Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by: Gabrielle Zevin

Genre: Fiction, Contemporary 

Published: July 5, 2022 by: Knopf 

Pages: 401 

Rating: 3.5/5 stars 

CW: gun violence, murder, grief, suicide, toxic relationships 

Sam Masur and Sadie Green were childhood best friends, but grew apart in young adulthood. That is, until one day when Sam spots Sadie on a subway platform, and the two rekindle their friendship and a lifelong dream. Sam and Sadie become business partners by launching Ichigo, a video game that soon becomes a hit. However, fame isn't everything, and Ichigo's overnight success proves taxing on the two friends' relationships with each other, and with others in their inner circle. 

I saw this book being advertised as a romance soon after it came out, and so I kept in on my radar. It is definitely not really a romance, though romantic undertones are prevalent in the novel in a "will they/won't they fashion." In reality, the book can be categorized as a contemporary fiction that examines friendship, fame, and personal identity. I did enjoy it. I thought that the book takes on a lot, though it does so in a very easy to read fashion. I didn't have trouble getting engrossed in the story. 

I am not a gamer in any fashion, so once I knew that gaming would be central to the story, I was a little bit dubious. However, I don't think that much gamer terminology takes over the plot at all, and I had no problem understanding the inner workings of Ichigo and how Sadie and Sam approach the game. I really do think that anyone; gamer or not would enjoy the plot because even if you're not a gamer, you can begin to understand how emotionally taxing creating a business with your friend could be. I'm obviously not talking from experience here, but I thought that Zevin did a good job at playing around with the limitations of trying to create an empire while also having the fear of failure and personal insecurities holding you back. Both Sam and Sadie do face these fears and I found myself interested in seeing their development. 

I also thought that the secondary characters added good, valuable interest in the story. There are a number of people who come and go in Sam's and Sadie's lives, some of them a part of the legacy of Ichigo, and others antagonists who seek to break down the characters. I thought that Zevin did well to develop the secondary characters so that they weren't just fillers in Sam's and Sadie's relationship, but were actually integral to shaping or influencing Sam and Sadie as the characters moved through life. 

The reason this book wasn't a five-star read for me, is that I think Zevin could've added some more information on Sam as a character to drive how he moves throughout the story. Sam is disabled, and throughout the book he is a pretty sad character, often portrayed as lonely and down. We don't get as much substance to his character as we do Sadie, and I found this to be a detriment because I think it reduces a disabled character down to their disability. Now disabled people can experience a range of emotions, but I think the author did Sam a disservice by having him just be really negative all the time. I think this perpetuates the stereotype that disabled people should just be miserable, which is not healthy or useful to anyone. This was a major downside to the book and I think with some better disability representation, this would've been a five-star read for me. 

This was a tough review to write! I was going back and forth between 3 and 4 stars, and ultimately decided to split in the middle. I don't discredit the book's high points; I do think it's got a very unique premise. But I just wanted the author to put a bit more life into her disabled protagonist. 

Have you read Tomorrow X3? What did you think? 

Emily @ Paperback Princess