'We All Want Impossible Things' is a beautiful, funny and sad book about loss and dying in which the narrator Ash supports her best friend Edi as she lives out her final days in a hospice in New England.

This is a book which is brimming with warmth and love - Edi and Ash's decades-long friendship is at the heart of the novel as Ash looks back on all their shared memories, a great many involving food. There is also Edi's bond with her husband Jude and her son Dash, both back in New York, and Ash's daughters and (theoretically) estranged husband who support Ash through Edi's last weeks, as well as Ash's various simultaneous romantic partners. Above all, the hospice itself is presented with real affection as a place of great happiness and love which is more focused on living than dying.

The novel is very funny throughout - Catherine Newman emulates the style of writers like Emma Straub and Katherine Heiny in the way she creates entertaining characters whose exchanges are often hilarious in spite of (and sometimes because of) the sad events that are unfolding. I particularly enjoyed Ash's relationship with her younger daughter Belle.

At the same time, Newman offers an incredibly honest and unflinching account of the death of a loved one and is prepared to explore many of the gory details and emotional complexities of this situation without becoming too harrowing. She likewise avoids mawkishness, although there are some deeply touching passages, such as when Ash tells Edi that her son's "whole self is made completely out of your love" or when she reflects that "we risk every last thing for our heart;s expansion, even when that expanded heart threatens to suffocate us and then burst".

I really enjoyed and admired the way that this novel took such a difficult topic and explored it with compassion and clarity. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC to review.

A book about two best friends, one of them going off the rails, the other going into hospice and soon to die. Does that sound like your ideal read? Perhaps not, but I'm going to recommend you read it none the less.

It's for anybody who ever had a special friend - or wished they did.
It's for anybody who lost somebody they love - or worries that one day they will.
It's for anybody having a bit of a mid-life crisis - or wondering if they might one day.

OK, it's just a great book that, despite its sad themes, is really life-affirming. If you're going to die, go like Edi, surrounded by friends who'd do anything for you including tracking down that amazing lemon polenta cake you want to eat just one more time before you go.

Yes, it's sad. I'm not going to deny that. But it's also incredibly moving. I fear that not too many hospices are quite as liberal as this one but I wish they were. There are dogs, cats, crazy old ladies singing along to 'Fiddler on the Roof', lots of great food, people who'll turn up and sing whatever you ask them to, and a cast of the most wonderful characters.

Highly recommended.
WIth thanks to Netgalley and the publishers.

Heartbreakingly beautiful!

I adored this book. It is so sad and yet so joyous. A book about dying does not sound appealing but this is a must read!

The story follows the final few weeks of Edi’s life in hospice. It is raw and real and doesn’t shy away from the awful choices that have to be made, not the reality of bodily fluids!

The writing is exquisite - funny yet tender.

I adored the main character for all her flaws and insight into herself. I loved the relationships, the self doubt, the love and pain of it all.,

An absolute must read.

The novel focuses mainly on the experience of the surviving woman who struggles to come to terms with her friend’s loss .She deals with her trauma by sleeping with partners including at one stage the hospice doctor but ultimately the experience draws her nearer to her own family and estranged husband
The author has a clear easily read prose style the book was an enjoyable immersive read .Be warmed your will need a box of tissues handy.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is such an emotion filled book and the way it affects you is a testament to Catherine’s writing! This story is told incredibly well and I can’t wait for her new book.

A beautifully written book about friendship.
Heartbreaking, moving and full of love.
I shed a tear reading the final few chapters.
5 stars

Heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time but not a boring tome of nonsense. Surprisingly funny narration of a mid life forced encounter with mortality. I couldn’t put it down despite the sad premise.

“We All Want Impossible Things” gives you access to the lifelong friendship of two women, one who is terminally ill and living in a hospice. The novel follows the point of view of Ash, who is supporting her friend Edi through her final months.

Read it if: you’re in the mood for something a little weepy, but free of cliché

Don’t read it if: you want shock twists and turns

Although it’s primarily a novel about grief, the plot shows Ash as a confused and unsettled character outside of this experience. Her relationships with her children, her ex-partner and her somewhat chaotic sex life are given just as much exploration.

It’s as moving and deeply heartbreaking as you’d expect. Whilst also considering the big, philosophical questions of life after death, the novel invites the reader to think about the more mundane aspects of facing your own mortality, and the strange experience of living in a hospice. Ash is a flawed character, and her experience of facing the impending loss of her best friend shows grief in all it’s complicated messiness.

With thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Wow! Devastatingly beautiful. I couldn't put it down, I felt like I was right there with everyone in the book. A beautifully written story of true friendship and trying to make the best of an awful situation. I cried.....a lot. Great read.

Whilst there was an awful lot right with this book, there were just a few niggles which brought it down slightly for me.

All the reviews I’d read said how heartbreakingly sad it is, so I knew I would be in for an emotional ride, and they weren’t wrong.

The description of hospice (whilst set in the US and I’m reading it in the UK) felt perfect. My dad spent his final 6 days in a hospice and I couldn’t have been more happy with them. As bizarre as it sounds, it became this second home, this positive, friendly place that I actually missed after he’d died. A lot of people think hospice=death, and to a point it is, but it doesn’t have to be doom and gloom all the time. And that’s where I find this book hits the mark. Yes, it’s a fictional book, but it’s so beautifully created and very close to how I felt.

There’s no getting past the fact that this is an emotional book that hits on some very difficult topics. I mean, it is about a woman dying of cancer and her best friends’ journey through it after all. It’s a tough but a worthwhile read.

I found the story and the themes very, very good, but overall, the actual writing of it, the flow of the story didn’t hit the mark for me. I found it a bit over the place, to-ing and fro-ing. And at first I thought that was a good representation of grief and cancer and hospice, but it soon became a bit too all consuming and took over from the story itself. Having said that, it definitely finds its way in the last 15-20%; it felt more focussed and I could get into the story itself better. And that’s when I could let the emotions flow.

One thing I did slightly confused by, is that the book has a picture of a cake on the front, the cake is then mentioned relatively early on, and it just wasn’t really made a big thing of, and I was waiting for it. It’s obviously not enough to negatively impact the reading of the book as such, but it was something that stuck in my head enough to mention it.

I was indifferent to a number of the characters. None of them were particularly standout for me to dislike, and they all had their role to play in the wider story. But for me, this was Ash and Edi’s story and nothing was going to take away from that.

I finished reading this on a day I’d gone out with my best friend. Since I became ill, she’s taken on so much, helping me out, pushing my wheelchair, attending medical appointments with me etc. and this book came at a really good time. I’d been feeling very depressed recently, and it spoke to my emotions. You might wonder why I choose to read a sad book if I’m feeling sad, and not an uplifting, fun one, but it’s like listening to sad music…somehow it just works. And reading this made me think about my friendship and how I would deal with a similar situation.

It’s a short read, but packed full of love and friendship, sadness and grief, and, surprisingly, humour. A dark humour definitely, but it definitely raised a smile or two. And it’s a beautiful exploration of friendship, possibly the best exploration I’ve read. Friendship cannot cure cancer, but it can help whilst on the journey.

Ash and Edi have been best friends since childhood and lived all their key life moments together. They are now facing the biggest moment ever - Edi is dying of cancer. For such a premise this isn't a book about sadness, it is about finding the joy in life and even in the darkest times never letting it go. Humour and love very much at the heart of this story of true female friendship.

I wish I could include the cry-face emoji in a review... this book absolutely broke me. It is a quick but powerful read, and one of the best books I've read in a long, long time.

A book that made me stop and think and reflect on human life and the gamut of emotions. Edith and Ashley have been friends since nursery school. Now in their forties, Edi is in a hospice visited by several close friends. There is a network including Ash’s children and ex- sort of husband as he drifts in and out as if nothing is any different. Ruth, another patient, watches “Fiddler on the Roof” day after day which provides a little humour. Edi’s demise brings home to Ash the fragility of life and reflects on her own shortcomings.

This is a different read in many ways. It’s pretty much set in the hospice and is written in the first person from Ash’s point of view. As others have said, for the subject matter it’s strangely compelling as much centres on Ash and maybe reflects on us readers as to the reality of life and treasuring each and every moment. It’s a short read about being human and our feelings and how experiences may either change us or make us reassess our situation. Of life and death of love and hope and so much more.


