“Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow” Book Club Questions
A discussion plan for book clubs reading Gabrielle Zevin’s 2022 book “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow.”
Get to know you
What’s your name, what’s one thing you like to do, and as a fun fact — what’s your favourite video game?
Recap of “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow”
—Aided by SuperSummary
Sadie Green and Sam Masur meet as kids in a hospital. They connect over their love of video games and quickly become best friends—until Sam discovers that Sadie was counting their hours together towards a community service assignment, and cuts contact because of the betrayal.
They don’t reconnect until they’re in university, at which point Sam suggests they make a video game together. With Sam’s roommate, Marx Watanabe, and help from Sadie’s sometimes-ex-lover Dov, the trio starts a gaming company and launches the blockbuster game Ichigo.
Though Ichigo is a huge success, creative differences often arise between Sam and Sadie. They move to LA, Sam gets an amputation for his injured foot, and Sadie and Marx fall in love. Ichigo 2 does decently well, Both Sides tanks, and Counterpart High and Mapleworld become enormous hits. Marx is murdered by a homophobic gunman who blames Mapleworld for his divorce. While Sam’s grief throws him into his work, new mom Sadie is hit by an immobilising depression. Realising he can’t break through, Sam creates a game specifically for Sadie, Pioneer, and interacts with her character under a pseudonym. When Sadie discovers the lie, she cuts contact because of the betrayal, moving back to Boston, where she teaches the next generation of game creators at MIT.
The friends finally meet again after five years, and they confess the insecurities they’ve held back from each other. Sadie says romantic relationships are common, and what they have—partnership—is exceptional. As the novel draws to a close, Sam and Sadie spend the evening playing video games. When they part ways, Sadie hands Sam a concept for a new game they can design together.
Book Discussion Questions:
- What’s one thing you liked about “Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow”?
- What’s one thing about this book you would have changed?
- Did your familiarity with video games (or lack thereof) matter to your enjoyment of the story?
- Which of the main characters did you identify with most?
- Sadie and Sam feel that their relationship is deeper than the word “love” can even reflect, yet they hide many of their biggest struggles from each other. What do you think about the depth of their relationship?
- Did you want or expect Sam and Sadie to end up together?
- What did you think of the more surreal chapters, the ones that read as if the story was a game?
- How did Sam’s tragic backstory impact the way he went through the world?
- Sadie deals with sexism in the industry — for example, the Ichigo character becoming a boy, and assumptions that Sam was the primary creator of their games. What kinds of sexism does your industry experience?
- Why do you feel some people, including Sam, didn’t take Marx seriously?
- If you were any of these character’s therapists, what would you want to say to them?
- Sadie notes that the students in her class have a very different attitude toward telling their stories, in life and in games. How have you observed similar shifts with today’s teenagers?
- Which of the Unfair Games creations do you wish existed in real life?
- Would you have taken the deal with Cellar Door Games or Opus Interactive to produce Ichigo?
- Like the decision above, there are a few key points in the story that affect the trajectory of the trio’s careers. How has your career path evolved over time? What were the inflection points where you headed in a new direction?
- What do you think is special about video games as a medium?
- What video games have you formed an attachment to in your life, as a child and/or as an adult? What about the gameplay, story or characters drew you in and left an impression on you?
- What do you think happens next for Sam and Sadie?
- What was your take-away from the book?
Lightning round!
Rate the book out of 10.
“If you liked ‘Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow’ you might also like…”
Tell us about any media — books, art, music, movies, series, video games, anything this book reminds you of — and why it’s good.
Enjoy your book club! 📚
