Gabrielle Zevin’s fifth novel for adults, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, became a best-seller in 2022, making the New York Times Best Seller list and being named Amazon’s best book of the year.
With the film rights being purchased and the script being written by Zevin herself, now is a good time to enjoy this novel with your book club!
If you’re preparing for your next meeting, here are 15 book questions for Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow to get the discussion flowing.
15 Book Club Questions for Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow
Sam and Sadie meet under unusual circumstances; both stuck in the same hospital, they bond over the Nintendo Entertainment System in the game room. A nurse persuades Sadie to befriend Sam in order to get him to speak again. When Sam finds out, he feels betrayed.
What did you think about Sadie’s agreement to help Sam? Do you think Sam truly forgave her? Do you think Sadie forgave herself for not telling him sooner?
Sadie begins a relationship with her professor at MIT; when he eventually leaves her, she crumbles, and Sam scrambles to help her get back on her feet again.
What did you think of the character of Dov? How do you think he influenced Sadie, both in terms of her work and her life following their break-up?
Creativity is a key theme in the novel. From their first game, the smash-hit success adventure game Ichigo to their virtual world, Mapleworld, the drive to create fires up with Sam and Sadie.
They don’t always get it right, but they remain committed to the process: ‘If you’re always aiming for perfection, you won’t make anything at all.’
Did you enjoy reading about the game development process? Did it teach you anything new about how games come together?
The book’s title comes from Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Marx, their friend and office manager, sums it up like this:
‘What is 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.’
What did you think of this quote? Did you suspect what might happen later in the novel based on this?
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As well as the theme of creativity, the book explores virtual spaces, making relationships with people through gaming, and the speed of societal change as technology develops.
Sadie mentions AI: ‘She had once read in a book about consciousness that over the years, the human brain makes an AI version of your loved ones. The brain collects data, and within your brain, you host a virtual version of that person… After a while, though, the memory fades, and each year, you are left with an increasingly diminished version of the AI you had made when the person was alive.’
What did you think of this observation? If AI were able to create a ‘real’ version of a lost loved one, do you think that would be a good thing or a bad thing?
Sadie has to push through a lot of barriers to become a game developer, barriers that, to a certain extent, still exist today. She has to deal with a lot of problems, including the fact that the press is largely focused on Sam’s success while ignoring Sadie.
How did you feel when this happened? How would you have reacted to this, if you were in Sadie’s shoes?
Sam is concerned when Sadie and Marx get together. His feelings around this are complicated: he’s worried that if they get serious, he’ll be pushed out, and it will affect the business as well as his feelings.
What did you think about Sadie and Marx’s relationship at the beginning? Did you think it would work out?
Tragedy strikes later in the novel; without spoiling it here, the team deals with a devastating loss after an angry fan protests the inclusion of gay marriage within the game.
Did this plotline feel realistic to you? Where do you think that strength of feeling comes from? Do you think people still get angry about same-sex relationships in video games?
Sadie is drowning in grief following the tragedy.
What did you think about Zevin’s depiction of grief? Did Sadie’s feelings resonate with you?
Sam has had to deal with many health problems over the years. This has a huge impact on his mental health, too. He pours himself into creating games that tell part of his life story: ‘Mapletown was, for Sam, the story of his pain, in the present and in the past.’
Do you think that virtual worlds are important for people with disabilities, or people who are otherwise isolated?
Sam and Sadie have an up-and-down relationship. Things are rarely smooth between them, as they are often at odds with each other for various reasons. Sam, at the start, has romantic feelings for Sadie, which are not reciprocated.
What did you think of Sam and Sadie’s relationship? Did their story end the way you thought it would?
‘Video games don’t make people violent, but maybe they falsely give you the idea that you can be a hero.’
What do you think of this quote? Do you agree or disagree with it?
When Sadie is lost in grief, Sam reaches out to her in an unconventional way by making up multiple characters on an MMORPG where Sadie spends most of her time. When she finds out, she feels angry and betrayed.
Why did Sadie react this way? What do you think about Sam’s actions – did he do the right thing?
Ultimately, Sam and Sadie plan on making games together in the future. Their bond is strong, but they’ve had a rocky road to get there.
What did you think of the ending? What do you imagine Sam and Sadie will go on to do in the future?
The book is a love letter to gaming, steeped in nostalgia for games over the decades.
Did you play video games when you were growing up? Do you still play them now? Have you developed any friendships or relationships because of gaming?
Hopefully, these questions will lead to an interesting discussion! Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow is a gorgeous, surprising, and heartbreaking novel, with plenty of twists and turns to discuss.
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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.