Get Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow book club questions here. This award-winning bestseller follows Sam Masur and Sadie Green through decades of friendship and video games. You’ll get fully prepared to explore its themes of human connection with your group. Print a PDF of the discussion questions to take with you below as well!
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow Book Club Questions
Discuss the colorful, video game-inspired book cover which explicitly references The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai.
Why did Gabrielle Zevin choose Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow as the title? For reference, in the novel, Marx says:
“What is a game? […] 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.”
If you read Macbeth by William Shakespeare, share your thoughts on how it influenced this novel and its title. For reference, the Macbeth soliloquy appears in Act 5 Scene 5:
“Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”
Discuss the significance of the epigraph by Emily Dickinson, which is also referenced in the title of the final chapter (“Freights and Grooves”):
“That Love is all there is, Is all we know of Love; It is enough, the freight should be Proportioned by the groove.”
Discuss the pros and cons of video gaming for the characters.
Do you agree with Sam’s quote that “[t]here is no act more intimate than play”?
How does art imitate life in the business of video game creation?
How do differences like race, culture, class, sexuality, and gender shape the story?
Discuss the theme of cultural appropriation in the video games.
Was success a blessing or a curse?
Would success have been different if it first occurred for the characters later in life?
How do each of the main characters view success?
Discuss the changes to Sam’s and Sadie’s friendship over time.
How did Sam and Sadie cope with problems in their friendship over time?
Discuss the highs and lows of the business.
What roles did Sam, Sadie, and Marx play in the business and why?
Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these complex characters.
How does love show itself in different ways in the characters’ lives?
What role does mental health play in the story?
What types of gender discrimination did Sadie face as a female in a male-dominated business?
How does Sam’s injury and disability impact his life?
Did the pivotal act of violence in the novel surprise you?
How do the characters cope with grief and loss?
How did identity and alter egos shape Sam and Sadie?
Were Sam and Sadie better off as friends (as opposed to lovers)?
How may the novel have differed if Sam and Sadie were romantically involved?
Compare and contrast Sam’s and Sadie’s friendship to same-sex friendships.
Why did Sadie and Sam hold things back from each other?
Given the progression of technology, how many this story differ if it were set in today’s times?
How would you answer this question from the novel: “Do you leave the formation of memories to happenstance, or do you decide to remember?”
Name some of the pop culture references sprinkled throughout the book.
Discuss this popular quote: “There is a time for any fledgling artist where one’s taste exceeds one’s abilities. The only way to get through this period is to make things anyway.”
Is there anything beloved from your childhood that you took into adulthood in the way that Sam and Sadie took with them their love of video games?
Talk about your best friend.
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is a bestselling, award-winning book. Was this a book that lived up to the hype for you?
Printable PDF Discussion Questions
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Book Club Study Guide
Quick Plot Summary
In Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Sam and Sadie bond over video games while navigating personal hardships: Sam is undergoing cancer treatment and coping with the loss of his mother in a car accident. Years later, they reconnect at a Boston train station when Sam playfully yells a reference to “The Oregon Trail.”
As students at Harvard and MIT, they team up to create their first blockbuster game, “Ichigo,” and launch Unfair Games with Sam’s roommate, Marx Watanabe.
Their friendship evolves through the highs and lows of life, love, and career over 30 years, intertwining themes of discrimination and identity. Ultimately, it’s a story about the deep, complex bond between best friends.
Related Post: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow Review
Themes to Keep in Mind
- friendship over decades
- male/female friendship
- video games
- identity
- how work impacts your personal life
- cultural appropriation
- grief
- mental health
- disability
Book Club Food Ideas
- Persimmons, which Marx calls his favorite fruit
- Pizza, inspired by Sam’s family restaurant
- Jewish and/or Korean food that celebrates Sam’s mixed heritage
- Nostalgic food popular in the 1980s and 1990s, inspired by the many pop culture references in the novel
About Author Gabrielle Zevin
about
Gabrielle Zevin is a Harvard-educated American author and screenwriter. Her New York Times bestseller, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, is also popular with readers.
What to Read After Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
If you’re interested in Macbeth:
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