Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Morgen, morgen und wieder morgen

I shouldn't just write reviews for books I don't like, but I've got lots of criticisms in my brain right now, so I think I'll write them out here. I was expecting to like this book, at least in a surface-level way. Instead, I realized 100 pages in that I did not and would not like this book.

For a book that seems to want to focus on its characters, it really isn't good at showing you who they are. The book gives paragraphs of character descriptions, but doesn't really do a good job of showing you would they are or allowing the reader to relate to them. There was soo much telling and so little showing. Also, the word choice was not fun. I was reading a physical copy of this and could not be bothered to look up the SAT words sprinkled in every few pages.

The dialogue also wasn't great. None of the characters really had a distinctive voice, besides Dov and only because he cursed more than the other characters did. I also couldn't get over how the characters spoke exactly the same when they were 11 and when they were adults. Children don't talk like that???

There were several parts of the book where characters would be expressing their opinions about something political or societal and it just seemed like the author was using the characters as a mouthpiece. Absolutely did not love how the characters talked about cultural appropriation and the way that acknowledging trauma has become more socially acceptable. There was also a line about how most art could only be made by damaged people, which is an idea I absolutely resent. I think that is a popular idea about artists that leads artists to believe that their personal torment is good somehow and prevents them from seeking help. I hate it!!! I think that Diane in the TV show Bojack Horseman interacts with this idea in an interesting way (she stops taking her antidepressants, even though they have been helping her, because she can't write a memoir about her damage. This, surprise surprise, turns out to be a terrible idea!! She gets back on her meds and ends up writing a book that is more fun for her to write and more fun for others to read.) Also, I appreciate reading a book with Jewish characters, since I feel that I don't often see Jewish characters in books I read, but I did not love how pro-Israel they were. Especially for a book published so recently, it seems that the author should be more cognizant of how complicated of a situation it is? Esp since the author is half Jewish herself? The part where Sadie says she reads a book about the "creation of Israel" to bond with Dov was especially not great.

Also, it sucked so bad to read any scene with Dov in it. I don't think that Dov had any redeeming qualities about him. Even if he was the best game dev in the world, I don't think that makes up for his general attitude (rude), unprofessionalism, and lack of curiosity. It's hard for me to believe that someone like him who is so self-centered could create a work of art that could connect with so many people, but whatever. I guess Dead Seas was just a zombie shooter so maybe that's why? I think I reached my breaking point when

Dov pushes BDSM on Sadie and there isn't any discussion about how consent from BOTH PARTIES is so so important for any scene. The way the scene where Sadie is handcuffed to the bed is written seems so much like a rape scene. Those scenes and the scene where Sam's mom is groped by the game show host made me very uncomfortable, and I wish that the sexual assault trigger had been higher on Storygraph's content warnings.

Also, the author may have been inspired and failed to give credit/plagiarized the idea for Sadie's Solution game from a board game, so that's cool too. Generally I did not get the sense that the author was someone who loved video games, though in the afterward, the author says that she is a lifelong gamer. The way that the characters talked did not remind me of the ways that I or the people I know who love games talk. I thought that all the comparisons of life to video games was pretty cheesy, and could even be a tonal whiplash, like when

Sadie tells one of the other employees something about life being like a video game, so he shouldn't be so hard on himself on sort of being part of Marx's death?

I felt compelled to finish this book because I was recommended it by my friends' parents and was even lent a copy of the book. The book also read pretty easy. However, I really did not enjoy it. I'm glad I didn't spend any money to read this book!

Good things I like about this book, to be fair: There were good bits of writing here and there? Sometimes there would be nice profound thoughts about love or grief that I liked. I also liked the part where Sadie was talking about how we build versions of people in our brain, and when they aren't a part of our lives anymore, that version of them fades away. I also appreciate the themes being consistent throughout the book. I think there was a lot of research done into the locations of the books and the development of video games.

Content Warnings

rhiadav1's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

Wow, this was a really hard book for me to finish. As soon as I started reading I knew that I was going to struggle to get into the storyline as it was extremely slow and dull. I was determined to finish it just so I could be done with it and by the end I was skim reading the pages.

Overall, the characters were beyond frustrating. I despised Sadie as she treats Sam horrendously. I do not see how it can be viewed as a form of love. I also didn’t understand what the point of the story was as a result of this. The characters displayed very little development even over such a long time span and the ending was anti climatic. I’m very glad I can move onto a new book.

Content Warnings

ivi_reads_books's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This is a nuanced story about friendship, love, life's tragedies, success and failure.

Even though I'm not a gamer it was interesting to see how the gaming industry and in particular development works.

There is some representation of a main character who suffers from chronic pain. The book portrayed the isolation and impact on the person's life and their loved ones very realistically. He is not a good role model for pain management though.

Content Warnings

lenak's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

delimeats's review against another edition

Go to review page

The continuous trauma and horrific things that happen in the characters lives, but then are never discussed, were starting to annoy me. It all came to a head when the book turned to second pov, and I became entirely uninterested in the rest of the story. Somehow, so much happnes but nothing occurs. Also the increasingly thesaurus.com sentences were tough to get through. While the book does have good bones and some good messages the admittedly non-graphic, but still present,

SA, suicide, toxicity, injuries, car accident, abortion, and gun violence

really drown out the moral of the story in order to include trauma and talking points for the characters, rather than advance the story itself.

Content Warnings

tif_knits_reads's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

crunchycrystals's review against another edition

Go to review page

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

can't rate it i feel like i need to go full english class analysis mode to fully understand this book and i simply do not have the time rn !!!!!!!! the writing was incredible though id love to read another book from this author. i think i wanted something different out of this book that it simply was not trying to be and that's a me issue but i did literally just finish it so maybe i'll have more thoughts in the future. i did really appreciate the love this book has for storytelling and stories and art and creation

Content Warnings

erinsca's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I wanted to like this book more and I really loved the first 2/3 of it but the final 1/3 of the book was hard to get through since I found Sadie more an more unlikable as the book went on. The concept was unique and I loved the chapters that put the reader into a game but it felt rushed and forced at the end of the day.

Content Warnings

More...