they became best friends--and better people--through their inspiring long-distance exchange.

Praise for I Will Always Write Back:
"An inspiring story that will change your life, too." ―Patricia McCormick, author of the National Book Award finalist Sold
"A little miracle of unexpected genuineness." ―New York Times Book Review
"Moving and uplifting." ―Peter Godwin, award-winning author and journalist
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