The Future of Us by Jay Asher

(read and written in December 2011)


I read The Future of Us, in one sitting, in about three hours. The entire time, in the back of my head, I thought, "What would my 16 year old self think if I saw my 31 year old self's Facebook page?" Emma and Josh are 16 in 1996, looking at 2011. Emma tries as hard as she can to ensure a bright future for herself by changing things in her present. I am, as I write this, 31, and was 16 in 1996. I just logged on to Facebook and yeah, it really made me think. I'm happy with my life now. I wasn't always, and there are things I would have liked to do before that I am just now getting too. There's a part in the book there Emma and Josh both see pictures of their future children, that disappear as they change things. If my 16 year old self had seen my FB I would have known I was about to get pregnant with the help of a loser who will never be a part of his life. Would I have changed things if I had only had that snapshot of the future? I have a wonderful son I wouldn't trade for the world. I think what this book will do is make you think about your actions in your now, and make you wonder what effect they will have on your tomorrows. The Future of Us is well-written, and intriguingly plausible, given the subject matter. Much like 13 Reasons Why, Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler's book will remain with you when you leave it, but for different reasons. I was looking forward to this book so much that I went out and bought it instead of waiting for my library (because buying books is a huge luxury in my economy). I am not regretting that decision.