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I wondered after reading the first page of this book if I'd chosen unwisely - did I really want to read about someone dying and a very American version of death as well. But I'm so glad I carried on with it. I thoroughly enjoyed the story although it is a tough emotional ride.
Ash's best friend Edi is dying of cancer and when they are given the dreadful news that no more can be done for her, Ash suggests to Edi's husband that Edi is moved to a hospice near where Ash lives for the final stage of her life.
If this sounds a maudlin plot for a book, read on! As friends and family gather round Edi, Ash celebrates her life by reliving many of their adventures together. As she tries to support her friend, her own life appears to be rolling away from her — her marriage has broken down, her daughter is skipping school, she drinks too much and is sleeping with different people.
Ash's emotions are sharply and vividly told as she deals with Edi's deterioration. Both Ash's and Edi's family are well defined and complete well rounded characters. The care home, Shapely with its wonderful staff and several resident animals seems an incredible institution and almost another character in its own right. I loved the constant references to food and drink, many snacks reminding Edi or Ash of different stages of their lives and meals providing comfort and familiarity to everyone.
This is a story written with much wit and compassion and I can only hope that if I ever find myself in the same position as Ash that I can get though it as well as she did.
With thanks to Netgalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for an arc copy in return for an honest review.

Ashley’s best friend, Edi, is dying of ovarian cancer and at the start of the novel Ash, the diminutive fits her, and Jude, Edi’s husband, take the decision to move Edi to a hospice close to where Ash lives for what is politely known as palliative care.

it doesn’t sound like a cheerful start and the end is already predictable but what comes in between is brimming with love, life and humanity. There’s a whole family of characters – and ‘family’ is the right word – supporting Edi and supporting one another despite the fact that Ash seems to be in the process of divorcing her husband, her adolescent girls are, well, adolescent and she seems to be sleeping with a lot of people all at once! She’s not exactly in control!

But out of all of this there emerges a great story with richly drawn characters, lots of humour, a willingness to deal with the nasty details of death from cancer, and a story of people holding each other together against the odds. The Graceful Shepherd Hospice, known throughout the book as Shapely is almost a character in itself, defined by the compassion and kindness of its staff, and an overall sense of warmth.

In the end, death is a depressing subject and one we may not want to talk about but it’s also inevitable and this story, with an emphasis on living, makes for a great read. It’s also important to say that it is not pious, noble or platitudinous. There’s clearly a lot of personal experience mixed in here, there’s no hopeful afterlife and when people die we miss them and get on with the business of living. That’s how it is for Ash and for everyone!

This is a heartfelt story of the love and support for a dying person. I began reading it and could feel every single emotion. Regretfully because I know someone who has since been diagnosed with terminal cancer, I was unable to continue reading. This was not because of the skill of the writing or the characters of the story but just that I do not feel strong enough at the moment to complete it.

I found this a fascinating read in many ways, not least because we were spending time with a dear friend in similar circumstances. But I didn't engage with Ash in quite the way I would have liked to. A very personal thing, I realise, as so many others I know feel very differently. But that is the joy of books and how we read them s individuals.

Moving your best friend from hospital to hospice for palliative care. How can this book be inspiring but it is. Over the course of the stay, reminiscing and untangling love knots is so emotional and kind.
The way you would like to be treated at the end of your own life.

I'm not sure I have the words to describe the impact reading this had on me, I'd need to be as good a writer as Catherine Newman to do that.
What I can say, with every conviction, is that this is a book that I will never forget and that I can see myself re-visiting if I am to ever find myself in the same position as Ash, bearing witness to one of my 'people' living through the realities (not the white-washed platitudes) of a terminal diagnosis. I use the word 'living' quite intentionally because this story doesn't shy away from the juxtaposition of being alive and the ever-nearing finality of not being alive anymore - it is so sharp and vivid. The book takes your heart, scrubs it with a wire brush until it's raw but then also, periodically enough to sustain you, provides the salve to give you glimpses of comfort and the reminder that there are always good things to pull out of every situation.
I laughed as much as I cried reading this and I think that sums up life perfectly...in equal measures it is terrible and wonderful and it's whichever of these you focus on that shapes your experience.
I feel that, after reading this, I know Edi, Ash, Jonah, Jude, Honey, Belle, Jules and all the other characters. No-one is slimly written, they're all given three-dimensional realities. I can also see and smell Shapely and all the staff and animals contained within.
This isn't a book about how perfect people with perfect lives who always know the right thing to do deal with tragedy, this is a window into how flawed people like you and me navigate their way through something that nothing can prepare you for. They say and do inappropriate things and under/over-react with no explanation...and in showing that it gives everyone permission to go with whatever they feel they need to do/say in similar situations with no guilt

Edi and Ash have been friends since they first started school.
Edi is now dying of cancer and Ash is there for her every day and sometimes over night. The book revolves around their families who also join around the bedside to try to brighten Edi's days.
Ash has separated from her husband and deals with Edi's impending death by sleeping around. Ash's teenage daughters are aware of this even though she thinks she's being discreet.
Is there a happy ending? Sort of.
I enjoyed this book, quite an unusual read.