I literally HATED this book. You ever read a book so bad, that it was literally changing your mood for the worse because everything about it just annoyed you.. yea.. it was this book for me. Should've easily made it to my DNF list. My favourite quote: . . . aren't you the person who eavesdropped on your mum and her Dublin cousin gossiping about someone's hysterectomy and thought for years that The Troubles in Ireland were gynecological?' In her novel We All Want Impossible Things, Catherine Newman chronicles the final days of Edi's life from the perspective of her lifelong friend, Ashley. Though terminal illness and death can be tragic at any age, facing these realities at the stage of life Edi is in comes with a particular set of challenges, such as knowing she will miss out on watching her child grow up, and having to accept not being able to live out all the time and life goals she thought she would.

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 No details are spared and at times it's rather hard to read, but the reality of it is portrayed with utmost candor and sympathy. As Ash reminisces of her life with Edi, and her life in general, we are treated to a glimpse of the life of a woman who struggles like the rest of us. The beauty of the story though, are the realistically beautiful scenes of friendship and love. You��ll cry laugh.

Best friends since childhood, more than forty years, Edith and Ashley have been through everything together. They know each other better than they know anyone else. Now Edith is dying of ovarian cancer and spending her last days in a hospice facility close to where Ashley lives. I've also done plenty of consulting, public radio commentaries, readings, talks, workshops, and TV appearances. Catherine Newman delivers a stunning story as she chronicles the path of dealing with entering hospice care. Edi remembers a Sicilian lemon polenta poundcake she once had at Dean & DeLuca in the mid-90s; it becomes her holy grail. She starts to think she might have imagined it, and Ash resolves to locate the cake through extreme efforts. (She finds the original baker and begs for the recipe.) The elusive poundcake becomes a way to cheer up Edi: “I climb into her bed and tell her about the Cake — the same way, when tiny children are mad or unhappy, you might distract them with a little box of raisins. And I’ll tell you: Nobody wants a box of raisins when they’re furious. Or when they’re dying, for that matter.” Raisins become her shorthand for disappointing distractions. “‘Hey! … I brought nail polish!’ Who wants raisins?!” Ash spends her days talking and reminiscing with Edi, caring for her, being her friend, and trying not to fall to pieces in the process. You see, Ash is a mess. Her life is a mess and she's desperately trying to hold on, while knowing she must let Edi go...

My expectation was that the plot would revolve around Ash AND Edi, focusing on their relationship and the time they spent together making memories and learning to cope with Edi's imminent death. What I actually got was a story that talked about food A LOT and had a female protagonist (Ash) who was very self-centred. Her internal monologue and reflection on past events made me suspect this wasn't just a coping mechanism in the here and now but was part of who she was. Edi appeared in the book almost as though an after-thought. Yes, it was quite the ride! Now I'd like to listen to the audiobook because I didn't get enough of it, I still get glassy eyed when I think about it, and I want to hear the voices of these wonderful characters bring this story to life for me one more time.I adored this book. Jubilant, devastating, tender, heartbreaking, I found myself both in tears and 'snorty-laughing'. I know it will be one of those novels I return to time and time again, and recommend to everyone. There is so much love, funniness, honesty, courage, mess, bounce and surprise in this book, and not shred of it is mawkish. Loss might be the central theme but it is also the most robust and glorious affirmation of life. A masterclass on friendship, family love, memory, and the messiness of life and love and dying. Pure genius. RACHEL JOYCE Everywhere, behind closed doors, people are dying, and people are grieving them. It’s the most basic fact about human life — tied with birth, I guess — but it’s so startling too… A worldwide crescendo of grief, sustained day after day, and only one tiny note of it is mine,” the narrator writes.