The Wish List

By: Ruby Hummingbird

Narrated by: Lucy Paterson

Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's Summary

"I absolutely loved this... Heart-wrenchingly sad but...also one of the most uplifting and heartwarming books... It had me crying (and I mean big heaving sobs!!)... I finished this book last night, and yet here I am 24 hours later still thinking about it!... Fabulous, amazing, wonderful!!" (Stardust Reviews, 5 stars)

Sometimes you have to hit the bottom before you can float to the top.

Maria Birch is 70 years old, and for her every week is the same.

On Monday, she does her weekly shop. On Tuesday, she goes for a blow-dry. On Wednesday, she visits the laundrette. But Thursday is her favorite day of all - everything hurts less on a Thursday.

Every Thursday Maria walks to her local café. Waiting for her at one of the red gingham-topped tables is Albie Young, a charming man with a twinkle in his eye and an impressive collection of tweed flat caps. Every week, the pair share a slice of marble cake and a pot of tea.

Except one week, Albie doesn’t turn up.

When Maria finds out what has happened, her perfectly ordered life is ripped apart at the seams. Suddenly, she is very lonely. Without her Thursday friend - her only friend - she no longer has the energy to circle the weekly TV listings, she has no reason to leave her apartment, no reason to laugh.

Then she discovers that Albie isn’t who she thought he was, and she’s left wondering if she knew her friend at all. But Albie has left behind a legacy - a handwritten list of wishes he never got the chance to complete.

Maria is resigned to facing the rest of her days heartbroken and alone. But fulfilling Albie’s wishes could hold the key to her happiness - if only she’s able to look past his secret....

This life-affirming and heartfelt tale is for anyone who has ever looked at their life and wanted more. Fans of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and The Keeper of Lost Things will love this poignant story, which shows us that for the truest loves, the end is never really the end....

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A must listen for everyone

This is one of my favorite books that I have ever been read or listen to as was the case for me. It is truly an incredible lovely listen. The audiobook narration is seamless and draws you in immediately. The writing is flawless, the people so real they come to life and the gentle slow evolution of Maria reentering the world around her, forgiving herself and learning to live is a wonderful gift you should give to yourself.
We meet Maria, a emotionally broken and shut down woman who loses the one person in the world she calls a friend. He was the only reason she got out of bed each and every day for she had no one else. She doesn’t know why he has stopped showing up to their weekly dates until she receives a phone call from an attorney letting her know of Albies passing and that he has left her his entire estate. She is needless to say stunned. Amongst his things she finds a “Wish List” that Albie was working on. It’s similar to a bucket list, but rather than doing things for himself the list is things to do for others. Maria makes it her mission to finish the list in his honor. The list was meant to bring joy to those he knew and loved and as a way to make amends for some of the mistakes he made as a young man. He is/was a big believer in paying it forward. You will meet many different people along the way and see how not only do they change for the better, but so does Maria. So stop what you’re doing and and do yourself a favor and go get yourself a copy of this beautiful book right now! You will become a huge fab of Ruby Hummingbird and join me in eagerly awaiting her next book.

Heartwarming

I loved this story about love and loss. Developing empathy for the characters was easy and they were well developed. Not your average love story plot Highly recommended

Beautiful uplifting story

An absolutely wonderful novel, with such sensitive portrayal of the characters. This author must have tremendous empathy to so skillfully write a story that spans the full breadth of human pain and joy. Highly recommended!

Everything I could have wanted

I don't usually read fiction, and so I browsed for a long time to find one I thought would be something I would enjoy enough to finish.
I loved this book so much that I think I will look for another fiction book to listen to.
Who knows? I may switch genres altogether if I can continue to find books like this.
Try it. I highly doubt you will be disappointed.

I loved this book

This is such a beautiful book I was devastated to have it end. This is a gentle, inspiring, book with characters that come alive in your mind.

Not my cup of tea

I heard this as an Audible narration. The narration itself was good, I only wish I could say the same about the story. it was just too tame and stodgy for me. A bit like an episode from a soap like Emnerdale or sonething similar. I couldn't connect to the characters at all. The premise of the story was good, it was just the way it came across, or rather didn't come across in my case, that made me rate this only 3 stars. Sadly it just wasn't my cup of tea.

not for me

I found this book a bit of a slog to be honest. I like the narrator but that's about it. I feel like the plot lacked depth and I couldn't relate to the characters at all. Maria annoyed me a lot and the story was too hard to believe. I'm glad it's finished!