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A review by sergek94
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“What is a game?" Marx said. "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.”
Do you know that heart-warming feeling of connecting with another human soul during your younger years? Before you've built all of your emotional walls and defense mechanisms, before the often times cold and relentless march of time turned you into a more guarded person, who rarely truly opens their heart out to someone? Well, that's what happens when Sadie, a fiery and ambitious little girl, meets awkward and nerdy Sam, who has gone through a traumatizing accident that left his leg disabled and is in the hospital getting treated, not having talked to a single person, up until the arrival of Sadie. Despite the fact that one of the motives for Sadie to spend so much time with him was to fill out as many hours as she could for her Bar Mitzvah community service requirement (which would later upset little Sam), she loved every minute she spent with him, and so did Sam, who finally opened up to her after a period of complete trauma induced silence. Thus begins the story of Sadie and Sam, but unfortunately for them, they were not meant to stay kids forever, and the ever-marching flow of time inevitably took their childhood, and their innocence and open-hearted vulnerability away. Will these two kindred souls preserve their precious bond through the never-ending storms life brings upon them, and if they don't, can they eventually find their way back to each other?
“The way to turn an ex-lover into a friend is to never stop loving them, to know that when one phase of a relationship ends it can transform into something else. It is to acknowledge that love is both a constant and a variable at the same time.”
This story spans around 30 years, and what an emotional and long journey it was! I could have sworn the book was 600 pages long, even though it was only in the 400s. I guess the fact that we cover such a vast time period just makes it read naturally longer than it actually is. What I loved about this book was that it was unapologetically authentic to real-life experience. The writing style is light and easy to follow, and we have a lot of humorous moments, but the author doesn't shy away from delivering gut-wrenching punches that come so suddenly and leave us in tears. These children grow up to be adults in their late 30s, and throughout their journey, they lose their childlike idealism for the world, and risk being devoured by cynicism. This is not a tragedy of a story, though, and these sad moments are gently nestled within joyous and heart-warming and cosy moments that make the less happy ones more bearable.
Our two protagonists are far from perfect, and both of them are flawed in their own ways. I alternated being frustrated with each of them at different points in the story, and I just wished they would act less stubbornly, less rashly, and truly put in the time to hear each other out. But even after their worst arguments, that bond that has been there ever since they were little kids always tries to creep up to the surface, to remind them just how much they truly mean to each other.
“And what is love, in the end?" Alabaster said. "Except the irrational desire to put evolutionary competitiveness aside in order to ease someone else's journey through life?”
One aspect that really frustrated me in this book is the fact that one particular character, who I had a seething dislike for, has subjected one of our main characters to horrendous abuse that left me speechless and boiled my blood while reading, but in my opinion, was not held accountable for the damage they inflicted. I was waiting for some proper closure regarding that storyline, but it just didn't come... I don't fault the author for this though, since, like I said earlier, this book is incredibly true to our real-life experiences, and in the real world, many times, abuse does unfortunately go unaccounted for, and in many instances, the people who have been abused do not see it as such. The situation left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Whenever I read contemporary fiction, I find myself much more touched than when I read fantasy or SF when being faced with difficult and heavy storylines that involve triggering content. When reading fantasy/SF, there seems to be some shield protecting me from a full emotional impact, because I know we are dealing with a made-up world and exploring realistic concepts through that made-up world, which helps place a distance between myself and the tragedy. However, when I read contemporary fiction, it tends to touch me in a more profound way, which is why these themes were an emotional reading process for me.
I highly recommend this beautiful book, it's a wonderful journey with unforgettable characters. It's a solid 5 stars from me!
“Why wouldn’t you tell someone you loved them? Once you loved someone, you repeated it until they were tired of hearing it. You said it until it ceased to have meaning. Why not? Of course, you goddamn did.”
Here's a link to my YouTube video discussing this book, among other books I read.
Do you know that heart-warming feeling of connecting with another human soul during your younger years? Before you've built all of your emotional walls and defense mechanisms, before the often times cold and relentless march of time turned you into a more guarded person, who rarely truly opens their heart out to someone? Well, that's what happens when Sadie, a fiery and ambitious little girl, meets awkward and nerdy Sam, who has gone through a traumatizing accident that left his leg disabled and is in the hospital getting treated, not having talked to a single person, up until the arrival of Sadie. Despite the fact that one of the motives for Sadie to spend so much time with him was to fill out as many hours as she could for her Bar Mitzvah community service requirement (which would later upset little Sam), she loved every minute she spent with him, and so did Sam, who finally opened up to her after a period of complete trauma induced silence. Thus begins the story of Sadie and Sam, but unfortunately for them, they were not meant to stay kids forever, and the ever-marching flow of time inevitably took their childhood, and their innocence and open-hearted vulnerability away. Will these two kindred souls preserve their precious bond through the never-ending storms life brings upon them, and if they don't, can they eventually find their way back to each other?
“The way to turn an ex-lover into a friend is to never stop loving them, to know that when one phase of a relationship ends it can transform into something else. It is to acknowledge that love is both a constant and a variable at the same time.”
This story spans around 30 years, and what an emotional and long journey it was! I could have sworn the book was 600 pages long, even though it was only in the 400s. I guess the fact that we cover such a vast time period just makes it read naturally longer than it actually is. What I loved about this book was that it was unapologetically authentic to real-life experience. The writing style is light and easy to follow, and we have a lot of humorous moments, but the author doesn't shy away from delivering gut-wrenching punches that come so suddenly and leave us in tears. These children grow up to be adults in their late 30s, and throughout their journey, they lose their childlike idealism for the world, and risk being devoured by cynicism. This is not a tragedy of a story, though, and these sad moments are gently nestled within joyous and heart-warming and cosy moments that make the less happy ones more bearable.
Our two protagonists are far from perfect, and both of them are flawed in their own ways. I alternated being frustrated with each of them at different points in the story, and I just wished they would act less stubbornly, less rashly, and truly put in the time to hear each other out. But even after their worst arguments, that bond that has been there ever since they were little kids always tries to creep up to the surface, to remind them just how much they truly mean to each other.
“And what is love, in the end?" Alabaster said. "Except the irrational desire to put evolutionary competitiveness aside in order to ease someone else's journey through life?”
One aspect that really frustrated me in this book is the fact that one particular character, who I had a seething dislike for, has subjected one of our main characters to horrendous abuse that left me speechless and boiled my blood while reading, but in my opinion, was not held accountable for the damage they inflicted. I was waiting for some proper closure regarding that storyline, but it just didn't come... I don't fault the author for this though, since, like I said earlier, this book is incredibly true to our real-life experiences, and in the real world, many times, abuse does unfortunately go unaccounted for, and in many instances, the people who have been abused do not see it as such. The situation left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Whenever I read contemporary fiction, I find myself much more touched than when I read fantasy or SF when being faced with difficult and heavy storylines that involve triggering content. When reading fantasy/SF, there seems to be some shield protecting me from a full emotional impact, because I know we are dealing with a made-up world and exploring realistic concepts through that made-up world, which helps place a distance between myself and the tragedy. However, when I read contemporary fiction, it tends to touch me in a more profound way, which is why these themes were an emotional reading process for me.
I highly recommend this beautiful book, it's a wonderful journey with unforgettable characters. It's a solid 5 stars from me!
“Why wouldn’t you tell someone you loved them? Once you loved someone, you repeated it until they were tired of hearing it. You said it until it ceased to have meaning. Why not? Of course, you goddamn did.”
Here's a link to my YouTube video discussing this book, among other books I read.