Looking for more books like Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin? Look no further than these 11 amazing reads!
Released in 2022, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is a popular book by Gabrielle Zevin. Opening in the eighties, two children (Sam and Sadie) meet in a hospital and bond over their shared love of video games.
Years later, Sam bumps into Sadie on the street. It suddenly clicks in Sam’s mind: they should make their own game.
What follows is the story of Sam, Sadie, and Marx (Sam’s flatmate) beginning work on their first game, Ichigo. Ichigo is wildly successful; far more than they ever imagined. This sets them off on a path that will bring them money, creative frustration, joy, and deep sadness.
READ MORE: 11 Books about Video Games for Video Game Lovers
It’s a slow-burning novel, giving the characters time to breathe, and while the video game references are a joy for gamers growing up in the eighties and nineties, it’s really about human connection.
If you’ve finished Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and you’re longing for a book to fill that gap, here are a few books you might like to check out next.
11 Books Like Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
The Humans by Matt Haig
While Sam and Sadie are focused on creating immersive virtual worlds, the real heart of the story is their humanity, and how they reach out for and connect with each other.
In terms of genre, The Humans is a very different story: a professor goes for a walk one evening and disappears. When he returns, he suddenly sees the world in a very different way. It’s light sci-fi, and very readable.
However, it offers an interesting (and funny) look at the way humans are: our strange quirks, our faults, and the way we love each other. It shines a light on both the good and bad within us, and does so with heart and affection.
It’s a lovely, and fairly short, read to follow on from Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow.
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
If you loved the friendship between Sam and Sadie (and let’s face it, who doesn’t?) you must check out The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay.
In this story, a young Jewish artist (and escape artist!) Joe has escaped Navi-invaded Prague, heading off for safety in New York City. He meets with his cousin, Sammy, and the two create a series of comic books together.
Sadie and Sam’s friendship is borne from their mutual adoration of video games; later, this friendship is strengthened by their joint creative process, even if it does cause them to clash sometimes. Joe and Sammy’s process strengthens their relationship and explores what it means to create art together.
How High We Go In The Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu
A powerful and stunning story, How High We Go In The Dark is set in the near future.
In this version of Earth, a virus has wiped out most of the population, leaving behind a shocked and terrified gaggle of survivors. It’s their task to rebuild, but doing so will be long, arduous, and complicated.
It’s tonally much darker than Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow; it deals with some heavy topics, and you’ll have to be in a good frame of mind to read it.
Ultimately, though, it’s about a series of humans connected over centuries and how we rely on each other. It’s hopeful and delicate and sad, and an epic read to invest your time into.
Like Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, this is a longer read, and the characters will burrow into your heart.
The Overstory by Richard Powers
The Overstory is an incredible piece of work, one that is difficult to define. It follows many characters, and each section of the book is slightly different from the others; it takes time to explore deep concepts as well as the characters themselves.
In The Overstory, a character named Neelay creates a game series, Mastery, which uses pixel art as a love letter to the world and the people within it.
It’s a passionate book, a deep love letter to nature, and an interesting series of observations on how we, as humans, interact with it.
An absolute must-read, and a good time investment at over 600 pages: if you loved the way Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow slowly drew you in, you’ll really enjoy spending your time with The Overstory.
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Daisy Jones and the Six is an incredibly popular book by beloved author Taylor Jenkins Reid. Adapted into a TV show, it’s a brilliant book (and an even better audiobook) following a group of musicians navigating unprecedented fame.
Like Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, it’s an exciting look at creative collaboration; it’s about flawed characters, artistic genius, and how the two collide.
While the showbiz and glamour are interesting, it’s really a side story to the main event, which is the way the characters fall for, and fall out with, each other.
It’s a great read to pick up after Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and it’s a great choice if you love character-driven novels.
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is the story of friendship, and Remarkably Bright Creatures has that in common.
In this beautiful and sad story, the main character Tova Sullivan takes up night shifts at an aquarium. Newly widowed and still grieving the mysterious loss of her son thirty years previously, the night shifts give her an escape, a distraction from her problems.
Incredibly, Tova forms a friendship with Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus. Marcellus knows the truth of what happened to Tova’s son, and it’s up to him to collaborate with her to uncover the truth. It’s a wonderful story about an unlikely friendship.
This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub
In this story, the main character Alice contemplates her life on the eve of her 40th birthday. She’s happy, but she can’t help but feel there’s something missing. The next morning she wakes, trapped in her 16-year-old body back in 1996.
It’s an intriguing story about what happens when you can live your life with hindsight; it simultaneously captures 16-year-old Alice and 40-year-old Alice at once, and this sweeping sense of scale is similar to the way Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow jumps back and forth in time.
This novel begs the question: what would you do differently if you could live your life all over again? It’s a satisfying and compulsively readable novel.
Mary Jane by Jessica Anya Blau
Set in 1970s Baltimore, this warming story follows Mary Jane, a sheltered teenage girl, and what happens when she gets a summer job as a nanny. Mary Jane knows the father is a psychiatrist; what she doesn’t know is that he is sheltering a famous rock star for a detox.
Mary Jane’s life is flipped upside down as she learns about sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll in one hazy, incredible summer.
This is the story of what happens when people from very different worlds collide and how our values can shape and inform people around us. Mary Jane’s character development feels natural, authentic, and soothing to read.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
On the surface, Pachinko is very different from Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow; set in 20th-century Japan, it’s about an incredibly close-knit family, relationships, and the bonds we create with each other.
Similar to Tomorrow, it’s a sweeping story that spans a long time period, and it’s a completely absorbing read.
The story begins with Sunja, the daughter of a fisherman, who falls in love with a stranger. She falls pregnant but discovers her new lover is married.
Turning her back on him, she marries a gentle minister instead, an action with huge intergenerational consequences. It beautifully captures human emotions and the actions we take as a result of those powerful feelings.
The Future Is Yours by Dan Frey
Another book with similar themes, The Future Is Yours follows Ben and Adhi, two best friends whose ambitions will have world-changing consequences.
Ben and Adhi create The Future: a computer with the ability to connect to the internet one year from now. As you can imagine, the power to see your own life one year in the future is an irresistible opportunity for many.
The story is told through blog posts, emails, and messages; you’ll get a glimpse of Ben and Adhi’s panic. The future is bleak, and it’s up to them to stop it from happening.
With the current uncertainty around AI, The Future Is Yours is a timely novel. It asks some interesting questions about the ethical implications of innovation. It also chronicles a friendship pushed to the limit.
Normal People by Sally Rooney
Like Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Normal People presents us with a series of complex and sometimes incredibly frustrating characters.
They don’t do what we expect them to do; they react out of fear, stress, or anger. They don’t make it clear how they feel; instead, they keep secrets from each other, even though it would be much easier if they told the truth.
If you enjoyed the real human drama in Tomorrow, you’ll probably enjoy Normal People by Sally Rooney, too. A frustrating but familiar story for anyone who has ever made poor decisions in the face of love (which is most of us).
If you liked this post, check out these:
Books Like Normal People
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Books Like Daisy Jones and the Six
Books Like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Books Like Malibu Rising
Books Like My Year of Rest and Relaxation
Books Like Little Fires Everywhere
Books Like Gone Girl
Books Like Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
Books Like The Book Thief
Books Like The Little Prince
Books Like It Ends With Us
Megan Bidmead
Guest writer
Megan is a freelance writer based in Somerset, England. When she’s not writing about books, video games, and pop culture, she’s running around after her two kids and trying to squeeze in the occasional walk in the countryside.