It is 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 between  them 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 their Facebook pages. But Facebook hasn't been invented yet. And they're looking at themselves fifteen years in the future.

By refreshing their pages, Josh and Emma learn that making different decisions now will affect the outcome of their lives later. And as they grapple with the ups and downs of what their futures hold, they're forced to confront what they're doing right--and wrong--in the present.

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About the Authors:

Jay Asher is the author of the NYT Bestseller Thirteen Reasons Why. Visit his blog for more info.

Carolyn Mackler is the author of the popular teen novels, The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things (A Michael L. Printz Honor Book), Tangled, Guyaholic, Vegan Virgin Valentine, and Love and Other Four-Letter Words.


Why I Recommend:

The book comes with two POVs--the chapters alternate between Josh and Emma. As I've mentioned, this is a fast, easy read. The writing is pretty straightforward (no lyrical or poetic prose here, but that is fine with me. I just like to point out pretty writing when I see it. Totally subjective, people.)

I enjoyed going back to 1996 and the cultural references, like AOL (so funny because AOL was the BIG thing back then. I still remember those free CD-ROMs they gave out in the mail.), Seinfeld, Windows 95, and those cheesy brick wall screensavers, among others. It's like a trip down memory lane. Only in the book, it's the opposite, for when they found a strange website called FACEBOOK on Emma's computer, they were suddenly privy to their future selves.

Soon Emma and Josh realize that their actions or even their thoughts in the present (1996) have the capability to change their future circumstances (15 years later). For instance, Emma deduces that she's unhappy in her marriage, and when she decides to never marry that person, the next time she logs in she's married to someone else. It was fascinating to see how their choices now affected their lives later.

The only thing that didn't sit well with me is the fact that their seemingly meaningless acts--those tiny, itty-bitty trivial things they did--somehow created huge ripples enough to drastically change their future in a heartbeat. I'm not a philosopher, and I certainly can not tell you that by deciding to sit down and read this blogpost as opposed to say, deciding to play on Twitter is somehow going to change your future so that instead of becoming a bestselling novelist (because you read my post), you went bankrupt and lost your  mortgage. Confused? What I'm saying is that in the novel, it's implied that every little thing we do in the present time can have huge repercussions in the future. Maybe it's just me, but I believe that huge repercussions only happen when we're faced with important decisions. Spilling vase water on the carpet (which Emma did) is not enough to make the circumstances of her future marriage change.

But as I am no Einstein, maybe it does. All I can say is that this reader was raising eyebrows at one point.

Putting such things aside (it's the same case as with Time Travel, messing with the time and space continuum and whatnot, only different...), the book was still an engaging read and I was really intrigued to see how it would turn out for both Emma and Josh. I kinda knew where it was going (no spoilers from me, but as you can see, it was a bit predictable). I liked Josh's character better than Emma's, but again, totally subjective. The supporting cast were good and well-sketched. I liked how normal teenage issues (such as the relationship with their parental units, the "sex" talk, etc.) are portrayed realistically in the story.

All in all, a good read, and one that makes you think: Are the choices I make TODAY making a difference TOMORROW?

To find out more, you can visit the book's facebook page. The Future of Us is slated to come out by November 2011. If you want a copy now, stay tuned because I'm planning a giveaway where you can win an ARC of The Future of Us for your own reading pleasure. 

;)