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Kid: A History of the Future
London. The year 2078. Like all other major cities, London is a silent wasteland, abandoned and crumbling, populated only by the renegade ‘Offliner’ movement, the lawless ‘Seekers’ and other minorities that rejected The Upload in 2060. As a result, these rebels live off the grid and in abject poverty, taking shelter in makeshift shantytowns and hideouts. The Offliners have made the disused Piccadilly Circus Tube station their home: a fully self-sufficient, subterranean community of about 500 people, known as the ‘Cell’.
In 2060, following a series of deadly pandemics, devastating environmental disasters and a violent surge in cyber terrorism, the UN made it compulsory for every tax paying citizen in all of its 193 united nations to login to the Perspecta Universe: a virtual reality universe provided by the tech giant Gnosys Inc. So began a period of history known as The Upload. Totally safe, pollution free, environmentally friendly: what was an alternative reality at first has become the only reality. Now, in 2078, billions of people all around the world exist in dedicated Hab-Belts – massive dormitory complexes surrounding the major cities – unconscious of the world around them: living, working, loving, learning, inside the Perspecta Universe.
KID – A History of The Future follows Josh ‘Kid’ Jones, a young Offliner who discovers that an antiquated piece of technology called an ‘iPhone’, left to him by his father, seemingly allows him to communicate with the past through social media. He strikes up a friendship with Isabel Parry, a 16 year old in 2021, and the two begin communicating through time and space via Instagram. In doing so they are not only changing their own fate, but also the fate of the rest of the world.
In 2060, following a series of deadly pandemics, devastating environmental disasters and a violent surge in cyber terrorism, the UN made it compulsory for every tax paying citizen in all of its 193 united nations to login to the Perspecta Universe: a virtual reality universe provided by the tech giant Gnosys Inc. So began a period of history known as The Upload. Totally safe, pollution free, environmentally friendly: what was an alternative reality at first has become the only reality. Now, in 2078, billions of people all around the world exist in dedicated Hab-Belts – massive dormitory complexes surrounding the major cities – unconscious of the world around them: living, working, loving, learning, inside the Perspecta Universe.
KID – A History of The Future follows Josh ‘Kid’ Jones, a young Offliner who discovers that an antiquated piece of technology called an ‘iPhone’, left to him by his father, seemingly allows him to communicate with the past through social media. He strikes up a friendship with Isabel Parry, a 16 year old in 2021, and the two begin communicating through time and space via Instagram. In doing so they are not only changing their own fate, but also the fate of the rest of the world.
- GenresScience Fiction
624 pages, ebook
First published March 18, 2021
6 people are currently reading
173 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
March 19, 2021
Book Reviewed on www.whisperingstories.com
Eighteen-year-old Joshua ‘Kid’ Jones is living in the year 2078. The world having been destroyed by numerous pandemics, climate change, dirty bombs, and floods is polluted and you need special tablets to go outdoors to stop you inhaling the polluted air. He is also an Offliner living in Piccadilly Circus Tube station with his cell of other Offliners, including his best friends Pas and Eliza.
Most of the world now lives a virtual life in a place called Perspecta run by tech company Gnosys Inc so that they can have all the comfort and joy of living in a beautiful world but only virtually. The Offliner’s choose not to be ‘plugged in’ and live technology-free. They are hated by the tech company that wants to eliminate them all.
After a conversation with his Godmother about him changing the past, Kid goes searching for what she means and finds an old iPhone 11 that he had forgotten his father had given to him. It is with this phone and using Instagram that he first makes contact with Isabel Parry who is in 2021. After some persuasion and evidence, she believes that Kid is from the future.
If he is to change the world as it is now, Kid needs Isabel’s help in 2021, the year Gnosys Inc start trading to help him. But he also finds out some interesting and vital information about his father who disappeared when he was a child that may just help their plight too.
