Reviews with content warning for Racism - Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

as a non gamer would not have ever picked up this book. But major kudos to a book that artfully wove together shakespeare, art history, and gaming. The characters are all extremely difficult to relate to and its a relatively emotionally painful read but interestingly told.

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maidinnah's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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

It's hard to summarize how much I loved this expansive, intricately-written novel. Stellar beyond imagination, Tomorrow is about more than a duo of video game creatives who strike gold -- it's a multi-layered story about a relationship built on shared passions, containing universes within universes to immerse yourself into. Zevin deftly weaves between realities, virtual or otherwise, to show how life can be relentless in its imperfections, but, like video games, can offer infinite opportunities for reconciliation, revival, and reinvention.

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cinderellasbookshelf's review

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emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

Okay, I get it now. This book is amazing.

I’m still trying to process what I just read, but it was wholeheartedly a beautiful and moving story about friendship and time using video game creation as a metaphor for life and all its complexities. That was my takeaway from it. I’m sure like so many others who have read it saw something else (kind of like the Magic Eye that was mentioned in the beginning), but you cannot deny that there was so much depth and care in every page and every sentence Gabrielle Zevin wrote. It was subtle at times, but completely felt throughout the entire novel.

When I first heard about this book being a love story, but not the kind you would expect, it had me wondering what that meant. Love doesn’t have to be romantic. It can be a deep connection so inexplicable that it tethers people together across space and time. Sam, Sadie, and Marx stole my heart and broke it into so many pieces, but after everything they were able to put it back together again. And this happened several times while I was reading. I felt for these characters and understood their past, pain, frustrations, and anxieties. Most of all however, how much they really cared about each other even when it was hard for them to express it or when their own insecurities got in the way.

I also must add that I now have a newfound appreciation for video games and the design and creativity that go into them. When I was in school, I majored in Computer Science and absolutely hated it. I found the course to be so difficult that it drove me nuts. It’s kind of funny to look back on it now and think, had this book come out earlier, or had I seen the vast potential in coding like making games, maybe I would have enjoyed it more. The truth is though, you put all your heart into something because you love doing it. That was the driving engine for Sam and Sadie. They loved playing games and loved creating games. It was a part of their lives that became expressive of their friendship, and a place of escape and connection.

TOMORROW AND TOMORROW AND TOMORROW is a book that will forever stay with me. It is without a doubt, the best book I have ever read in a long time.

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prynne31's review against another edition

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dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

2.75

The writing was great, but I disliked the characters immensely. PLEASE CHECK THE CWs!

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lilybearillini3's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This is easily one of the best books this year, if not the best fiction. There were many points when I was moved to tears. It is absolutely beautifully written and the narrator's voice (for the audiobook) was perfect and calming.

I honestly don't know how to write a review for this and do it justice, I am at a loss of words. It is a story of great friendship, love, and trials. Every character had their complexities and were not always, if at all, likeable

Spoiler

except Marx, Marx is perfect

, but that is reality.

There was never a dull point of this book, I was interested and engaged the entire time. The choice to show their friendship over decades was refreshing and I also really liked that we didn't switch POVs every chapter, I feel like that concept has been played out. The video game nerd in me loved that the author did their research on video game history and what it takes to make video games. While I don't like the miscommunication trope, I didn't find myself frustrated. I understood why they weren't communicating because the characterization was so well done.

I normally don't go into books with expectations, but John Green said it was one of his favorite books of this year, so the need to read it was urgent. John Green didn't let me down. It was truly an honor to read Sadie, Sam, and Marx's journey.

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