This book was a fascinating look at how culture plays a role in family, friendship, and love. It was very realistic to see three friends that were once very close grow distant due to life’s pressures. The problems they dealt with individually will be relatable to many readers. As a non-Muslim reader, I cannot comment on the accuracy to which the faith and culture were depicted. My only issue is the common trope of the “white savior” which was most likely unintentional. Overall, it was a beautifully written story about the complexities of life and I would recommend to others.

This is my favorite kind of writing, so very lifelike and evocative (albeit sometimes overwrought). The all-knowing narrator moves seamlessly through time and geography, from character to character, always finding sincere emotion in big and small moments. I do wish the characters were a bit more developed, their voices felt interchangeable to me for most of the book.

I'm not Muslim so I can't speak on whether this is good Muslim rep or a fair depiction of dating as a Muslim woman. But looking at the book as a whole, it's difficult to ignore that the white men are all characterized as understanding, loving, and supportive, whereas the Muslim men are some combination of jealous, possessive, or abusive. I understand it's not the author's job nor goal to depict every kind of Muslim man and that this is one specific story...but by the end, the book's unintended takeaway seems to be *date a white, non-Muslim man.* I'm curious to see what other readers thought of this.

I predict These Impossible Things will be a hit when it's released, with its authentic and detailed rendering of three modern women grappling with love, loss, friendship, grief, anger, religion, racism, and coming-of-womanhood.

These Impossible Things follows three best friends, Kees, Malak, and Jenna as they navigate leaving university and that transition period into true adulthood while also navigating love, religion, and maintaining their relationships. All three women are trying to figure out how they fit into the expectations of their families and the expectations of Muslim women. Kees is in love with a Catholic man which puts pressure on her since there's the possibility her parents will disown her, Malak wants to live up to her family's expectations so she leaves what she knows she wanted and Jenna is the "wild child" of the group who is trying to figure out what she really wants. The reader is really brought along on these women's individual journeys as well as their friendship like you are there and included. Salma El-Wardeny perfectly writes the feeling of loneliness as people transition into adulthood and it felt like the perfect book for me to read right now. You root for all of the women and feel their sadness and their joy. This book will have you thinking about it long after you read it with its beautiful writing and powerful storyline.

TW: SA, abortion, and domestic abuse

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

I predict These Impossible Things will be a hit when it's released, with its authentic and detailed rendering of three modern women grappling with love, loss, friendship, grief, anger, religion, racism, and coming-of-womanhood. The first page of the book drew me in instantly, though I did find that after the first chapter, the pacing slows and I was less hooked into the story. However, Salma El-Wardany's ability to weave together these characters who are so different from each other (and from me!), and make them feel so real, so relatable, so emblematic of contemporary women, is brilliant. Through these specific women, we are shown not only the details of a microcosm, of a community that may be outside of our own, but they also serve as examples of all women, in society in general. I love when characters are made to be so accessible and real. Bravo, El-Wardany and looking forward to the next one.

This book took me some time to get into it, but once I did I got really immersed, and I’ve been thinking about the characters for days since ending it.

This book is incredibly, incredibly special.

One of my favorite books of the year thus far. “These Impossible Things” follows the story of three lifelong best friends - Malak, Kees, and Jenna - and how they navigate their friendship as they get older, while still trying to keep their traditional Muslim and family traditions alive. As a white woman who grew up in America with no religion, I know next to nothing about the Muslim religion, so I was so excited that as I read this book, I was able to learn and enrich my knowledge of what seems to be such a beautiful and deeply traditional religion. I loved the juxtaposition of the three women trying to find this perfect balance of being able to go out and drink, but make it to mosque on time, because both are important to them. The constant push and pull of embracing modern times while trying to uphold their religious beliefs (while also somehow fighting stereotypes) was an exciting and enlightening thing to read. Their individual journeys, from beginning to end, was like witnessing a real live person grow into adults they were meant to become. I felt like I had gone on the journey with these women, and El-Wardany has an incredible gift to be able to write the same women, but have them grow and mature into almost completely different people by the end.

From the moment the book started, I loved the three young women. I wanted to be friends with them - each with their distinctive personalities, and different ways to be a friend, I was hooked. They were written in such a raw and real way that I felt at home while reading about them. Even when going through heartbreak - romantic or not - I felt so connected to all three in a way that it was almost as if I knew them. When they laughed, I felt their joy, and when they hurt, I felt their sadness. They are some of the most real and fleshed our characters I’ve read about in a long time. Each one experiences heartbreak in their own way, and they are SUCH individual characters that the way they dealt with said heartbreak, though kind of similar, had nuances that made them so different. I loved seeing how they were written with such strength and tenderness in different ways. Their love for each other was so special that it radiated off the page.

