Oh my. What a book. I absolutely loved this. Here, Newman manages to tell a story laced with humour and pathos, which is no mean feat. Ash is looking after best friend Edi who is in a hospice receiving palliative care for terminal cancer. The premise is grim - but Newman executes this story in such a beautiful way, it is a perfect example of a tragi-comic novel that should be read by everyone. The only criticism I have is the choice of names: Jonah, Jules, Honey etc. There are too many gender-neutral names (and more beginning with 'J'!) which, in a short-ish novel, makes it tricky to follow, at times. This, however, is a minor point - the story, the plot, the succinct and skilled writing style makes up for such little weaknesses.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this novel.

I, unfortunately, missed the archive date so was unable to download this before being archived. I would happily review it if it became available again. I have given stars due to the book cover being eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

I don’t think I’ve ever read a book with a more beautiful friendship. The relationship between them was so pure, and I really felt like I was grieving for their friendship along with ash, before it was over. This is a true reflection of love and loss and all that comes with it. The mother daughter relationship was also really fun and I loved belle as a character. I did feel like the ending with ash and honey, although nice, was maybe a bit forced.

Edi and Ash have been best friends for over 40 years but everything is about to come crashing down, as Edi enters her final stages of terminal cancer. She spends her last days in a hospice with a colourful cast of characters, reminiscing about the life that she and Ash have built together and remembering the best things about living.

I was moved by the final chapters of this book but I couldn't get past my intense dislike of Ash. I understand that her erratic, strange behaviour in this book was a direct result of her grief but I couldn't grasp her motivations at all. I also couldn't understand why Edi chose to spend her final weeks in a hospice away from her husband and son. Was this supposed to illustrate the strength of her friendship with Ash? Does it really surpass everything that she has built with her very lovely husband Jude and only son Dash?

There were also three different characters with not very dissimilar J names (Jude, Jules and Jonah) names and I kept getting them confused. This may also have been in part to there being many characters and not a lot of difference in their voices.

There was also some dismissal of eating disorders as something that was experimented with (what?) and I detected a hint of judgement for Ash's younger daughter Belle's non-binary friend Scriv, referred to by Ash as Belle's 'theyfriend'.

It's a shame because I liked the sentiment of the book and I thought it had a lot to say about intense grief and heartbreak. However, Ash was horrendous and some lines made me curl up and cringe.

Really enjoyable book.
It tells the story of Edi and Ash who have been best friends since childhood. When Edi is diagnosed with terminal cancer and moves to hospice care we follow them and their families as they come to terms with what is happening to Edi. It’s both poignant but also funny.
Highly recommended.

A quirky and joyful novel about the saddest moment. And yet it is full of love and happiness. Highly recommended.

The story centers around two lifelong best friends - Ash and Edi. Edi has terminal cancer, and is spending her final days in a hospice close to Ash. I still can't quite grasp choosing to leave your husband and child behind to move to a hospice miles away, closer to your best friend, but each to their own. It's a emotional story of death and bereavement, but I didn't warm to Ash, which made this a difficult read.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

The main character Ashley is caring for her lifelong friend Edie, who is in a hospice dying from ovarian cancer.
I expected a heartwarming book about care, love and friendship instead it was a book all about Ashley who the more I read about the more I disliked her. She spends most of her time sleeping with different men, including her best friends cancer doctor and her best friends brother whilst at the same time trying to sleep with her ex husband. She is often having sex at home when her teenage daughter walks in on her.
I also couldn't believe that Edie would choose to leave her husband and child to go to a hospice miles away from them but close to Ashley.
In summary this book definitely wasn't for me.
Thanks to netgalley for this advance read.

A fantastically moving, quirky story of what its like to lose your best friend and making the most of the time you have together. Edi has been diagnosed with terminal cancer and Ash has taken to caring for her whilst she is in hospice. As Ash notes, 'Edi's memory is like the back-up hard drive for mine', which made me pick up this book and I'm so glad I did. It is within this very close-knit group of friends and family that you experience the multi-facets of grief through the eyes of Ash, from the grieving for the person they were, enjoying the person they are now and savouring that time together, to that eventual loss.

