The Set Up
The premise is this: What would you make of Facebook if you stumbled upon it in 1996 and it told you your future. And that’s what happens to Josh and Emma. Co-written by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler, The Future of Us explores the Facebook phenomenon from 1996.
I’m liking
The idea is intriguing – what does Facebook look like to someone who’s never seen it or heard of it? And in a spin on one of those age-old questions, if you know what happens to you in the future, what would you do about it?
Things that made me go hmmm…
Although this book is co-written, to my mind, there’s not enough difference between the characters. The real trick with split narratives is to make the voices significantly different. And they’re just not unique enough for me.
And to be honest, the characters are just too feeble. They only seemed concerned with their own small lives and there’s nothing substantial about their concerns. Come on, Asher and Mackler, you can do better by teens!
The set up of the book works well but the ending is lame. It’s all a bit tidy and easy and doesn’t really leave you thinking, as a good book should. Story lines are left unresolved and important questions are left unanswered.
The conclusion
It’s a quick read and attempts to explore some interesting ideas. But it’s just not meaty enough for my liking.
