While the female friendship aspect of this one is what initially drew me to the story, I had a hard time adjusting to its slower pace. I wanted something to happen that would suck me in and keep me turning the pages, but I had to fight to finish it.

It’s always been Malak, Kees, and Jenna against the world. Since childhood, under the watchful eyes of their parents, aunties and uncles, they’ve learned to live their own lives alongside the expectations of being good Muslim women. Staying over at a boyfriend's place is disguised as a best friend’s sleepover, and tiredness can be blamed on studying instead of partying. They know they’re existing in a perfect moment. With growing older and the stakes of love and life growing higher, the delicate balancing act between rebellion and religion is becoming increasingly difficult to navigate.

Malak wants the dream: for her partner, community, and faith to coexist happily, and she wants this so much she's willing to break her own heart to get it. Kees is in love with Harry, a white Catholic man who her parents can never know about. When he proposes, she must decide between her future happiness and the life she knows and family she loves. Jenna is the life of the party, always ready for new pleasures, even though she’s plagued by a loneliness she can’t shake. Through it all, they have always had each other. But as their college years come to a close, one night changes everything when harsh truths are revealed.

As their lives begin to take different paths, Malak, Kees, and Jenna—now on the precipice of true adulthood—must find a way back to each other as they reconcile faith, family, and tradition with their own needs and desires. These Impossible Things is a paean to youth and female friendship—and to all the joy and messiness love holds.

🤍 Thoughts: I thoroughly enjoyed this story but feel I did myself a disservice by listening to it on audio, therefore I won’t be submitting a rating. I loved the characters, the stories, and how everything came together. However, following on audio was just a bit too difficult. I want to refer you to @booksbyheath who has an amazing review of this one and raved about it if you’re considering this book. It’s one I’d definitely like to pick up in the future but in a physical capacity.

Thank you to @grandcentralpub for a copy of this one! I definitely recommend checking it out!

What a sad and beautiful portrait of three friends in their year apart! These Impossible Things is set in the UK and Egypt, alternating POVs between Malak, Kees, and Jenna after they have a falling out as friends. They all struggle to balance their romantic relationships, family, and faith. Usually, when I read a book with multiple POVs about relatively similar characters, I have a bit of a hard time telling the chapters apart. But, these three were characterized so well, I could see different parts of myself and my own history in them, and they each stood out from one another. Highly recommend this for lovers of books about female friendship even though they're apart for most of the story. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Excellent read and frankly a must read. I have recommended this to so many people and have read it again!

Book clubs listen up- you must pick These Impossible Things for your next choice. I love a story with three best friends because we know three is a hard number and that is very much proven here. This is a book about what it means to be happy and the price of that, and I couldn't get enough.

Really good debut! I cared about the characters and their journey and the writing felt authentic and drawn from experience. It's the kind of book that you should give at least 25% through, because once you're invested the book flies by; recommend! 3.5 stars

From the first paragraph, I knew this book would be a good one. I immersed myself into the book from the first chapter and I cannot say enough good things about this book! Honestly amazing! The writing is incredible and the plot is just one to die for. I am absolutely obsessed with this book. My favorite part would have to be the character development throughout the book. Character development is something I look forward to and this book did not disappoint.

4.5 ⭐️ Malek, Kees, and Jenna have been best friends since childhood and remain so through university in London. They have each allowed their Muslim faith to define them differently, but each also deeply values their family and tradition. One evening their friendship is splintered and the three women find themselves navigating their now separate lives in unexpected ways.
I loved this book so very much, I was sad when it ended. The women’s stories felt so authentic and it felt like a refreshingly honest take on how difficult it can be to hold tight to your values but also live in today’s world. There were a couple of plot points that felt a tad like a trope, but overall I was will to forgive them for the overall story.
Thank you to netgalley for the ARC!

I had a hard time getting into the writing at first, but as the story picked up i found myself caring about the characters and their storylines. I look forward to reading more books by this author in the future. Also, I found it to be equally funny and touching.

What I loved about this book is that it used the friendship of three women to explore all the different ways you can navigate the most difficult parts of life.

Malak, Kees and Jenna are three young British Muslim women who have always done life together since they were kids. However, as we grow into adulthood sometimes even close friendships end up taking different paths. We can drift apart but we can also come back together. There is no expiration date on friendships and there is never a wrong time to ask for help.

We have the families we are born into but we also have the families we create and those can make us feel the most seen and understood.

What do you do when the one you love is not supported by your family? Do you choose family? Or do you choose love?

How do you ask for help when you are thousands of miles away from your support system?

How much would you sacrifice for your culture and religion?

How do you save yourself from loneliness?

It was quite a journey experiencing the answers to these questions through the lives of Malak, Kees and Jenna. This book felt like an ode to modern female friendships. I always loved the quote ‘we can do hard things’ or in this case, impossible things, but it is always easier and worthwhile when we don’t have to do it alone.

If you enjoy …
✨Emotional and reflective books
✨Stories about friendship
✨Different POVs
✨Family drama
✨Stories about culture and religion

Then I would highly recommend adding this book to your TBR. The characters and their lives had me hooked from the beginning. Some of the fallouts of their decisions are very heavy but also very honest. If you’re looking for a reason to cherish your friendships more ✨

What a debut! I am looking forward to reading more from her!

