This is my second Matt Haig book. The fantastical nature of this book is lighter and more hopeful than the twists and turns of the Midnight Library. It‘s always fun to read a septuagenarian find a new lease on life.
This is my second Matt Haig book. The fantastical nature of this book is lighter and more hopeful than the twists and turns of the Midnight Library. It‘s always fun to read a septuagenarian find a new lease on life.
I liked it but…
It was a little hard to swallow. Haig‘s point about the spiritual connectedness of all things is relatable and powerful, but I‘m not convinced he needed that whole wacky storyline to get it across. Still, it was a fun read.
There‘s some really wonderful moments, lines and writing in Haig‘s novel. It‘s enjoyable and has some fun twists and turns. It has flaws, some rambling and, even with magical realism its genre, a few too many leaps to make this one perfection. It would be a perfect beach book!
#OutWithTheOldInWithTheNew #20in4 #JumpStart2025 #Read2025
My first finished book of 2025, I‘ve not read any Haig before but it was the book pick for the #OnceUponABookClub “Up All Night” box & came with a champagne glass, the #OUABC 2025 40 Book Challenge poster & 3 gifts that correspond to the story. I have some mixed thoughts about the book—I liked it but it took a while to get into & the magical realism was too heavy-handed for my taste. ⬇️
5 Stars • "The Life Impossible" is a novel by Matt Haig, released in 2024. It follows Grace Winters, a retired math teacher, who inherits a house in Ibiza from a long-lost friend and embarks on a journey of discovery, dealing with themes of grief, new beginnings, and the interplay between magic and reality. ⬇️
This author has translated big, philosophical ideas into a magical story that opens the mind. It's mainly centered on connection...to each other, nature, and beyond. The main character (a recent widow in her 70s) seemed to live an ordinary life until the tragic loss of her young son years before. She moved to Ibiza after being gifted a home (from a prior acquaintance), and a strange journey ensues. This book was weird, but interesting.
Matt Haig has such a way with a story, and this one is remarkable. As an author, he can mix emotion with magical realism and present the reader with a tale that strikes a chord every time. He deftly takes issues like aging, grief, guilt, the environment, family, and relationships and creates a story that readers will relate to in a deeply poignant way. Matt Haig's books have a way of hitting close to home no matter what stage of my life.
12-19-24: My 47th book of 2024! What can I say about Matt Haig…he seems like a genuinely decent human being and his latest shows that. Grace Winters is left a bungalow in Ibiza by an old colleague she hadn‘t spoken to since the 70s. Confused and alone in London she decides to brave the scariness of leaving for parts unknown and arrives to find a quirky cast of characters waiting for her. Including some underwater sea grass. She finds her way. 💖
I listened 2 this 4 book club. I wouldntve read it on my own, as I‘m not a fan of magical realism. It was listenable but I‘ll admit I wasn‘t fully engaged w/ it the whole time. It was just odd. I know the environment is an important issue but I feel there were other ways 2 tell that story. Grace was a likable character so I kept listening 4 her; it was nice to go on the journey w/ her. I‘m not sure I understood everything but was able 2 follow it
If you‘re expecting Midnight Library level writing, you‘re going to be disappointed. The writing is similar to his style in The Humans, which makes for odd transitions, a choppy story about all the mundane details and a backstory about everything. I pulled a few great quotes, but other than that it was just a weird book. Book #104 in 2024
You know how you go into a story thinking you‘re reading one thing and it ends up being something completely different? That‘s this book. I thought it was going to be some sort of feel good mystery and it ended up being more of a sci-fi conservationist call to arms. I think the message was awesome, but it just wasn‘t what I was expecting. That being said I enjoyed seeing the main character learn to love life again. Strange but interesting. 🌟🌟🌟
5 stars and more for me. This should be a high school read! Grace has lost her husband and son and she herself feels done with life. A house on Ibiza is gifted to her and the story takes off. This is my ya/adult Wrinkle in Time. Anyone else feel that? Loved this read. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
sucked me in. almost wish it was longer to develop more of the tension of the story and the character of the villain, Art. seems like it could have almost been a series of books. great mix of a good story with philosophical and life affirming truths. 4 out of 5.
“We aren‘t just a person, we aren‘t just a gender, we aren‘t just an age, we aren‘t just a nationality, we aren‘t just a species. The walls between us are imaginary. The thoughts we have that our ours are gloriously unique but also gloriously in the same continuing spectrum.”
Not my favourite Matt Haig, but still worth the read.
This is my first novel by this author and it was beautifully written. I will definitely read more of his novels!
This book takes forever to get going and reads like a self-indulgent “I had a hit book and now don‘t need to be edited” project. Bailing at the halfway point.
Baked by yours truly. Please 🙏 follow, like and share on Instagram @fabriziabakes. Thank you
Please 🙏 follow @fabriziabakes on Instagram. Thank you❤🙏
"I always think that the quickest way to understand someone is to look at what's on their bookshelves."
??
I ate this Lotus Biscoff Cheesecake without the cheese 🧀🧀 while I listened to Matt Haig. I decided to use Greek yogurt which I absolutely love, in place of cheese in this recipe because the price of cheese is prohibitive in my corner of the world. It turned out really divine 😋😋😋
Salut...Starting now with an afternoon snack of home made cookies and milk. I think I'm in for the best Friday afternoon ever.
Ready to jump into this one 🙌🏼
I‘ve been looking forward to this for a while now. After a new release, I usually wait for the price to go down before buying anything. But I recently scored tickets to attend a reading event with Matt Haig in October, so basically *had* to buy and read it NOW in preparation ☺️☺️😇
This one was kinda odd but I enjoyed the message of living your life and not wallowing in the past and your regrets. A lot of magical realism to make the story fantastical and creative. Overall, I enjoyed listening to it.
Eeeeeeee! My Book of the Month box arrived yesterday! I feel like the choices for September were really incredible! Probably going to start with the tagged book first! 🥰📚 #botm
Yes, yes, yes! I always say books come to you when you need them and Matt‘s latest certainly has. Go read it, then enjoy and find joy with all the small things 🌞
This enlightened eco-mystery is set in Ibiza and stars a retired math teacher on an inspiring adventure about healing, feeling, self-forgiveness, and a transformative love for the natural world. While this didn‘t speak to me personally like The Midnight Library did, it won me over in the end. I really appreciate Matt Haig‘s distinctive voice and his earnestness about mental health, so much.
Matt Haig's exquisite words permeate these novel combining magical realism and fantasy. A retired mathematics teacher vacations on the Spanish Isles where something miraculous makes her question life's existential purpose.