LoveReading Says
What an incredible, shattering, unforgettable story. Catherine Newman’s We All Want Impossible Things takes in all life’s joys, absurdities, devastations, and the pain of letting go. It’s tender, bold, brilliant on female friendship, and hilariously, heart-wrenchingly honest —the kind of book you’ll want to thrust on all your friends. Talking of which…
Edi and Ash have been friends for some forty years. They’ve gone through everything life can through at you together, from childhood and crazy teenage exploits, through to marriage and kids, with Ash now facing the unsettling complications of redefining her relationship with her soon-to-be ex-husband. And now, when Edi is diagnosed with terminal cancer, they’re facing Edi’s death together.
The realities of hospice life are brutal, absurdly funny and get to heart of what it is to be alive. “It’s like you walk in under a giant banner that says, EVERYONE HERE IS DYING, but then most of the time you’re just making small talk and quesadillas, trying to find something to watch on Netflix, or wondering if there’s any pie left.” As one character sagely responds, “I mean, isn’t that just life though… “We’re doing all the things, enjoying ourselves where we can, even though we’re all just going to die at the end of it.”
As the Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack blares from a neighbouring room, Ash’s life becomes attuned to Edi in ever deeper ways. They’ve always been there for each other, and now is the ultimate incarnation of that bond. Painfully accurate on the experience of seeing a loved one die, this novel is filled with love, truth and an equally accurate representation of the hysterical humour that often springs from the most devastating, absurd experiences. In a word, though, We All Want Impossible Things is breath-takingly beautiful.
Joanne Owen
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We All Want Impossible Things Synopsis
"Catherine Newman sees the heartbreak and comedy of life with wisdom and unflinching compassion. The way she finds the extraordinary in the everyday is nothing short of poetry. She's a writer's writer--and a human's human."--New York Times bestselling author Katherine Center
"A riotously funny and fiercely loyal love letter to female friendship. The story of Edi and Ash proves that a best friend is a gift from the gods. Newman turns her prodigious talents toward finding joy even in the friendship's final days. I laughed while crying, and was left revived. Newman is a comic masterhand and a dazzling philosopher of the day-to-day."--Amity Gaige, author of Sea Wife
"The funniest, most joyful book about dying--and living--that I have ever read."--KJ Dell'Antonia, author of the New York Times bestselling The Chicken Sisters
For lovers of Meg Wolitzer, Maria Semple, and Jenny Offill comes this raucous, poignant celebration of life, love, and friendship at its imperfect and radiant best.
Edith and Ashley have been best friends for over forty-two years. They've shared the mundane and the momentous together: trick or treating and binge drinking; Gilligan's Island reruns and REM concerts; hickeys and heartbreak; surprise Scottish wakes; marriages, infertility, and children. As Ash says, "Edi's memory is like the back-up hard drive for mine."
But now the unthinkable has happened. Edi is dying of ovarian cancer and spending her last days at a hospice near Ash, who stumbles into heartbreak surrounded by her daughters, ex(ish) husband, dear friends, a poorly chosen lover (or two), and a rotating cast of beautifully, fleetingly human hospice characters.
As The Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack blasts all day long from the room next door, Edi and Ash reminisce, hold on, and try to let go. Meanwhile, Ash struggles with being an imperfect friend, wife, and parent--with life, in other words, distilled to its heartbreaking, joyful, and comedic essence.
For anyone who's ever lost a friend or had one. Get ready to laugh through your tears.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9780063230927 |
| Publication date: |
7th November 2023 |
| Author: |
Catherine Newman |
| Publisher: |
Harper Perennial an imprint of HarperCollins |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
224 pages |
| Primary Genre |
Modern and Contemporary Fiction
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| Other Genres: |
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| Recommendations: |
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