Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow - by Gabrielle Zevin

Beautifully written. I was absolutely captivated. So much love and loss.

If someone told me I would have read a book & loved it, that was based around video games, I would have laughed-but here we are. This book was absolutely heartbreakingly beautiful in the most unique way. If you asked me to tell you why I loved it, I would just say, because my heart. Past that, this is a very difficult book to explain - you just have to experience it. It's a slow burn, but the writing is like no other. I cried, I smiled, & man did I FEEL. "What is a game? It's tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow. It's the possibility of infinite rebirth, infinite redemption. The idea that if you keep playing, you could win. No loss is permanent, because nothing is permanent, ever." Even though this plot wasn't anything 'in your face, I was fully lost in the intense gaming world of Sam & Sadie. I was very hesitant on this because l'm not a gamer, & wasn't sure I'd understand any of the references, but you definitely DON'T have to know anything about video games to love or understand this story. Will everyone love it? No. It's not a thriller or a romance. It's the core of life. Honestly, the book is just beautiful, unique & special.

One of my favorite books of all time! such a good read that I finished it in 2 days! Could not put it down!

4.5 stars rounded up. This was lovely, sad, funny, and deeply frustrating. Following Sadie and Sam from childhood to their late 30s (or were they early 40s in the end?) was a bittersweet experience. I loved the first half-ish of the book, found myself getting annoyed for the next 25% as they squabbled, hid their feelings/struggles, and made uncharitable assumptions about each others motives. This is more my own issue though; I like books with emotionally complicated and messy characters, but I get frustrated with them at the same time. Marx’ character balanced them well and brought a needed element of lightness to the narrative and character dynamics. The interlude chapters that describe a death and the character’s thoughts during their coma were heartbreaking. I don’t cry often while reading, but that was poignantly beautiful and had me bawling in my kitchen. For the last quarter of the book, I felt the narrative picked up and I enjoyed the way the ending brought the central relationship back to the beginning. A circle of friendship and shared interests that may loop around one more time. I enjoyed the references to literature and 80s/90s pop and nerd culture. Although the book wasn’t short, 400 pages, I felt it could have been a bit longer considering it covered such a large timeline. Some of the themes and events felt underdeveloped. I suppose that adds to the idea that you can never fully understand anything, even yourself, that I feel is a major theme in this book. Perhaps a longer, more detailed novel would have taken away from that message. Overall, this was a bittersweet book that made me both nostalgic for my childhood and early 20s while reflecting on what it means to be an adult, a partner, a friend, and a part of a larger community. The realization that, like Sadie and Sam, I am neither old nor young (hello 40! I’m ambivalent about meeting you!) has me thinking about the way we change over time. There is always a tomorrow- at least until there isn’t.

The worst book I have ever read. My dog had a bigger personality than these characters.

Delivered fast and in perfect condition. Have not read the book just yet.

This book is fairly well written but it was definitely missing something for me. I didn't realize going in that it was going to be so reliant on gaming and game speak so it really took me out of the story. I didn't particularly care for any of the characters and when the poignant crux of the novel occurs I realized I cared so little about them that it really didn't catch me the way the author hoped. It's not a bad book, per se, but if you aren't into gaming you may want to skip it. I wish I had.

The initial draw to this book was the cover. In the bookstore it blazed out at me, beautiful and structured all at once. I had no idea what it was about. I’ve been a casual gamer all my life (Atari & PS1) and a heavy gamer (Original Nintendo, xbox, Xbox 360, PS4) at interspersed periods based on my emotions and my time. You don’t have to be either to appreciate the layers of story here. It’s largely driven by the world of game creation, sure. However, the span of decades, the character development, the world building of the builders themselves becomes the focus. There were slower moments, and I put it away to read something quick. But I came back. I had to finish the game. I had to know where Sadie and Sam and the rest were going. How did it end? The five stars absolutely are rounded out by the end. It was so complete. Will everyone love it? No. It’s not a thriller or a romance. It’s the core of life. Honestly, the book is beautiful and special. I’m so glad I read it.