The internet we know now is filled with social networking sites, blogs, and other websites, where we share tidbits of our daily lives and other information. But fifteen years ago, the internet was a recent commodity that was much simpler. What if someone from fifteen years ago discovered Facebook, and could see what lay in the future? That’s the plotline used in Jay Asher’s (author of Thirteen Reasons Why) and Carolyn Mackler’s recent book, The Future of Us, released in late November 2011.
Two friends, Emma and Josh, in 1996, peek into the future when Josh helps Emma install an AOL disk on her new computer. Once they log in with their info, they see themselves on Facebook in what would be fifteen years into the future, 2011. At first both play it off as a hoax or some prank, they start slowly believing in what they’re seeing as they log in each day to see changes in their lives. They start to see how events that occur in the present, can make small or large ripples on their futures, and not just theirs, but other people’s as well.
While the plot concept was unique, it seemed rather simplistic. How could a story be centered on just two teens in the past discovering their future Facebook? You’ll need to read it to understand how the smallest decisions can alter various aspects of the future. That there is potential for change in just simple decisions like, “I’ll just never go to this place, so this person won’t be in my future.” That thought itself can erase an entire possible life you would have had, and how there are infinite variations of futures, one change and you can never have the same sequence for that future again. As the book progresses, Emma and Josh start to learn, exactly because of that reason, the future is a dangerous object to play around with; however, they can’t stop as they let future consequences shape their actions in the present.