What can I say? Kid is such an astounding time traveling journey. It reminded me a little of The Matrix with people being plugged into a virtual world but with a far easier-to-understand plot!!
As well as being a fascinating, unique, and engaging adventure set in a world where Mother Nature has fought back after years of abuse, it is also a dystopian novel that opens your eyes to the destruction that we are causing now to the planet. It certainly makes you stop and think.
I love the sci-fi elements of the book which were not too scientific that they lost me. I also loved the way Sebastian has taken his readers on a complete journey, starting with the main character and then through short chapters introduced us to different elements of the story and the people before reaching the pinnacle moment of Kid and Isabel meeting and their stories in both 2021 and 2078.
I was a little unsure how I felt about the size of the book given that it has 600+ pages and it was also the first in a trilogy, however, I flew through it and didn’t want to put it down. There are also pages of DM messages between Kid and Isabel to take into consideration too which take up quite a few pages.
This is a book that I can see making big waves in the Young Adult market. I can also imagine some big film company snapping this up for a movie or series as that is how it felt reading it, it was as if I was watching the action play out rather than reading it. It truly is a breathtaking book written by a debut novelist and I now can’t wait for book two. Bring it on!!
Eighteen-year-old Joshua ‘Kid’ Jones is living in the year 2078. The world having been destroyed by numerous pandemics, climate change, dirty bombs, and floods is polluted and you need special tablets to go outdoors to stop you inhaling the polluted air. He is also an Offliner living in Piccadilly Circus Tube station with his cell of other Offliners, including his best friends Pas and Eliza.
Most of the world now lives a virtual life in a place called Perspecta run by tech company Gnosys Inc so that they can have all the comfort and joy of living in a beautiful world but only virtually. The Offliner’s choose not to be ‘plugged in’ and live technology-free. They are hated by the tech company that wants to eliminate them all.
After a conversation with his Godmother about him changing the past, Kid goes searching for what she means and finds an old iPhone 11 that he had forgotten his father had given to him. It is with this phone and using Instagram that he first makes contact with Isabel Parry who is in 2021. After some persuasion and evidence, she believes that Kid is from the future.
If he is to change the world as it is now, Kid needs Isabel’s help in 2021, the year Gnosys Inc start trading to help him. But he also finds out some interesting and vital information about his father who disappeared when he was a child that may just help their plight too.
What can I say? Kid is such an astounding time traveling journey. It reminded me a little of The Matrix with people being plugged into a virtual world but with a far easier-to-understand plot!!
As well as being a fascinating, unique, and engaging adventure set in a world where Mother Nature has fought back after years of abuse, it is also a dystopian novel that opens your eyes to the destruction that we are causing now to the planet. It certainly makes you stop and think.
I love the sci-fi elements of the book which were not too scientific that they lost me. I also loved the way Sebastian has taken his readers on a complete journey, starting with the main character and then through short chapters introduced us to different elements of the story and the people before reaching the pinnacle moment of Kid and Isabel meeting and their stories in both 2021 and 2078.
I was a little unsure how I felt about the size of the book given that it has 600+ pages and it was also the first in a trilogy, however, I flew through it and didn’t want to put it down. There are also pages of DM messages between Kid and Isabel to take into consideration too which take up quite a few pages.
This is a book that I can see making big waves in the Young Adult market. I can also imagine some big film company snapping this up for a movie or series as that is how it felt reading it, it was as if I was watching the action play out rather than reading it. It truly is a breathtaking book written by a debut novelist and I now can’t wait for book two. Bring it on!!
June 18, 2021
*Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me a copy in exchange for review!*
If Goodreads did half stars this would be a 3.5 but they don't so :(.
This gave me Ready Player One vibes, but set in London and scarily hitting close to home. If you like YA dystopian (aka a bunch of kids fighting the powers that be), I'd say give this a go and see what you think. I had fun with it – the multimedia format, the multiple points of views, the time travelling – it felt like a bit of an adventure to be honest. All of the characters in the Scav Squad were so fun – I would’ve loved to have seen a bit more on-page interactions with the three of them though!