A beautiful story of the friendship of three Muslim women who have been friends since childhood and navigating conservative Muslim families in a modern world. This book is both heartbreaking and empowering and shows the true power of female friendship.

This novel tells the story of three female friends as they leave university (or don't) and start their adult lives. It focuses on the friendship of Jenna, Kees, and Malak, as well as their romantic relationships, familial relationships, and professional lives. The story is heartbreaking at times, but is an amazing window into the lives of three Muslim women in Britain. It does at times seem to lump many communities together, but is still an enjoyable read. Highly recommend this.

What a mesmerizing story and realistic tale! It is the story of 3 Muslim girlfriends whose relationships prevail under tough circumstances. The writing was so compelling and the conflicts many are going though.
The plot dealt with many themes but one which I think whether Muslim, or not, rings true. The girls were trying to balance tradition and accepted rituals against matters of the heart, not wanting to disappoint family and cause the anguish that would inevitably follow. The book was relevant and heart wrenching but ended on the right note.
Important and gripping read!

“It was a delicate balancing act between rebellion and religion and catching that ever elusive middle ground was almost impossible.”

NetGalley came in huge for me this month with 2 arcs that ended up being chosen as book club selections-Nightcrawling for Oprah’s book club and These Impossible Things for Jenna’s book club. What can I say? I have good taste in requesting arcs, and great minds think alike 😜🙌🏼

This was a beautiful story about 3 Muslim women who have been friends since childhood, and during college each follow their hearts in different directions. The pressure to marry a Muslim man keeps several relationships secret while ruining others, and puts a wedge in their friendships. Their lives drift apart and each of them suffers the loss in various ways. It touches upon serious topics without getting too heavy, yet floats in and out of the romance genre as well. Not straight female lit, not romance, but rather a debut that bobs and weaves into a light version of contemporary fiction. The beginning felt a bit sophomoric but then it picked up speed and the writing got stronger as the storyline unfolded.

Culture, religion, and family values are at the heart of this novel, while being juxtaposed by women’s current day societal, work, and life issues. It’s inner narrative of female friendships that stand the test of time will have you wanting to gather with old friends, while the cultural references will enlighten the reader to Muslim practices and traditions.

One of my favorite reads of the last few years! Really captured the importance of sisterhood/friendship especially as adults who will inevitably face difficult decisions. Each woman managed to be written with such care and love. Beautifully written. Well fleshed out plot. Author took her time but still managed to make this a page turner.

What a beautifully messy and loving story. Thank you @grandcentralpub for the gifted copy of These Impossible Things by Salma El-Wardany (the latest @readwithjenna pick)!

The story follows three Muslim women and best friends, navigating early adulthood as their college years wrap up. After a fallout dramatically changes their relationship, they each set out on different paths toward happiness.

Friendship is absolutely the heart of this story. It is also about the intersection of family, romance, gender, and religion, plus the joys and struggles that come with each. Its themes are especially resonant after this morning’s Supreme Court decision.

The prose itself reads effortlessly. I found myself eager to pick this up because I got so absorbed and the women latched onto my heart.

It had a neat element too - occasionally the narrative zoomed out from a scene to give snippets of various other people in that same moment. It somewhat disrupted the flow, but added a really cool sense of connection and glimpses into a few side characters.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am excited to read more by Salma Ed-Wardany!

I LOVED These Impossible Things by Salma El-Wardany. It is a story about three friends and how they manage religion, culture, love, friendship and marriage. They start off the best of friends and then there is a falling out with two of them. I thought it was beautifully written. I learned a lot about the Muslim culture. I laughed, I cried and really enjoyed this Read with Jenna Pick. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC copy.

My Thoughts:
You follow three women who grew up being best friends then life happens after high school.
This book had me full of emotions it covers religion, friendship and growing apart. Follow these three on their journey to finding their way.
If you follow Read with Jenna this is a Today’s Show Book Club Pick and Marie Claire book club pick for June

DNF I don't think I am the right audience for this story of three young Muslim women trying to balance their modern lives with their traditional religious standards. there was a lot of sex and drunken escapades that I just didn't completely buy into with TBE extreme of the Muslim expectations. kind of like a twenty something Muslim Sex in the City. I am too old and out of touch to relate to their obstacles. The writing and character development were well done. The subject matter didn't work for me.

copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley

These Impossible Things is an amazing debut novel which made me go through all the feels! The author’s writing really felt so poetic and heartbreaking at the same time. 3 best friends, Malak, Kees and Jenna have been inseparable since childhood. The timeline of the story begins right before they are done with higher education. Their friendships are tested when, one night, they get into an argument. This forces them to have to plan their futures separately and navigate life thinking they are alone. I love how painfully beautiful growing pains is showcased. El- Wardany has an amazing ability to demonstrate to the reader what multiple people are going through at a certain moment in time- these were my favorite parts of some of the chapters- this further linked the characters together! I was able to relate with the characters (and I loved them so much) since they were trying to learn who they are as women and navigate life while thinking of those around them. I also loved this story because it made me think of my friends and how life has made them my chosen sisters. This novel covers topics on friendship, faith/religion and family. Looking forward to the author’s next book!