Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow: DISCOVER THE #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING PHENOMENON Paperback – 29 Jun. 2023

A tale of friendship, a lesson in love and a perpetual game of life with its infinite number of second chances, lost opportunities and endless challenges. And at the centre - love and friendship of course.“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.”A chance meeting at a hospital is to connect the lives of Sadie and Sam through video gaming and home entertainment. A relationship that is tested, grows, changes, and suffers from many of the obstacles life creates - love, greed, misunderstanding, vanity, discrimination, domestic violence, abuse, death and many more. However, the constant in their lives is the love and ambition for building and playing video games. Yet, like many winning partnerships, their loyalty is tested when fame and success enter their lives and the two struggle with each other, despite the intervention of their loyal friend Marx.While the book includes many side stories and sub plots, the core to this book is the relationship between Sadie, Sam and also Marx with some important themes for the reader to reflect on. There is a sad moment in the book that will play on my mind tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow!!! But I will not spoil here.It was all about the writing style and relationships for me that took the meaning of gaming to a whole new level. The characters felt so real and genuine which came through in the writing and turned a seemingly ordinary plot into something extraordinary.A modern take on some timeless themes. A story of reinvention, infinity, and the possibility of a different life, but also a stark reminder that life is complicated, complex, painful and sometimes intolerable but it is also what we make of it. Despite the distractions and when the game of life becomes the cruelty of life, it is up to the individual to decide on the appropriate course of action, because after all there are no rules and no winners. Just love and friendship made better through willingness and forgiveness. The focus on relationships was superb but I particularly loved the reinvention of Sadie and Sam’s relationship. Overall an excellent book, there is no doubt that this book will continue to be enjoyed by many tomorrow, and tomorrow and tomorrow!!!.

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow is the story of Sadie and Sam, two best friends and gamers, who go on to make video games together and become business partners. The story spans over about thirty years; years that bring them success, but also failures, trials and heartache, their friendship having its ups and downs, but always enduring.This is in truth a hard book to describe, and not being at all into video games, I went into it with a little trepidation. However, this book is about so much more than gaming, such that I can see why it is so popular.At its heart it is a story about friendship, but also about the making and power of art in general and the possibilities of our imagination. It also tackles some weighty themes, including disability, depression, grief and trauma of various kinds, and in a way that never felt too heavy-handed. I also liked the diversity to the characters, and the way that race and identity was handled.I liked the nostalgic feel to the book, given that the main bulk of the story takes place in the 90s/2000s, and overall just thought that the story felt unique. It also takes you on a roller-coaster of emotions, in that you feel the highs and lows that both Sadie and Sam experience across the years.The lives of the two main characters are often messy, and they are both deeply flawed. As much I liked them both, particularly as the story went on, it did sometimes feel as if they didn't really show much development, but rather repeated the same patterns of behaviour, displaying their immaturity and self-centredness. Still, to the writer's credit, that didn't stop me from feeling invested in them, even when I wanted to bang their heads together.Marx was undoubtedly my favourite character, and I don't think the book would have been the same without him. As much as I enjoyed the special connection between Sadie and Sam, Marx often felt like the glue that held them together, both on a personal and professional level. He was always there quietly doing so much, without ever taking any of the credit or causing any drama, and that together with his optimistic outlook on life and how much he loved the two of them, just made him a really endearing character.I did actually enjoy the details of the creative process of making games, and in particular the reoccurring theme of the endless possibilities they provide. ' ''What is game?'' Marx said. ''Its tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow. Its 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.'' 'I think my favourite parts of the story were when Sadie and Sam and Marx are first making Ichigo, as that seemed to be them at their happiest and most creative, before their first experience of success and fame, and perhaps as such at their purest, before petty resentments and insecurities and jealousies start kicking in. I also liked the nod backs to Sam and Sadie as children and how they first became friends.I do think there were parts in the middle that dragged a bit, however, then something unexpected and truly shocking happened that really drew me back into the story, and perhaps was the part that hit the hardest. I will say that after that the story did then seem to get a big weaker again in that these were the parts where I perhaps didn't connect as well to either Sadie or Sam, though the ending itself did seem to come back full circle to the beginning, which I liked, and almost fitted in with that theme of pressing the start button and trying over again. There were some more experimental type chapters here and there, that sometimes worked and sometimes didn'tFor me personally not a 5 star read, but overall one that drew me into the story and made me care about the characters, even when they weren't always likeable, with some interesting themes explored in a unique and refreshing way.