The writing in this novel was exquisite. El-Wardany was able to convey the loneliness, heartbreak, and constant but somehow poetic melancholy that every young person experiences as they grow into adulthood. I found each storyline captivating in its own right; a perfect story-within-a-story where the overarching plot tied in perfectly with the mini novels shown to us in each storyline. It was almost as if I was watching a TV show - if I closed my eyes I could picture each character perfectly, and thought how visually stunning and interesting each plot line was. El-Wardany has a way with her writing that transports you immediately to wherever the characters are.

The ending was so devastating, emotionally beautiful. It left me with an aching feeling that only an incredible piece of art - music, books, movies - can stir. I will have a book hangover with this one for quite some time

I loved this book. Once this book is published I’m going to urge literally every friend who reads, to read it. It was insightful, heartbreaking, laugh out loud funny, and eye opening. I felt that it was poetic and modern, even if you aren’t connected to the Muslim religion (like me), I think this is a novel that everyone should read. I have such a soft spot for all three women, and I couldn’t put the book down. From the very beginning their story was captivating, and they held a special place in my heart the entire time I was reading the book. I cannot wait to read more from Salma El-Wardany!

Salma El-Wardany knocks her debut novel clean out of the park. I’m expecting the feeling that hit me as I closed out this book to stick with me for a while. What a beautiful story about friendship, love, faith, family, grief, loss, forgiveness, and finding yourself as an individual in a world where you’re given a very specific mold to fit into.

TW: rape, abortion, domestic abuse

This story follows Malak, Kees, and Jenna - three Muslim women who have each spent their lives under the non-negotiable expectations to be the ideal Muslim woman, each going through the motions of how exactly they fit into that ideal role.

Malak seeks to truthfully and wholly live the ideal Muslim lifestyle, forsaking her one true love and happiness to do so. Kees, though devout in her faith, forsakes her family and life she’s always known to choose true love and happiness with her white, Catholic husband. Jenna toes the line any chance she gets, knowing that one day in the future she’ll figure it out… but not right now.

We find these three best friends as they are finishing up their journey at University, facing the harsh reality of what comes next. We get a glimpse of their unshakable friendship until one night, irreparable words are spat at each other and the course of their friendship and lives are changed forever.

We follow their journeys over nearly 2 years following their fallout, where you find yourself loving the characters as deeply as they once loved each other. You root for them, you cry with them, you scream at them to just pick up the damn phone and call each other! Finally, they reunite when each of their lives reach a point where the only ones who can help pick up the pieces are each other.

While I may never walk in these shoes directly, this story creates space for you to understand and empathize, as well as reaffirm that as women, we all have shared experiences. They may show up differently across race, religion, and geographic location, but they are shared nonetheless.

Needless to say, I gave this book 5 stars! I cannot wait to have a physical copy, I know this will be one I’ll pick up to re-read for years to come.

These Impossible Things is both heart wrenching and beautiful. It is a story of friendship, family, love and faith.

Malak, Kees and Jenna are the best of friends. They confide in each other and count on each other. Malak is a dreamer. She has a white Catholic boyfriend, which is forbidden in the Muslim faith, but what she wants most of all is for everyone to be accepting of everyone and everything. She makes the hard choice to leave everything behind and forge her own path. Kees is also in love with a white Catholic man but chooses to marry him even though her family will disown her. Jenna is the wild child who walks just along the brink of breaking all the rules.

Once their friendships become shattered, they all go their separate ways. When, after a year and a half of not communicating, they come back together to help each other through bad life choices, we find that the love of friends is an unbreakable bond.

I give this book five stars. It mad me smile, it made me cry and it made me think. There are so many facets to the relationships in this story and every character is well thought out and brought to life. I absolutely loved it.

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for an ARC of this beautiful story. This is my honest review.

These Impossible Things is a beautifully written exploration of friendship and the heartbreak of its loss. El-Wardany captures the tension experienced by the children of immigrants, between love and respect for the cultural traditions that tether us to our history, and the practical implications of the culture in which our future is being built. Each in their own way, the four women whose stories she tells speak to us of both the strength and frailty of familial bonds, the power of found family, and just how much is lost in the silence that holds the lies we assume to be universal truths.

Highly recommend!! This book is a definite page-turner! You'll be left thinking about the story long after you put the book down. First book to read by this author but definitely not my last!