I really liked this take on a dystopian future that doesn’t even look that unrealistic. With the way the world is going at the moment – who knows what our future is going to look like? It was very eerie. Entering a whole new dystopian world can be daunting but this was easy to pick up. There’s a bunch of new vocabulary used in here but I understood it all fine (and if you don’t there’s a little guide at the back!)
The ending of this novel was so satisfying, when you finally realise what’s going on and it all comes full circle. Chefs kiss.
My main criticisms are that it was very long and a little bit haphazard. It’s 600+ pages and you can really feel it. I think at times I found it a bit tricky to follow and the science-y bits almost got lost on me. It felt like there was no real build up or sense of urgency in my opinion, the whole book was pretty steady in terms of not having much tension. There’s also a lot of telling and less showing – which some people don’t mind but it’s not my favourite.
For a debut novel this was pretty solid honestly. I enjoyed it, it’s beautiful on the outside, the writing was good, and the characters were loveable. Genuinely so excited to see what else Sebastian de Souza puts out in the future I love him.
If Goodreads did half stars this would be a 3.5 but they don't so :(.
This gave me Ready Player One vibes, but set in London and scarily hitting close to home. If you like YA dystopian (aka a bunch of kids fighting the powers that be), I'd say give this a go and see what you think. I had fun with it – the multimedia format, the multiple points of views, the time travelling – it felt like a bit of an adventure to be honest. All of the characters in the Scav Squad were so fun – I would’ve loved to have seen a bit more on-page interactions with the three of them though!
I really liked this take on a dystopian future that doesn’t even look that unrealistic. With the way the world is going at the moment – who knows what our future is going to look like? It was very eerie. Entering a whole new dystopian world can be daunting but this was easy to pick up. There’s a bunch of new vocabulary used in here but I understood it all fine (and if you don’t there’s a little guide at the back!)
The ending of this novel was so satisfying, when you finally realise what’s going on and it all comes full circle. Chefs kiss.
My main criticisms are that it was very long and a little bit haphazard. It’s 600+ pages and you can really feel it. I think at times I found it a bit tricky to follow and the science-y bits almost got lost on me. It felt like there was no real build up or sense of urgency in my opinion, the whole book was pretty steady in terms of not having much tension. There’s also a lot of telling and less showing – which some people don’t mind but it’s not my favourite.
For a debut novel this was pretty solid honestly. I enjoyed it, it’s beautiful on the outside, the writing was good, and the characters were loveable. Genuinely so excited to see what else Sebastian de Souza puts out in the future I love him.
March 24, 2021
Oh my goodness! I cannot believe how much I have loved this book, it’s become my faourite book of the year so far! Teenager Josh ‘Kid’ Jones lives in the future, in the year 2078, where most people now live, plugged into a virtual reality universe called Perspecta. But Kid, along with his two best friends, and a few others, lives in the real world, in what is now the heavily polluted and ruined city of London. Living among the Offliners, who themselves live underground, Kid and his friends have to struggle with the daily hazards of the world above. But when he discovers an old iPhone left to him by his father, he begins messaging with a girl called Izzy. Soon Kid discovers that Izzy doesn’t live in 2078, but in his past, in the year 2021. The link to the past gives Kid the hope that he can maybe change his world and change the future by getting Izzy to change the past.
This is such a brilliant and well thought out story with so many twists that I didn’t see coming! The story begins with a brief prologue before we meet Kid and his friends who are scavving (scavenging) above in the streets of London looking for anything useful or interesting. The world of London in the future is a bleak one, where the air in the streets is filled with toxic poisonous substances that make it nearly impossible to breathe above ground without suffering damage to the lungs. As a result anyone above ground has to take a special substance into their lungs before heading into the open air, and I found this aspect of the world where people have caused so much damage to the environment over the years, really interesting.
