As a 62 year old I really didn't want to read this book and enter into the alien world of gaming. I've never played a virtual game. I thought they were all about shooting or sport. As it was a book group book I did reluctantly enter the world of Sam and Sadie. I played the game of their lives. I'm glad I did. At its heart it's about life, love and overcoming adversity. It has a hopeful message. I liked the characters and thought the author captured the challenges of longtime relationships and life. They face despair but also find ways to overcome their problems often through relationship and games.
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Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow is the story of Sadie and Sam, two best friends and gamers, who go on to make video games together and become business partners. The story spans over about thirty years; years that bring them success, but also failures, trials and heartache, their friendship having its ups and downs, but always enduring. This is in truth a hard book to describe, and not being at all into video games, I went into it with a little trepidation. However, this book is about so much more than gaming, such that I can see why it is so popular. At its heart it is a story about friendship, but also about the making and power of art in general and the possibilities of our imagination. It also tackles some weighty themes, including disability, depression, grief and trauma of various kinds, and in a way that never felt too heavy-handed. I also liked the diversity to the characters, and the way that race and identity was handled. I liked the nostalgic feel to the book, given that the main bulk of the story takes place in the 90s/2000s, and overall just thought that the story felt unique. It also takes you on a roller-coaster of emotions, in that you feel the highs and lows that both Sadie and Sam experience across the years. The lives of the two main characters are often messy, and they are both deeply flawed. As much I liked them both, particularly as the story went on, it did sometimes feel as if they didn't really show much development, but rather repeated the same patterns of behaviour, displaying their immaturity and self-centredness. Still, to the writer's credit, that didn't stop me from feeling invested in them, even when I wanted to bang their heads together. Marx was undoubtedly my favourite character, and I don't think the book would have been the same without him. As much as I enjoyed the special connection between Sadie and Sam, Marx often felt like the glue that held them together, both on a personal and professional level. He was always there quietly doing so much, without ever taking any of the credit or causing any drama, and that together with his optimistic outlook on life and how much he loved the two of them, just made him a really endearing character. I did actually enjoy the details of the creative process of making games, and in particular the reoccurring theme of the endless possibilities they provide. ' ''What is game?'' Marx said. ''Its tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow. Its 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.'' ' I think my favourite parts of the story were when Sadie and Sam and Marx are first making Ichigo, as that seemed to be them at their happiest and most creative, before their first experience of success and fame, and perhaps as such at their purest, before petty resentments and insecurities and jealousies start kicking in. I also liked the nod backs to Sam and Sadie as children and how they first became friends. I do think there were parts in the middle that dragged a bit, however, then something unexpected and truly shocking happened that really drew me back into the story, and perhaps was the part that hit the hardest. I will say that after that the story did then seem to get a big weaker again in that these were the parts where I perhaps didn't connect as well to either Sadie or Sam, though the ending itself did seem to come back full circle to the beginning, which I liked, and almost fitted in with that theme of pressing the start button and trying over again. There were some more experimental type chapters here and there, that sometimes worked and sometimes didn't For me personally not a 5 star read, but overall one that drew me into the story and made me care about the characters, even when they weren't always likeable, with some interesting themes explored in a unique and refreshing way.
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I really loved this book. It's the story of friendships between three very gifted people who are much less without each other, and so much more together. And yet some of them can't be together. It's a story about growing up, exploiting and being exploited. It's also a story of building and maintaining a business. I love the detail and the writing style. Heartwarming and heartbreaking.
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As an older reader who's only ever played Mario Kart I wasn't really sure why I picked up this book (probably rave reviews on Booktube). However, it was more interesting than I expected, and I was initially pleasantly surprised at how the process of game design was described. However, it became tedious after a while and I started to skim read some parts while not really caring what happened to any of the characters. It grates a little when authors feel they have to explain their musical/literary references, as if the reader isn't the targeted audience, whilst at the same time I felt it was trying too hard to impress. As a story of friendship, love and growing up it isn't bad, but the narrative is just a bit too flat, and I just wanted to get it over with in the end.
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9/10 – wow. Delightful reading. Incredibly moving, candid, authentic storytelling. Zevin brings the characters and their struggles to life in a way I've never seen. They are delightfully (and painfully) real. Zevin explores their emotional lives through subtle, everyday conflicts rather than through exaggerated drama. The story shows the fragility and unpredictability of life. Yet, it infuses even serious moments with subtle humor. Zevin somehow manages to tackle dark themes with a light, thoughtful touch. It's rare to find such wonderful balance. There aren't many stories out there that are primarily about friendship, which was refreshing. It also shines a rare spotlight on the influence of family on the characters. The only negative I can think of is that, at times, the plot can be a bit slow. But overall, the deeply empathic character development makes up for it. Overall, I believe this is the work of a master. Touché, Gabrielle Zevin, I'm a huge fan after reading this!
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This book will stick with me a very long time, this isn't my usual genre and it will not be for everyone. Some of the vocabulary could be seen as ostentatious but I felt it really fit with the characters and the story. I beleive you could love this regardless of whether you like video games but being someone who grew up in this era it felt nostalgic and hauntingly raw. I loved the video game design process but the character make this story. I both hated and loved these characters, you saw all the sides of them that most people don't want to see. It's a beautiful coming of age story about a friendship and all the pains and traumas life can throw at you. I wanted more but still ended in a very fitting way.
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Bien y de pasta dura, muy bien enviado sin detalles
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Livro maravilhoso. Há tempos não lia um livro assim.
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Das Buch hat wirklich ALLES. Keine Spoiler, nur die absolute Empfehlung es zu lesen :-)
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Questo si che è un signor libro! Ti tieni incollato,storia bellissima! Ha un po' di "una vita come tante" . Bellissimo! This book is so good, I really enjoyed it! The story is really amazing and it's about friendship and love and games! Really good!
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