Deep breaths. “Hospice is a complicated place to pass the time because you are kind of officially dying,” says food writer Ash: she finds herself passing time in her local hospice with her very best and dearest friend, Edi, who is the one officially dying from ovarian cancer, having been given weeks to live by her doctors in Manhattan. Unable to find hospice care in the city for Edi, Ash – based in Western Massachusetts, the country mouse to Edi’s town mouse – suggests the nearby Graceful Shepherd Hospice, so Edi says a final goodbye to her husband Jude and young son Dash, and moves into the ‘Shapely’ for her final days. Having grown up together in New York, the two women share a lifetime of experiences: one’s memory is the ‘back up hard drive’ for the other, and the tragedy of losing that is just one of the unbearable cruelties dealt out by Edi’s cancer. Ash leans on her own support network, containing Edi’s older brother Jonah, who Ash is finally sleeping with after a life-long crush: Ash’s own beautiful daughters Jules and Belle, her good and kind husband Honey, from whom Ash is separated-but-not-quite, plus cats Jelly and Thumper: together the group enter that surreal otherworldly state you slip into when you know someone is about to leave, for good, and all the noise and clutter just falls by the wayside: “between the Twilight Zone and some other fuckery”, as Edi’s other friend Alice puts it. Their days revolve around visits to the Shapely and Edi’s rhythms: they buy watermelon and magazines, and track down elusive cakes from Edi’s past, all the while preparing themselves for their dear friend’s evental death, and an unbelievable future that they must move into without her. But at no point does the book tip into overly-sugared sentimentality: like the process of dying, it’s bluntly hilarious – we learn about Ash and Edi’s past escapades, and the slowly expanding cast of characters who Ash is (potentially inappropriately) sleeping with, and more everyday comedy as the tale draws nearer to the inevitable conclusion which hangs over this stunning book: there will be no miracle cure, Edi will not rise from the bed with rosy cheeks and the doctors won’t marvel: it is terrible and awful and yet the most simple and real, everyday occurrence “... the most basic fact about human life – tied with birth, I guess,” Ash says, “but it’s so startling. Everyone dies, and yet it’s unendurable. There is so much love inside of us.” The women’s friendship is depicted in such beautiful and real prose that you hold your breath while reading for fear you’ll be noticed in the room while they talk, and hold hands, and love each other so fiercely – and yet a paragraph on from a tiny moment of unbearable grief, you’ll be laughing at a side observation from one of Edi’s brilliant friends. This is an extraordinary, stunning, truly heartbreaking book, which will make you cry ugly tears, laugh with your whole heart, and hug your most precious friends.

Edi and Ash are lifelong friends who have witnessed the good, the bad and the ugly about each other. When Edi is diagnosed with terminal cancer, Ash pledges to be there for Edi. A very moving portrayal of unconditional love, living with cancer and facing life without your soul mate. Beautifully written, straight from the heart.

This was a great read. It was also an emotional story as it is set in a hospice. It was a heartwarming story about all the things she did for the residents. It was well written and interesting. The characters were quirky and realistic. I enjoyed the storyline, but it didn't fully hold my attention throughout. I rated this book 3.5 stars rounded up as it was better than an average book. It is quite a short story at less than 200 pages. So great for a quick read. I personally think that it might have been better as a longer book. The start and ending were very good, but the middle just went a bit astray. This book brought out some emotions from me, which is always good. If you are unsure if you would like it, just read a sample to see if it is the perfect fit for you.

Many thanks to the author and publishers for creating an emotional and heartwarming book.

The above review has already been placed on goodreads, waterstones, Google books, Barnes&noble, kobo, amazon UK where found and my blog today https://ladyreading365.wixsite.com/website/post/we-all-want-impossible-things-by-catherine-newman-random-house-3-5-stars under ladyreading365

Liked the concept but sadly this wasn't a book for me - don't know if too close to current life events or just me generally. Liked the writing style but did not finish the book.

Such a heart wrenching story, about family and friends of Edi - written with dignity and sometimes brutal honesty. Beautifully written from the point of view of the best friend - who is a bit of a mess, I didn’t particularly gel with her, and struggled to understand the things she did, I loved her bond with her children though so open and honest, but in some respects too honest and open, she made me cringe and wonder what on Earth! I’d of liked to of learned more about Edi and her story, but all in all a tough subject well written

A beautiful and poignant story of friendship, love and loss. It tells a story of friendship, told through the eyes of someone watching their friend slowly deteriorate due to cancer. It is funny, heartfelt, sad and wonderful.highly recommend.

A beautifully written dedication to a lifelong friendship. Filled with heart-wrenching sadness on the loss of a best friend, yet a tribute to human's ability to find moments of connection, desire, joy, humour amongst this. Any woman would be lucky to have had the chance to experience a friendship as close as the one described in this book.

**Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read an advanced e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own **

Such a heartbreakingly moving portral of the death of a best friend. I loved the characters as they were so real and so human. I saw how everyone visiting Edi, who was dying in a hospice, was full of life and sadness and feelings and emotions as Edi slowly faded. Beautifully warm writing - you could feel the love pouring out from every page. How lucky to have had a friendship like that even though it was lost. Amazing book. Can't recommend it more highly.

This book was very sad in places but also had a balance of happy moment. I would definitely recommend this. Its probably aimed more at a female audience as it explores female friendship and also loss. I think maybe it is better read without anything being given away. It is beautifully written.

