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A review by splitdice
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
im a huge gamer and im really into gaming history, so the premise of this book really stuck out to me. i think the first 150 or so pages were really special, and i think there was a magical feeling present while reading this book.
that being said, i think the middle and ending sections are a bit more rough. these characters honestly keep making similar mistakes because they honestly have pretty strong personalities. they also dont really change as people, though i think that in of itself isnt bad. it does, however, make for a repetitive read, especially when it feels like so much of the tension of this book comes from miscommunication, assumptions, and things left unsaid.
i also think the third act of the book stumbled it for me. when you get into the Big Event that happens, it is really emotional. but the actual story that happens after just... had zero appeal for me. which, i suppose is the purpose, but it just kind of made the story end on a fizzle to me. the ending doesnt really feel finished at all, which i suppose was intentional but I really didn't feel like the last 40 pages were necessary if that was how the book was gonna end. spoilers ahead:also.. does anyone else feel kind of .. i guess uncomfortable with how the shooting was portrayed? i think the npc section was well written, but i dont know something about it just kind of left a bad taste in my mouth and i dont know why
something smaller that REALLY bothered me was the types of games they made!! they were making undertale and life is strange in the 90s and honestly the sections where they made their own games (other than solution and maybe mapleworld) just really threw me for a loop. also i think you could really tell whenever zevin wanted to prove she knew how to use a glossary and that messed up the writing in some parts for me.
i will say though, there were a lot of things i liked in this book. as mentioned before, i really appreciated the first 150 pages and how strong the two main characters were, and their families were great. i also REALLY loved how the experimental sections were structuredthe npc and pioneers specifically and i would eat up a book written like that. the video game references also didnt feel just like someone who googled popular video games and sprinkled them throughout the book, you really could see a lot of references peppered through out.
i think this is a great read for a lot of people, and i can see why its so popular.
that being said, i think the middle and ending sections are a bit more rough. these characters honestly keep making similar mistakes because they honestly have pretty strong personalities. they also dont really change as people, though i think that in of itself isnt bad. it does, however, make for a repetitive read, especially when it feels like so much of the tension of this book comes from miscommunication, assumptions, and things left unsaid.
i also think the third act of the book stumbled it for me. when you get into the Big Event that happens, it is really emotional. but the actual story that happens after just... had zero appeal for me. which, i suppose is the purpose, but it just kind of made the story end on a fizzle to me. the ending doesnt really feel finished at all, which i suppose was intentional but I really didn't feel like the last 40 pages were necessary if that was how the book was gonna end. spoilers ahead:
something smaller that REALLY bothered me was the types of games they made!! they were making undertale and life is strange in the 90s and honestly the sections where they made their own games (other than solution and maybe mapleworld) just really threw me for a loop. also i think you could really tell whenever zevin wanted to prove she knew how to use a glossary and that messed up the writing in some parts for me.
i will say though, there were a lot of things i liked in this book. as mentioned before, i really appreciated the first 150 pages and how strong the two main characters were, and their families were great. i also REALLY loved how the experimental sections were structured
i think this is a great read for a lot of people, and i can see why its so popular.