Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - We All Want Impossible Things

I love the way it was written. It felt like I was inside of Ash's head, hearing her every thought as everything happened around her.

I did think some things were left unfinished and that was slightly annoying but honestly that could've just been symbolic to death. This is the only thing that knocked it down from a five.

Absolutely heartbreaking. You really grow to love Edi so needless to say the ending hurts !

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alexisgarcia's review

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

this is such a raw and honest portrayal of grief and loss. just be sure to check content warnings.

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jackbifrost's review against another edition

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sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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triforcefusion's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I am floored by this book. The pacing is immaculate. I was not sure about this book, it's not my typical read. I did this as a Story Graph genre challenge.

I thought the narrator of the audiobook did a fantastic job. Some of the best narration-acting I've ever listened to. The story is almost dreamlike in it's structure and the author moves between time and space so effortlessly. The humor is wonderful. The heart break is palpable. The main character is a mess with such detailed idiosyncrasies. A perfect, and sad yet heart warming, slice of life book.

Update: 2nd read through - still an amazing book. The way the author writes is spellbinding. I laughed and cried again. This might be my favorite book - at no point am I bored or think the characters are out of character or the plot is unbelievable. I'm firmly sat in the story, immersed.

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thatswhatshanread's review

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emotional funny inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

A beautiful novel steeped in tender, fleeting moments and hilariously mundane plights, then coddled in sadness, laced with sentimental songs. “We All Want Impossible Things” refers to the desire for everyone you love to always be okay, to live forever, to never be in pain. We have a forty-something named Edi in hospice from cancer, her best friend Ash by her side since they were toddlers. They have such a strong friendship that beckons and calls from the pages. Every character was one I’d imagine I’d want there for me as well, if I was in Edi’s unfortunate position. They’re lovable and unapologetic. Newman does an astonishing job at writing about the regular day-to-day of Ash’s life with her teenage daughters and her various sexual exploits and her cats, alongside this heavy overhanging grief of her best friend dying. Everything reads so real that you can’t help but feel like another in the room, waiting for the inevitable or believing in the impossible.

I really loved this story. It was so poignant, so special. For those who connected with Terms of Endearment, The Worst Person in the World, Beginners, 50/50, Little Miss Sunshine, and “In Five Years”.

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