Author(s): Michael Pryor

Kids' Development

Tapping into themes of sustainability, morality, and cultural trends, this is an engrossing imagining of what society might become throughout the next 100 years, examined through ten incredibly disparate stories

Through careful research of societal and cultural trends as well as scientific developments, these ten stories are about two friends existing together in various potential versions of the future. Some are enjoyable, some are terrifying, but none are based on random speculation—instead, the author has closely examined new developments in the world today and asked "What if this continues?" In one scenario, Sam and Tara are best friends in a future when artificial intelligence organizes everyone's lives and micropets are the latest craze. In another, they must survive together when rationing means cold showers and no internet; and in a third, genetic matching makes asking a girl on a date a minefield of epic proportions. Can they still be best friends in a future when a terrible plague wipes out most of humanity? Or when the Inquisitor asks Sam to choose between one betrayal or another? Covering topics as expansive as the evolution of the English language, advancements in science, and sociological studies, each story explores relationships and personal or ethical dilemmas within a compelling, consistent future scenario.