I have recently read two books by the same title. Future Perfect by Jen Larsen and Future Perfect by Felicia Yap.
Future Perfect by Felicia Yap is a science fiction thriller that was released this year. It is a page-turner, a compelling read if you are into science fiction. The story spans from the snowy 1980s Montana to 1990s Manhattan to a drone-filled 2030s Britain.
What if there were an iPredict app who could give you forecasts for the day, would you want it ? It is 8 June 2030. the Police Commissioner Christian Verger cannot believe that iPredict tells him that he has a 99.74% chance of dying the next day. In case iPredict is correct, he needs to tell his fiancée Viola that he loves her. The day has begun badly. Viola has left him and their voice assistant, Alexa has been acting up. When he asks for a single expresso with two sugars, Alexa's voice is disapproving ' as far as a voice assistant can sound disapproving' Alexa serves him a cappuccino and insists that he always has a cappuccino in the morning and that he should be taking less sugar to minimise blood sugar spikes given 'recent sleep metrics and health data'. As Christian checks his Work app and finds that there are 148 notifications and five missed calls from his advisor, an e-pigeon lands on the balcony ledge holding a special delivery. It is a letter from Viola. Only then he realises that his fiancée has moved out. There has been some tension between them and she needs some space apart to work out where their relationship stands. She has taken her cat, KitKat and most of her belongings. She does not know why her fiancé is calling Ella's name and talks in his sleep. Ella must be a ghost from his past and he is evasive when she asks him. In the meantime, Christian is in a race to solve a crime. A bomb has exploded during a fashion show, killing a beautiful model on the catwalk and they have to find the murderer. The much celebrated fashion designer Alexander King is not postponing his fashion show scheduled to be held in London that very evening despite what happened during his show held in Manhattan the previous evening. Christian wants to survive the day and comes clean with Viola about his tumultuous past that explains who Ella is.
The fiction is narrated in the first person voice of the characters and through their individual narratives, you get to know each character and the internal conflicts each of them has to struggle with. There are full of surprises for the reader along the way. As the story unfolds, you get to put together pieces of information like working on a jigsaw puzzle. Felicia Yap has woven together a futuristic story that is also a story about love and friendships. Technology could advance, the core of humanity remains. Future Perfect is a very smart and captivating read.
Felicia Yap grew up in Kuala Lumpur. She read biochemistry at Imperial College London, before achieving a doctorate in history (and a half-blue in competitive ballroom dancing) at Cambridge University. She has written for The Economist and The Business Times. She has also worked as a radioactive-cell biologist, a war historian, a Cambridge lecturer, a technology journalist, a theatre critic, a flea-market trader and a catwalk model.
Future Perfect is the author's second novel. Yesterday was her debut novel. In Yesterday written by Felicia Yap , there are only two categories of people. Monos, the majority , have only one day memory while the elite Duos have two days’ worth of memory. They have to record their days in their iDiaries so they can have a memory of some kind. The question is: Can one be truthful in their account of their everyday? Yesterday is a story about love between two people even though their union is disapproved by the society they live in. It is also about memories and what we choose to believe and things that we could remember but must forget. It is another compelling read.
Future Perfect by Jen Larsen is a coming-of-age story set in California. In the story, every year on her birthday, Ashley Perkins gets a card from her grandmother. Every year Ashley's card also contains a promise, lose enough weight, grandmother will give her something. For instance, 75 pounds for a shopping trip in Paris. Ashley does not think there is anything wrong with her physique or her looks. She is big but she is happy with her body. Her grandmother wants her to lose weight thinking that she will have a better future. Ashley is a brilliant student and she dreams of going to Harvard. She wants to be like her grandmother who is a surgeon. This year, Grandmother offers her the one thing she really wants : four years worth of tuition fee to attend Harvard University if she gets weight-loss surgery. Ashley is grateful to her grandmother for caring for her and her father since her mother left them. She studies hard and works part-time as a server at a busy restaurant in the neighbourhood. But she does not want to get weight-loss surgery.
Ashley's good friends are also going through issues of their own. Jolene is a transgender and her parents disapprove of her choice and identity . Laura is free-spirited and wants to pursue her artist dreams while her dad wants her to go to college. The story is about being comfortable in your own skin, finding your directions and knowing who you are.
Ashley is a confident teenager. As she grapples with what others think and she knows that her grandmother only wants what is best for her as she loves her, she agonises about taking up her grandmother's offer. Ultimately she decides to stay true to herself , believes in herself and not affected by how others may view her. It's about embracing your body image.
Its author, Jen Larsen has first written and published Stranger Here, a memoir that is about her struggle with being overweight. There is a similarity between Larsen and Ashley. Future Perfect is about self-possession and believing in yourself, a necessary trait for everyone.
No comments:
Post a Comment