EXCERPT: Plates are filled and passed, caps popped off of beer and prosecco bottles. We are having a bona fide party! Edi's got a glass of bubbly and a chocolate pudding cup from the kitchen. We drag in a couple of extra chairs from the conference room. Farrah Fawcett joins us. Jude gets Nina Simone to pour out of somebody's speaker. Belle's got a band-aid on her head and maybe a concussion, but still both girls gleam almost obscenely: shiny pink cheeks; shiny, dark hair - Jules's long and curly, Belle's short and bristly - and huge smiles. I catch Honey's eye: We made these people . Jude is telling Jules the cake story, and Jules is laughing her sleigh-bells laugh. Belle is asking Jonah something about his work, and I hear her say, 'I know it's not actually a hedgehog fund.' Alice is bent over Edi, talking and laughing quietly, tears glinting like diamonds in her long eyelashes. Nina Simone is feeling good. I'm standing with a can of deliciously bitter beer in my hand, beaming and beaming - my jaw actually aches from smiling so much. I have never been so sad and happy in my entire life. The whole time Edi's been here, I've thought: Live like you're dying? Who would do that? Dying sucks. Now I see it, though. I do want to live like this!

ABOUT 'WE ALL WANT IMPOSSIBLE THINGS': Who knows you better than your best friend? Who knows your secrets, your fears, your desires, your strange imperfect self? Edi and Ash have been best friends for over forty years. Since childhood they have seen each other through life's milestones: stealing vodka from their parents, the Madonna phase, REM concerts, unexpected wakes, marriages, infertility, children. As Ash notes, 'Edi's memory is like the back-up hard drive for mine.'

So when Edi is diagnosed with terminal cancer, Ash's world reshapes around the rhythms of Edi's care, from chipped ice and watermelon cubes to music therapy; from snack smuggling to impromptu excursions into the frozen winter night. Because life is about squeezing the joy out of every moment, about building a powerhouse of memories, about learning when to hold on, and when to let go.

MY THOUGHTS: Every star in the sky for this beautiful book.

Reading We All Want Impossible Things, I cried and laughed and cried and laughed some more, often at the same time. Catherine Newman has written rawly and honestly about love and grief, the messiness of the emotional rollercoaster of caring for, and about, the dying.

But, this is a story that is just as much about living as it is about dying. It is a story of sadness and of hope; it is full of life and laughter, and tears and grief. I loved the way Edi's family and friends farewelled her, how they all supported and cared for one another. I wanted to be part of this messy and emotional group, to be one of them.

Intertwined with the story of Ash caring for Edi in her final weeks is the story of Ash's messy life. This doesn't detract at all from the main thread; they blend and complement each other.

I did have some initial difficulty in keeping the characters straight in my mind: Jude, Jules, Jonah; but this didn't last long. Ash is a character who grew on me. I didn't like her much at first, but that changed as the book progressed, and now I would love to have her as a friend.

I love this book enough to buy a hard copy. It's going on my 'forever' shelf: the books I will never be parted from.

This is Catherine Newman's debut adult novel.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#WeAllWantImpossibleThings #NetGalley

I: @catherinenewman @randomhouse @doubledayukbooks

T: @CatheriNewman @doubledaybooks

#fivestarread #contemporaryfiction #deathanddying #friendship #sliceoflife

THE AUTHOR: Hi! I should probably tell you about myself as a writer, even if you were here to find out some other kind of thing! I write (wrote?) the cooking and lifestyle blog Ben & Birdy. I'm not sure why I wrote "lifestyle." Maybe I mean the kind of lifestyle where you sew your hand to a maple leaf garland while drinking pinot noir.
I have written the grown-up parenting memoirs Catastrophic Happiness (Little, Brown) and Waiting for Birdy (Penguin). I have also written the middle-grade novel One Mixed-Up Night (Random House), Stitch Camp, which is a kids' craft book I co-wrote with my friend Nicole, and the award-winning bestselling skill-building books for kids How to Be a Person and What Can I Say? (both from Storey). My first adult novel, We All Want Impossible Things, is out now.
I have also written about kids, parents, teenagers, food, cooking, love, loss, gender, eating, death, sex, politics, books, babies, snakes, foraging, relationships, crafts, holidays, travel, and fortune telling for lots of magazines, newspapers, and online publications, including the New York Times, O the Oprah Magazine, The Boston Globe, Romper, Self, The Huffington Post, FamilyFun, Parents, and Full Grown People. I am a regular contributor to the Cup of Jo website.
I was, until recently, the etiquette columnist at Real Simple for ten years, even though yes, I swear a lot and don't know what an oyster fork is. I edit the James-Beard-Award-winning nonprofit kids' cooking magazine ChopChop.
My work has been in lots of books and anthologies, including On Being 40, the fabulous Unbored series, The Bitch in the House, Oprah's Little Book of Happiness, and the Full Grown People collections.
I've also done plenty of consulting, public radio commentaries, readings, talks, workshops, and TV appearances.
Two random things: I have a PhD, and I'm the secretary of Creative Writing at Amherst College. (catherinenewmanwriter.com)

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers, Doubleday via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

This is a very poignant tale. Narrated by Ashley, it is the story of her last few weeks with her best friend Edi, who is terminally ill and receiving end of life care in a local hospice. Although it is primarily a story of death, there is a lot to smile about here too. Friends since childhood, we discover the highs and lows of true friends. A beautiful story, filled with humour and sadness, this is a must read for anyone who ever had a best friend. This is a 4⭐️ book for me.
Many thanks to #NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book.