The Future of Us

by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

“A literary super-duo.”—Los Angeles Times

“A clever, timely story that will attract any teen with a Facebook account.”—Booklist, starred review

Josh and Emma are about to discover themselves—fifteen years in the future.

It's 1996, and Josh and Emma have been neighbors their whole lives. They've been best friends almost as long—at least, up until last November, when everything changed. Things have been awkward ever since, but when Josh's family gets a free AOL CD-ROM in the mail, his mom makes him bring it over so that Emma can install it on her new computer. When they sign on, they're automatically logged onto Facebook . . . but Facebook hasn't been invented yet. Josh and Emma are looking at themselves fifteen years in the future.

Their spouses, careers, homes, and status updates—it's all there. And every time they refresh their pages, their futures change. As they grapple with the ups and downs of what their lives hold, they're forced to confront what they're doing right—and wrong—in the present.

• ISBN10: 1595145168
• ISBN13: 9781595145161
• Publish Date: 16 October 2012 (first published 1 November 2011)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Razorbill
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 384
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9781595145161

Reviews

[Sam@WLABB]

I really enjoyed this one. All the throwback references made me giggle, because I remember getting those CDs in the mail and switching ISPs just to keep dialing up for free. >. I also liked the overall concept, and how these glimpses of the future made these two reflect on their present.

[Leah]

Th Future of Us has SUCH an intriguing concept. It's my first book by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler and I actually really liked it. The idea of seeing your future intrigues me so hard. I would love to peek into a year from now and see how life is and a year from that etc.

The ending was a bit abrupt, what a cop out to not share a Facebook update from actual 2011, to see how it panned out.

[Kelly]

3.5 Stars.
Original, fun and very sweet. Loved the concept. Great for young teens.

[Angie]

Oh, the 90s, how I miss thee! This book was such a fun trip into the past. It made me remember when we got our first computer and AOL in 1998; the beginning of my internet addiction. Back then I couldn't even begin to imagine Facebook and how much the internet changes our lives. But Emma and Josh get a peek at their lives 15 years into the future when Facebook magically appears after Emma sets up her e-mail account.

This was trippy! Emma and Josh not only see what they're doing and who they're with in the future, but they're directly altering what happens. Any decisions they make during the day are then reflected when they checked out their Facebook pages that night. Of course, what they see on their pages changes how they behave the next day, which in turn changes their futures again. It's a spiral that never ends. This poses the question: are our lives run by fate and destiny, or do we have the power to control our lives?

"One little ripple today could create a typhoon fifteen years from now."

The Future of Us was another book that I just could not put down. The 90s nostalgia made me smile until my cheeks hurt, but aside from that, the story was great. The sci-fi time travel aspect was mind boggling and awesome, and I even loved watching Emma and Josh's relationship change as they explored their possible futures together. Sure Emma seemed to only care about boys boys boys, and what college she should go to in order to meet the right boy, but she's not too different than many teenage girls. Josh is that best friend who wants more, and I adored him! I really wanted him to have his perfect future.

I'm just wonder what people will think 15 years from now while reading this? Probably the same thing Emma and Josh did: What's Facebook?! :P

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[rakesandrogues]

If I could describe THE FUTURE OF US using a movie, the obvious choice would be The Social Network. The plots are no where near similar, but the the lasting feeling that I got from watching the film and reading THE FUTURE OF US was the same. I was able to relate to these characters, partially because of a website, but mostly because of the well-written characters.

I admit that I knew nothing about this book before I snatched it up at BEA. I picked it up randomly since I hadn’t read any of Jay Asher’s other works and at the time, I had no idea that he co-wrote it with Carolyn Mackler. When I finally went through my books later that afternoon, I knew that I had something epic when I read the book’s summary. Josh and Emma discover the wonders of Facebook. The problem is, it’s fifteen years in the past just when dial-up Internet is starting to get popular. They discover themselves on Facebook, and at first it’s a bit of a shock.

Asher and Mackler provided me an insight into a world before the technology boom that we have today. I know that the Internet wasn’t widely used in the 90′s. I learned all about it in my Media Studies class this past spring semester – but I wasn’t thrust into their world when I read my media textbook. THE FUTURE OF US is a historical read in a sense where teens were just dying to have beepers – not even cellphones! – and couldn’t talk via Instant Messenger because the people who had IM was very limited. It was definitely a flashback into the past.

I loved the alternating perspectives between Emma and Josh. It made both so relatable knowing what was going on inside their heads. It was so fun to root for the main characters and read about them toy with the destinies. The book is also laugh out loud funny. Just the silly observations that Emma makes about Facebook had me cracking up. Yes, in reality there’s no way a person could have over 350 friends. Emma and Josh had fantastic chemistry and I loved every scene that the two best friends were in.

Since I did get an ARC of this book in May at BEA, I feel like there still could be (and probably will be) substantial changes to the book. This is one of the reasons why I am so excited for this book’s actual release. The changes that can be made can only strengthen the novel and make it even better.

I loved THE FUTURE OF US because it is so culturally relevant at the moment. It made me question my actions online and hesitate before I post a silly Facebook status. THE FUTURE OF US was such a fun read. I hated to put it down, and I wish I could have put my life on hold so I could gobble it up in one sitting. THE FUTURE OF US is a fantastic concept with equally brilliant execution. Do not miss out on this one!