I specifically sought out an advanced copy of Steph Catudal’s new memoir, Everything All At Once. Ever since I started using iFit on my treadmill, I’ve been a fan of Tommy Rivs, so I began following him on Instagram. Then I started seeing his wife’s writing when he’d share it, so I started following her as well. Now, she’s written a book about her life and her experience through her husband’s cancer diagnosis and treatment.

This book is heavy, but it is very well written. Catudal’s writing is beautiful and lyrical and honest and very emotional. She tells of her father’s terminal cancer diagnosis and his death when she was still very young. She details how that trauma, combined with her religious upbringing, led her into a pretty intense rebellion. I liked reading Steph’s descriptions of what it was like to deconstruct from her religious (Mormon) upbringing because I could connect with that on a personal level.

Steph intertwines this history with the more recent past, detailing Rivs’s diagnosis and hospitalization in 2020. This intertwining of timelines works very well in this book, and eventually the timelines meet as we near the present. These dual timelines also help the reader see Steph’s arc from rebellious and headstrong teenager to loving and devoted wife and mother. And where the story of her past involves her loss of faith, the story of the more recent past involves her rebuilding of a new kind of faith.

One unusual thing about this book is its structure. While Rivs was in the hospital, Steph took to social media to share her thoughts. The final portion of this book is made up of those social media posts, most of which has been described earlier in the book. I thought this was an interesting choice to place these together at the end instead of interspersed throughout the narrative. But I still think it works.

I’ll admit, I was emotionally invested in this story before I even got my hands on a copy. I had already heard the story from Rivs on iFit, but it was incredible to read Steph’s perspective as well. I read it in a single day, and I cried. I highly recommend it for those who enjoy memoir and who are not averse to reading about intense medical treatment and the emotional impact on the patient’s family.

Sensitive readers should be aware that this book contains adult language, drug and alcohol use, sex, and terminal illness and hospitalization. It’s heavy, but in my opinion, it’s worth it.

Wowww just wow. I feel like this book deserves a two-part rating.

One, this is a four and a half star book. The memoir stands strong, cataloguing what it’s like to have a lived one go through an awful diagnosis on top of the pandemic. The writing was strong, the pain was real. I am never the best and raring these because obviously memoirs are real and it takes a lot of courage and strength to relive the most trying part of your life for other people to consume. 4.5 stars for concept, writing, and the whole “this is someone’s actual life” part.

Two, the layout of this book is laid out oddly. The first 80% is the memoir. The last 20% are posts from instagram. I feel like it would have made way more sense if it all flowed and the captions went together with the memoir. For me, it took away from the journey the family went on and the timeline.

Strong book, heartbreaking story and I think will resonate with anyone who’s ever lost a loved one, especially to cancer.

Just wow. Everything All at Once is heartbreaking and uplifting, a story of faith lost and perhaps found, and ultimately, the cost of struggling through rather than dealing with emotions as they arise. This beautifully written memoir contrasts scenes from Ms. Catudal’s early life with the present-day life-threatening illness of her husband, a world-renowned (and loved) endurance athlete. She writes about coming to terms with her father’s death and her baby brother’s cancer battle when she was just a child; those experiences ultimately informed how she coped with her husband’s illness.

The writing is often achingly poetic as Ms. Catudal weaves together past and present. At the end of the book, the writing becomes more linear as she shares the Instagram posts that told the world how her husband was doing -- raw, in-the-moment snapshots of struggle and progress.

Ms. Catudal writes about grief, rage, COVID isolation, trying to keep it together for her daughters and her husband’s many friends and fans, coming to terms with past pain — and even through all of that, at its heart, it’s a love story between a husband and a wife. It’s a beautiful, though not easy, book.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for this book.

Steph's memoir walks the perfect line between heartwarming and heartbreaking. After following Steph's journey on Instagram, reading a more in depth look at her life and experiences with grief, religion and navigating her husband's illness we're truly remarkable. Steph has a beautiful way with words. Not only will I be auto buying the hardcover edition on release day, but I think this will be my favorite memoir for a long time to come.

*I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review*

Everything All at Once is a beautifully written, brutally frank, raw, open and honest view of the author's experiences in coming to terms with her husband's battle for life against an unknown illness during the pandemic. As she struggles to get her footing and perspective on Riv's precarious state, she shares her past attempts to escape the grief following her father's death from lung cancer when she was a child. Her inability to deal with his loss and the subsequent grief led her to lose her faith, and her way, causing her to spiral into drugs and alcoholism. With Riv's critical situation, she comes to realize that suppressed emotions can't be ignored forever and that you must allow yourself to feel and process them to have any measure of peace and calm at all.

This book can be a difficult, heartbreaking and heartwarming read. It is an honest look at grief in its many forms and shows the power of love to redeem any situation.

My thanks too Harper One for permitting me to read a DRC of this stellar read via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

This memoir is so beautiful, raw, inspiring, scary and truly awesome. What I love about good memoirs is the opportunity to really examine and experience a person’s relationships, journeys with family and friends - and EVERYTHING ALL AT ONCE certainly delivers this wonderfully. The author goes back and forth between her childhood through young adult adventures and navigating the devastating health crisis her husband endured a few years ago. There are so many emotions, themes, life questions that are raised throughout the book in such beautiful prose. Steph Catudel’s words are really quite lovely, if sometimes heart-breaking and sad, but also joyful and filled with strength.
Readers who enjoy memoirs, readers struggling with grief, readers who are caregivers, female readers, readers exploring religion and faith, readers who enjoy or follow running/ultrarunning - yes, you need to read this.

I have followed Steph Catudal on social media for several years, since her husband’s mysterious illness came into the fore. Her writings on grief came at a time in my life when I was deeply mired in navigating loss myself. Her writing has always struck me as beautiful and honest and articulates a kind of reflection that I admire. Naturally, I jumped on the chance to read her memoir.

Catudal’s narrative shifts from present to past in a way that never feels forced or disorienting. Her reflections on the loss of her dad and the subsequent years she spent finding herself in the wake of such a significant loss serve as a fitting lens through which to view her husband’s fight for his life. And my God, what a fight it was. Rivs story, and the way his wife was advocates for his care, is incredible. By the end of it all, the message is clear: Love, forgive, love, accept, love, lovelovelovelove.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This book is heavy. It's a lot and it's heartbreaking. Catudal does an excellent job sharing her grief both from her past and present. I liked her writing style. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for the purpose of this review. I'm giving it four stars.