lovelymisanthrope's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
"Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow" follows two young people from when they meet as children throughout their lives until they are in their thirties. Sadie and Sam meet in the hospital, where Sam is a patient following a major car accident that took his mother from him, and where Sadie is spending time because her sister is very ill. Sadie and Sam bond over their shared love of video gaming, and a special friendship grows, until Sam finds out that Sadie was asked to be his friend because he would not speak to anyone. A decade later they reconnect with each other and decide to build a game together, which launches their careers and takes them both back home to LA.
Spoiler
This novel approaches a myriad of subjects with grace, care, and talent. Grief is a prominent theme throughout the novel, and it becomes a huge topic of discussion for all of the characters. Grief can feel crippling and isolating, and what this novel does superbly is highlight that you are never really alone. Despite all of the loss and heartbreak throughout the novel, the characters each move through the motions in their way to process through their grief and become stronger versions of themselves.Gabrielle Zevin's writing is immaculate. The characters all have very distinct personalities and are perfectly crafted to be interesting on their own, but equally intriguing when paired with the other characters in the story. Throughout the novel, there are moments in the writing that are just so beautiful you want to stop reading the savor the words.
Marx was one of my favorite characters that I have ever read. He is compelling and captivating and has the most beautiful outlook on life. He approaches everything, no matter how seemingly small with the brightest, most positive attitude. His personality is electric, and he was EXACTLY what both Sam and Sadie needed in their lives. The moment he was shot I knew I was going to be devastated. My heart broke for Sadie, and Sam, but I really loved being in Marx's head while he was in a coma. This type of writing seemed risky, but it moved the story along in a fresh way and made me feel despair on a whole new level.
I really enjoyed that this was not a typical love story about two friends that share so much life together. This story is about finding yourself and cherishing the people you meet along the way that help you to evolve into your truest self. Yes, Sam and Sadie would be great together, but that is not the point of this story.
Spoiler
I will undoubtably read more from Gabrielle Zevin in the future.
Graphic: Mental illness, Car accident, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Homophobia, Hate crime, Emotional abuse, Chronic illness, Medical trauma, Medical content, Death, Gaslighting, Sexism, Animal death, Physical abuse, and Miscarriage
kerrygetsliterary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Injury/injury detail, Death, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Sexism, Suicide, Animal death, Homophobia, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Blood, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Vomit, Drug use, Death of parent, Infertility, Medical content, and Murder
Moderate: Cancer, Car accident, Racism, and Sexual violence
lemonflower's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Injury/injury detail, Suicide attempt, Car accident, Gun violence, Hate crime, and Suicide
Moderate: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Grief, Cursing, Death of parent, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Vomit, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Murder, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Miscarriage, Cancer, Misogyny, Homophobia, Mass/school shootings, Alcohol, Blood, Cultural appropriation, and Racism
wenwanzhao's review
- 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
On a more personal level, while I enjoyed TATAT, it hasn’t become one of my all time favourites. I suppose it is just not the one for me.
The most important thing I have to say about this book is:
It’s about The Secret Third Thing.
Moderate: Gun violence, Car accident, Drug use, Blood, Animal death, Abortion, Death of parent, Suicide, Death, Mental illness, Grief, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, and Homophobia
laurenkimoto's review
- 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
Moderate: Cancer, Car accident, Homophobia, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Injury/injury detail, Chronic illness, Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Abortion, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Antisemitism, Ableism, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Hate crime, Medical content, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Violence
skudiklier's review against another edition
- 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
I don't spoil anything directly, but if you're worried about spoilers, you might want to skip the next three paragraphs. The final three paragraphs don't have any spoilers.
A weird thing about my experience of reading this book was that by the time I was halfway through, it felt like I'd read an entire book--like maybe it should be done already. And I want to be clear I don't mean that in a bad way, like the book felt too long or had poor pacing. It just felt like some books could have ended it there, and been interesting and relatively satisfying overall.
But because I knew I was only halfway through, I started getting worried: yes, this book had complicated relationships, and things that frustrated me, and heartbreaking tragedies. But what if something even worse was going to happen? What if this book was actually devastating, and I just didn't know it yet?
Reader, this book was devastating. My intuition was right, but I had no idea what was going to happen until it was too late. I sobbed through a large section of this book, and was teary-eyed through the whole rest of it, all the way until the end. I already liked this book, and felt it was emotionally deep and moving, but then it just absolutely gutted me.
This book was moving in so many ways. Emotionally, the characters and their relationships are so rich and real and complicated and messy. No one is perfectly likable all the time, and you're not on one character's side the whole way through. But also creatively, this book was so inspiring. I don't play a lot of video games, and know very little about making them, but I do write poetry. At one point I had to stop writing to frantically write down an idea--I'd been waiting for a breakthrough epiphany about something for over a year, and this book finally helped me crack it open, at least a little.
The quotes I pulled from this book to save for later are gorgeous, and the writing is superb. I love the way the book plays with time, and how the future is so casually and distressingly referenced. In a way, it lulled me into thinking I knew what was coming, without ever revealing the worst part.
I tore my way through this book, and basically spent a whole weekend in this world. I'm so grateful to Netgalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group for the chance to read and review this ARC.
Graphic: Suicide, Gun violence, Death, Car accident, Chronic illness, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Homophobia, Grief, Cursing, Hate crime, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Sexism, Racism, and Medical content
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Ableism, Sexual content, Vomit, Mental illness, Infidelity, Sexual violence, and Drug use
Minor: Abortion, Animal death, Eating disorder, and Child death