2025 Reading Challenge discussion

*Featured Buddy Read*
This buddy read is featured on the homepage and is pinned to the top of the January Buddy Reads folder. Otherwise it works just like every other buddy read!

If you are new to Buddy Reads, check out the sign-up thread for instructions and to sign up for future buddy reads!

You can join in the discussion even if your name isn't on the list!

This thread is to discuss Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin.

Pages: 416 pages

Length: 1 month (March)

Participants:Dikshita, Ilona, Surabhi, Dominique, JenniferJ, Nikki, Lina, Skumaskot, Ashleigh, Sneha

Everyone reads at their own pace during a Buddy Read. Because participants can be at different parts of the book at different times, it is extremely important to mark spoilers so that the book is not ruined for someone who is not as far along as others!!!

Mark spoilers by placing {spoiler} before the text and {/spoiler} after the text but use the < and > instead of the { and }.

Looking forward to reading & discussing it with you all

I'm still debating whether or not I want to join this Buddy Read. Yes, I'm intrigued and I want to read it this year, but the waitlist on Libby is aprox 20 weeks atm, and I'm too much of a cheap-ass to spend $18 on a book I'm not certain about.

I remember watching an interview on the Jimmy Fallon show, where they referenced Oregon Trail, and that was the moment I knew I had to add it to my TBR :D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAL-o...

I am not on the list but am reading this book for my March book club and would love to join in on the discussion.

I'm also not on the list but would love to follow along :)

i'm not on the list but i'll be following along bc this has been on my TBR list for a while!

I've . . . .ummm . . . .managed to make it to page 185 on this one already. And I'm really surprised by how much I'm enjoying it.

Rebecca wrote: "I've . . . .ummm . . . .managed to make it to page 185 on this one already. And I'm really surprised by how much I'm enjoying it."

I am so excited to read it. But I would probably begin it by 15th March. Because I am on 2 buddy reads group in March

I’m also going to be starting this later on, because I’m reading Carrie Soto is Back first (another buddy read)!

I am not on the list but I just finished reading the book:) enjoy!

Will be starting this sometime later this weekend, this seems like a really interesting one. Looking forward to reading thoughts from everyone!

Skumaskot wrote: "I’m also going to be starting this later on, because I’m reading Carrie Soto is Back first (another buddy read)!"

Same for me, I'll join in a little later :)

I'm also gonna join you!

I am also reading Carrie Soto.
Will finish that and join this group :)

I finally got a copy of this one but won't be reading it until the end of the month!

I've read through the first 3-4 chapters and so far it's been decent. I like the video game design talk the most. Can't really tell if I'll like the characters?

I am 35% in, till chapter 3 of part III. I find it a bit boring to be honest. Seeing how Ichigo was designed was cool, but the characters seem so predictable, they don't really interest me. Hopefully it gets better soon, there must be a reason why this book is so popular!

Ilona wrote: "I am 35% in, till chapter 3 of part III. I find it a bit boring to be honest. Seeing how Ichigo was designed was cool, but the characters seem so predictable, they don't really interest me. Hopeful..."

I'm having the same feelings about it and I'm about 34% in my audiobook. Dov and Sadie's relationship arc was very predictable from the beginning. So far, I'm interested in knowing how Marc's character will play-out since he seemed more of a side-character at the beginning of the book but now somewhat plays a pretty big role. Not too sure how to feel about Sam yet.

Haven't been able to start it yet but it's next up on my March pile!

I wasn't part of the Buddy Read but coincidentally just finished this yesterday. I liked it overall, but not sure I quite get why it was everyone's top book of last year either.

Ilona wrote: "I am 35% in, till chapter 3 of part III. I find it a bit boring to be honest. Seeing how Ichigo was designed was cool, but the characters seem so predictable, they don't really interest me. Hopeful..."

I felt the same way, but the more I read it, the more I began to like it. It just took a while for me to get into it. I am on the first chapter of part 6, page 251. I will say that I like Sam and Marx better than I like Sadie.

Amy wrote: "I felt the same way, but the more I read it, the more I began to like it."

That's good to know!

Beginning to read it today..
excited to join the discussion with you all :)

I’m just on the 3rd chapter and the book is decent as of now.
It’s interesting to read about gaming. I felt sad about the fact that Sadie got into a relationship with Dov.
Can’t say much about the characters as the story is still building..

Can I join in the discussion with you? I just finished this book last month. I really liked it but maybe because it reminded me of growing up with video/PC games of the 80's like Oregon Trail.

I just finished the part titled Marriages and (view spoiler)[ I would really play Mapleworld as I'm a Stardew Valley obsessed gamer. I loved that they were able to give Simon and Ant another wedding on the game to replace the one that the government took away from them.

Also, I can't bring myself to warm up to Sadie. I want to love her like Marx and Sam, but think she needs to work some things out with a therapist. Sometimes I think she replaced Dov with Sam and has intentionally made their relationship dysfunctional. I don't know though.

Also, I am concerned about the way this part ends, and I"m a little anxious to get back to the book (hide spoiler)].

Will start tonight

Rebecca wrote: "I just finished the part titled Marriages and I would really play Mapleworld as I'm a Stardew Valley obsessed gamer. I loved that they were able to give Simon and Ant another wedding on the game t..."