The story is told in the first person perspective with Kid narrating most of the chapters. Kid’s life as an Offliner living in the toxic abandoned and mostly derelict London is a tough one but filled with interesting characters including his godmother. It isn’t just hte environment that affects the offliners but their world without being plugged in to the virtual world. Being offline makes them second sclass citizens and I found this an especially interesting read as you can’t help but make the connection with our world of today! As the story progresses and Kid begins communicating with the past we’re introduced to Izzy, who’s living in 2021. I couldn’t help but feel that this part of the story was a bit eerie, as it features the recent pandemic (the one we’re currently living through) and apparently it’s the first of many! I enjoyed Izzy’s chapters which were narrated from her point of view as she wrote into her diary. Izzy’s life seems like a regular teen girl’s life, until she meets Kid, and I love what happened to her and how her story has a far deeper and more interesting arc than we first think.
The story goes back and fourth between Izzy and Kid’s chapters, and also another character briefly and a lot of things happen. Kid’s connection to the past is just one of many things that happens to him and I love how this story develops and how it kept me guessing throughout. I don’t want to give it away, but the divide between the Offliners and those logged in (online) in the Perspecta universe isn’t so straightforward as we first think, especially for Kid, and there are many things revealed which lead to more questions about the world and the future.
This story has so much happening that it’s so hard to explain how much I have enjoyed reading this without giving away spoilers! The story is so gripping and the ending is a really good one, both satisfying and yet also great as it opens up the way to a sequel which I really am looking forward to, and hope will come! The little extra twist in the epilogue was brilliant too, and although I had suspected something about it earlier on, I really hadn’t guessed it would quite go the way it did, in fact it pulled at my heartstrings and made me smile! The book has only a few uses of the s and f swear words, brief mentions of sex and a few descriptions of people getting hurt although nothing very gory or graphic.
I loved how this book played on my emotions. There were moments when I was just gripped by the action but also moments when I couldn’t help but smile or feel myself tense at what was happening. There’s something just so compelling about this book that I ended up reading it all in just over a day, yes even though it’s a book of over 600 pages I ended up reading it all in just over one day I was that engrossed, I just couldn’t tear myself away from the pages! The book has a couple of maps at the front as well as a wonderful glossary at the back. There are also some great pages at the start of the book mimicking a real library book and I love how even the messages were written in a way that reminds you of real instagram messages.
This book has been so amazing I have just loved it so much! I loved all the characters, they were all well thought out, I especialy loved the interesting characters of Leo and Jemma who I hope we’ll see more of in future books. I also loved how wonderfully detailed the world of London in the future is and how the Offliner’s lives in the long abandoned Picadilly Circus tube station is shown. Being someone who lives in London it was easy to visualise the place, both London and the tube station, and I can’t believe how well I was sucked into this world of the future!
I would recommend this book to everyone. It’s both a brilliant dystopian book with a sci-fi twist but it’s a good book that features issues like the environment, climate change and more importantly the dangers of being online/plugged in all the time! It’s a book that both adults and teens can enjoy and it’s one I know I’m going to be re-reading again and again. This is one of my favourite books I’ve ever read, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was turned into a movie it’s that good! And I can’t wait to see what will happen to Kid and the offliners next! :)
-Thanks to the publisher for a free copy for review.
This is such a brilliant and well thought out story with so many twists that I didn’t see coming! The story begins with a brief prologue before we meet Kid and his friends who are scavving (scavenging) above in the streets of London looking for anything useful or interesting. The world of London in the future is a bleak one, where the air in the streets is filled with toxic poisonous substances that make it nearly impossible to breathe above ground without suffering damage to the lungs. As a result anyone above ground has to take a special substance into their lungs before heading into the open air, and I found this aspect of the world where people have caused so much damage to the environment over the years, really interesting.
