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A review by b00kw0rms0fthew0rldunite
The Life Impossible by Matt Haig
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Every now and then a book comes along and you seem to read it exactly when you needed to read it. It speaks to you in your present circumstances. I read 'The Life Impossible' in just such a moment. This book and it's chapters were like poetry for me. The sheer amount of quotes I could share...
'If you want to visit a new world, you don't need a spacecraft. All you need to do is change your mind'
'That is one great thing about having someone by your side. They are a shock absorber to the madness of experience.'
'All reading, in short, is telepathy and all reading is time travel. It connects us to everyone and everywhere and every time and every imagined dream'
Put these into context and they made such a beautiful and uplifting tale, woven with advice, sprinkled with humour and chock full of heart.
I loved the format and how each chapter had a deliberate title that sounded bizarre by itself but became immediately obvious once the chapter was read. My absolute favourite chapter that made me laugh out loud was one entitled 'All the clever ideas presently in Alberto's head'.
It was very refreshing to read a book with a protagonist that was flawed from the outset, in her 70's and loved Mathematics and all that came with it. 'I parked somewhere near the Kerb at an angle that would have interested Pythagoras'. Grace Winters was such an interesting character and she saw the other characters through her special lenses and made each one appeal to me as well. This was not just a book about a hero saving the day but rather finding yourself and the journey of healing. Every chapter made me stop and think and question and wonder. I enjoyed how it was written through a letter or series of letters and how Grace kept coming back to the person in need who she was writing to.
I wasn't expecting such a humourous book that was also touching and extremely thought inspiring. Do yourself a favour and make sure that you read this one with time to savour it. Where else would you find inner peace mixed with runaway lobsters or Goats named Nostradamous? An evil villain mixed with an all night rave in Ibiza and a mystical portal. A book that touches on loss, tragedy, fighting the good fight and reinventing yourself.
A huge thanks to Matt Haig for writing a brilliant story and for the good folks at Canongate Publishing and Netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC. All opinions are my own.
'If you want to visit a new world, you don't need a spacecraft. All you need to do is change your mind'
'That is one great thing about having someone by your side. They are a shock absorber to the madness of experience.'
'All reading, in short, is telepathy and all reading is time travel. It connects us to everyone and everywhere and every time and every imagined dream'
Put these into context and they made such a beautiful and uplifting tale, woven with advice, sprinkled with humour and chock full of heart.
I loved the format and how each chapter had a deliberate title that sounded bizarre by itself but became immediately obvious once the chapter was read. My absolute favourite chapter that made me laugh out loud was one entitled 'All the clever ideas presently in Alberto's head'.
It was very refreshing to read a book with a protagonist that was flawed from the outset, in her 70's and loved Mathematics and all that came with it. 'I parked somewhere near the Kerb at an angle that would have interested Pythagoras'. Grace Winters was such an interesting character and she saw the other characters through her special lenses and made each one appeal to me as well. This was not just a book about a hero saving the day but rather finding yourself and the journey of healing. Every chapter made me stop and think and question and wonder. I enjoyed how it was written through a letter or series of letters and how Grace kept coming back to the person in need who she was writing to.
I wasn't expecting such a humourous book that was also touching and extremely thought inspiring. Do yourself a favour and make sure that you read this one with time to savour it. Where else would you find inner peace mixed with runaway lobsters or Goats named Nostradamous? An evil villain mixed with an all night rave in Ibiza and a mystical portal. A book that touches on loss, tragedy, fighting the good fight and reinventing yourself.
A huge thanks to Matt Haig for writing a brilliant story and for the good folks at Canongate Publishing and Netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC. All opinions are my own.