(view spoiler)[I am on that section now, and I agree. Sadie is rubbing me the wrong way. It is like she is actively looking for reasons to sabotage her relationship with Sam. The jealousy and resentment she feels towards him feels so over the top and unwarranted to me. (hide spoiler)]

I started this the other day. Still on part one. Not sure how I feel yet! I'm getting more into it the more.i read

I will begin 5th chapter of the 2nd part. I really liked the idea of the new game Sam and Sadie are making, but somehow not really comfortable with (view spoiler)[ Dov and Sadie getting back.. (hide spoiler)]

Rebecca wrote: "I just finished the part titled Marriages and I would really play Mapleworld as I'm a Stardew Valley obsessed gamer. I loved that they were able to give Simon and Ant another wedding on the game t..."

(view spoiler)[ I completely agree with you about Sadie. I think she's totally self-absorbed. How could she not see that Sam was in pain? And I don't understand how she can forgive Dov's treatment of her and maintain a relationship but not be able to forgive Sam. (hide spoiler)]

I have finished the first 3 parts now.
I really enjoy the game development / different game ideas, but I am still not quite sure whether I have gotten to know the characters enough to form much of an opinion on them. I am looking forward to reading more and discussing the book with all of you.

Some quotes that I liked so far:

This is what time travel is. It's looking at a person, and seeing them in the present and the past, concurrently. And that mode of transport only worked with those one had known a significant time.

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But it is worth noting that to be good at something is not quite the same as loving it.

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The game character, like the self, is contextual.

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Sam's grandfather had two core beliefs: (1) all things were knowable by anyone, and (2) anything was fixable if you took the time to figure out what was broken.

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I liked the parts talking about how women are made to feel in MIT, and the parts about gaming advertisements etc. in general catering more to men than to women. I have oftentimes found myself pretty upset about the portrayal of female characters in a lot of games / game advertisments.

The gaming industry, like many industries, loves its wonder boys.

It would be interesting to check how games with female main characters actually fare compared to the ones with male characters. I will look that up once I finish the book.
(Even though I can not even think of many examples of those.)

(view spoiler)[ It was sad, but also realistic, to see how they caved to the industry and chose to not go with a 'them' persona (and to rush the development of Ichigo 2), in order to gain more money / publicity ... I am very interested in seeing whether they will end up standing up for their beliefs later on. (hide spoiler)]

I finished the section titled The NPC. Damn.

Amy, my thoughts exactly... Just finished that one, too.

I finished the NPC section yesterday. And I needed Kleenex for that section.

This isn't really related to the discussion, but for those that didn't know, you can play the Emily Blaster on the author's website:
gabriellezevin.com/emilyblastergame
(someone shared this in a different group, that is how I found out)

Lina wrote: "This isn't really related to the discussion, but for those that didn't know, you can play the Emily Blaster on the author's website:
gabriellezevin.com/emilyblastergame
(someone shared this in a di..."

That's awesome!

I just finished Both Sides.
I find Sam very selfish and self centred and Sadie to be quite lost. Marx is a sorted guy but I wonder why he chose Zoe :D
I am pretty relieved that Sadie is not with Dov anymore.
Did anyone feel any similarity in the situation that Sam is into with Jude in ‘A little life’?

Surabhi wrote: "I will begin 5th chapter of the 2nd part. I really liked the idea of the new game Sam and Sadie are making, but somehow not really comfortable with [spoilers removed]"

Yes, this grosses me out majorly!

So I mentioned to my daughter who also has read this book that quite a few of us on here mentioned that we really didn't like Sadie that much and she didn't understand why. She thought that Sadie and Sam reacted the same way to their individual situations but that we were holding Sadie to a different standard. Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?

KSMary wrote: "So I mentioned to my daughter who also has read this book that quite a few of us on here mentioned that we really didn't like Sadie that much and she didn't understand why. She thought that Sadie a..."

Now that I've finished the book, I think I agree with your daughter. In the first half of the book, (view spoiler)[ I think I was holding Sadie's previous betrayal against her and accusing her of being petty, but I realized that Sam really kept so much of himself from Sadie that Sadie's responses seem reasonable. Because Zevin centered Sam so much in his pain for the reader, I think I just assumed that Sadie knew and understood that. (hide spoiler)]

Rebecca wrote: "KSMary wrote: "So I mentioned to my daughter who also has read this book that quite a few of us on here mentioned that we really didn't like Sadie that much and she didn't understand why. She though..."

This is an interesting thought. It does make sense for us to assume that the characters know what we know, and to judge them as such. You've got me rethinking a bit.

Hi All,
I finished the chapter NPC and honestly, it got me to tears.
Now, I have reached a point in the book that I just want to finish it to know how does it end.
For me it was the happy ending since the beginning hat (view spoiler)[ Marx and Sadie will marry each other and Sam will be best friends with them. Sam dying has really shook me (hide spoiler)]

Amy wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "KSMary wrote: "So I mentioned to my daughter who also has read this book that quite a few of us on here mentioned that we really didn't like Sadie that much and she didn't understan..."

I... don't like Sam or Sadie lol

Amy wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "KSMary wrote: "So I mentioned to my daughter who also has read this book that quite a few of us on here mentioned that we really didn't like Sadie that much and she didn't understan..."

I felt the same way. I had to go back and rethink that a bit. Sam and Sadie's friendship started as children and it is hard to get away from those childhood dynamics as adults.