Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (2022)
An exploration of friendship, creativity, and the trials of life.
Laura’s Rating: 4/5 Stars
Plot: Sadie and Sam were fast friends as kids and after going years without speaking, they reunite to create a video game. Their success as creators is complicated by egos, betrayals, and relationships. The book follows them through the decades of friendship, heartbreak, failure, and success.
Analysis: This book was at a solid 4+ stars for me for much of the story, but it barely hung on to the 4 star rating by the end. The first 3/4 of the novel was well written, with dynamic character relationships and interesting plot lines. Then the book takes a bit of a turn in both subject and narration style. I didn’t like this change and it wasn’t what I wanted from the book. There’s a large event that happens which I felt didn’t fit into the story and distracted from the message of the book. Additionally, the changes in narrative style felt disjointed and slightly confusing (third person to first person to video game narration and back to third person).
The book contained some beautiful prose about friendship and love that isn’t necessarily romantic. There are musings on returning home, changing your mindset, and communicating your feelings to the people most important to you. Yet, it felt like the book contained wisdom and lessons that its characters refused to follow. The characters repeatedly lack communication skills, growth, and understanding towards one another.
Ultimately, this book was a bit frustrating for me to read because I think it could have been better. The friendship between Sam and Sadie is the central subject of the book but it gets lost among other events and characters that didn’t matter or just made things more complicated. I think Gabrielle Zevin is a talented writer but has more potential.
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