Letters from Max a Book of Friendship

Ruhl was a distinguished, two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist; Ritvo was an exuberant, opinionated, intensely curious and intensely gifted poet in remission from pediatric cancer. But after Ritvo's illness returned that semester, the two began to trade e-mails, letters, and texts.

Over the four years that followed--as Ritvo's health continued to decline, even as his productivity bloomed--the teacher found herself becoming first a friend, then a colleague, and finally a student. Reincarnation, the loving playfulness of postmodernism, the afterlife as an Amtrak quiet car, good soup: in Ruhl and Ritvo's exchanges, all ideas are fair, nourishing game, shared and debated in the spirit of generosity and love. "We'll always know one another forever, however long ever is," Ritvo writes. "And that's all I want--is to know you forever."

Studded with poems and songs, shimmering like stars set in the heavy blanket of the sky, Letters from Max is a deeply moving exploration of love, art, mortality, and joy.

Over the next four years--in which Ritvo's illness returned and his health began to decline, even as his productivity bloomed--the two traded a series of letters that spark with urgency, humor, and the desire for connection. Reincarnation, the loving playfulness of postmodernism, the afterlife as an Amtrak quiet car, good soup: in Ruhl and Ritvo's exchanges, all ideas are fair, nourishing game, shared and debated in the spirit of generosity and love. "We'll always know one another forever, however long ever is," Ritvo writes. "And that's all I want--is to know you forever."

Studded with poems and songs, Letters from Max is a deeply moving portrait of a friendship, and a shimmering exploration of love, art, mortality, and the afterlife.

A KIRKUS BEST BOOK OF 2018

In 2012, Sarah Ruhl was a distinguished author and playwright, twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Max Ritvo, a student in her playwriting class at Yale University, was an exuberant, opinionated, and highly gifted poet. He was also in remission from pediatric cancer.

Over the next four years--in which Ritvo's illness returned and his health declined, even as his productivity bloomed--the two exchanged letters that spark with urgency, humor, and the desire for connection. Reincarnation, books, the afterlife as an Amtrak quiet car, good soup: in Ruhl and Ritvo's exchanges, all ideas are fair, nourishing game, shared and debated in a spirit of generosity and love. "We'll always know one another forever, however long ever is," Ritvo writes. "And that's all I want--is to know you forever."

Studded with poems and songs, Letters from Max is a deeply moving portrait of a friendship, and a shimmering exploration of love, art, mortality, and the afterlife.