This book reminded me so much of Ready Player One but rather than focusing heavily on videogames, focuses on the videogame designers themselves. The dynamic relationships between all the characters kept me reading and I loved how the games they designed represented their life events. A surprisingly touching book!

Within the novel, a critic contends that the end to one the games Sadie and Sam co-create is "too clever by half." The same might be said of the novel itself which tidies and straightens the closing bow, but that's a light criticism of a novel I really enjoyed. Easily mong the better of the Tournament of Books finalists I have read so far, and I want to play every single one of the games Zevin imagines in these pages.

Wow, what a wonderfully written, sweet, heartening, and tender journey that book was. Even in harsh moments there was a hand on your cheek. Zevin slips into poetry so naturally. Smooth edges.

this was so underwhelming and i did not like the characters

did we even read the same book?

i would have really liked to read the book that gabrielle zevin had in her head; clearly, this was meant to be a masterpiece, and it seems it succeeded with very many people. i’ve never read any of her other work, but this read to me like a dupe of a little life by a less skilled author.

my biggest gripe is just how many issues and elements this author tries to introduce without ever touching upon them ever again. it all came across as very sensational and lacking depth, included primarily for shock-value. i also didn’t find the characters super well-developed; feelings are changed suddenly and with no real explanation other than “they felt this way the entire time and only just realized it.” things made much more sense when i found out the author also works as a screenwriter; this book was written like it really wanted to be a screenplay.

i’m glad this touched so many other readers, but i came away not knowing what i was supposed to feel or anything about what the author wanted to convey. i had high hopes for this book, and all im left with is a profound sense of disappointment.

Wow what a story. To start the book seems like a lot of set up. But boy do those details all come back later in the book and make a great tie in. I loved each character in different ways. Obviously Sadie, Marx, and Sam are the stars but the smaller characters you can feel a connection with as well. Even Dov redeems himself with a little humility towards the end. The last 1/3 of the book hits you like a train and really makes you feel so many emotions. Each different but important. I think since I grew up loving video games this book made a deeper connection with me. It gave me the nostalgia of the games I loved and how it does help you escape your reality at some points in your life. The references to real games make a lot of sense and most I had played before. I think if you did not grow up with video games as a part of your life you may feel like it’s harder to connect to each character but the message and emotion still shines through in the end. This is one of my favorite books I read this year.

It’s hard to describe what this book means to me. I adored it.