ARC Review: Jay Asher/Carolyn Mackler - The Future of Us

Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler - The Future of Us

• Pub. Date: November 21, 2011
• Publisher: Penguin Young Readers
• Format: Hardcover 320pp
• Age Range: Young Adult


It's 1996, and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet.

Emma just got her first computer and an America Online CD-ROM.

Josh is her best friend. They power up and log on--and discover themselves on Facebook, fifteen years in the future.

Everybody wonders what their Destiny will be. Josh and Emma are about to find out.

I received this through Around the World ARC Tours. Here is my honest review:

Wow. Just wow. I was really interested in this book by reading the brief synopsis (the whole idea of these two teens in 1996 finding their Facebook pages from 2011 sounded like a fantastic novel). And let me just say that this book really delivers! It's not quite what I thought because there was more to it than just finding Facebook and reacting to it. Emma tries to change the things she finds on Facebook, and Josh doesn't want to play with fire by trying to change their futures. It gets messy from there.

We also find out some other deep things in the lives of Emma and Josh that make this book even more amusing. This book was a pleasure to read, and it really held my interest the entire time. I was never bored, but I certainly was left wanting a bit more (hence 4.5 instead of 5 stars). I would have liked to see their Facebook pages as they would be if nothing changed from where the book ended. That would have been good for a reader who likes definitive endings.

Other than that, I just thought the idea behind this book was so clever and fun! I laughed a bunch of times, I got worried for these characters, and I could feel the tension and drama all the way through. Like I said before, I wanted more. More about Josh's brother, more about Kellan and Tyson, and more drama from the end on. I just wanted to read about these people a while longer. Sigh. It was a tad predictable, but quite a bit still surprised me. Can't wait for another book by these two! :o)

What I liked:

• The idea. Finding yourself on Facebook in the future and seeing what your life will be like is really tempting, but I'm glad this stuff doesn't happen in real life!
• The characters. I really enjoyed learning about Emma, Josh, and Kellan. Tyson was okay, but I loved the twists and turns this book took with its characters while they were trying to change the future.

What I didn't like:

• The abrupt ending. Maybe it wasn't that abrupt. Maybe I just wanted a little bit more. I am not the kind of reader who likes to just infer about the ending. I want to be told so it isn't gray and I don't have to make it up to make myself feel better. Plus, I don't feel like everything was cleared up and wrapped up nicely. I wanted to know about Kellan as well!

Bottom line: Definitely read this one!! I think you'll really enjoy it if you're socially connected!

Rating:

4.5 / 5 book sharks!!