The story is told in the first person perspective with Kid narrating most of the chapters. Kid’s life as an Offliner living in the toxic abandoned and mostly derelict London is a tough one but filled with interesting characters including his godmother. It isn’t just hte environment that affects the offliners but their world without being plugged in to the virtual world. Being offline makes them second sclass citizens and I found this an especially interesting read as you can’t help but make the connection with our world of today! As the story progresses and Kid begins communicating with the past we’re introduced to Izzy, who’s living in 2021. I couldn’t help but feel that this part of the story was a bit eerie, as it features the recent pandemic (the one we’re currently living through) and apparently it’s the first of many! I enjoyed Izzy’s chapters which were narrated from her point of view as she wrote into her diary. Izzy’s life seems like a regular teen girl’s life, until she meets Kid, and I love what happened to her and how her story has a far deeper and more interesting arc than we first think.
The story goes back and fourth between Izzy and Kid’s chapters, and also another character briefly and a lot of things happen. Kid’s connection to the past is just one of many things that happens to him and I love how this story develops and how it kept me guessing throughout. I don’t want to give it away, but the divide between the Offliners and those logged in (online) in the Perspecta universe isn’t so straightforward as we first think, especially for Kid, and there are many things revealed which lead to more questions about the world and the future.
This story has so much happening that it’s so hard to explain how much I have enjoyed reading this without giving away spoilers! The story is so gripping and the ending is a really good one, both satisfying and yet also great as it opens up the way to a sequel which I really am looking forward to, and hope will come! The little extra twist in the epilogue was brilliant too, and although I had suspected something about it earlier on, I really hadn’t guessed it would quite go the way it did, in fact it pulled at my heartstrings and made me smile! The book has only a few uses of the s and f swear words, brief mentions of sex and a few descriptions of people getting hurt although nothing very gory or graphic.
I loved how this book played on my emotions. There were moments when I was just gripped by the action but also moments when I couldn’t help but smile or feel myself tense at what was happening. There’s something just so compelling about this book that I ended up reading it all in just over a day, yes even though it’s a book of over 600 pages I ended up reading it all in just over one day I was that engrossed, I just couldn’t tear myself away from the pages! The book has a couple of maps at the front as well as a wonderful glossary at the back. There are also some great pages at the start of the book mimicking a real library book and I love how even the messages were written in a way that reminds you of real instagram messages.
This book has been so amazing I have just loved it so much! I loved all the characters, they were all well thought out, I especialy loved the interesting characters of Leo and Jemma who I hope we’ll see more of in future books. I also loved how wonderfully detailed the world of London in the future is and how the Offliner’s lives in the long abandoned Picadilly Circus tube station is shown. Being someone who lives in London it was easy to visualise the place, both London and the tube station, and I can’t believe how well I was sucked into this world of the future!
I would recommend this book to everyone. It’s both a brilliant dystopian book with a sci-fi twist but it’s a good book that features issues like the environment, climate change and more importantly the dangers of being online/plugged in all the time! It’s a book that both adults and teens can enjoy and it’s one I know I’m going to be re-reading again and again. This is one of my favourite books I’ve ever read, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was turned into a movie it’s that good! And I can’t wait to see what will happen to Kid and the offliners next! :)
-Thanks to the publisher for a free copy for review.
December 11, 2021
As I began reading KID, I wondered what it is that draws readers to dystopian fiction. I used to believe it may be because there was something rather comforting in reading about an imagined worst-case scenario but events in the last few years have made dystopian books feel uncomfortably prescient. KID is set later this century but although advances in technology mean most people now live virtual lives, it all seems only too plausible.
The KID of the title is Josh 'Kid' Jones who, having spent the bulk of his childhood as an Offliner is now becoming an adult, at a time when the lives of these dissident groups are becoming more precarious than ever. Kid's father disappeared when he was very young and his mother died when he was just eight years old so his family are the other members of the Offliner community he lives with in the subterranean Cell, built in what used to be the Piccadilly Circus tube station. One of the things I most loved about KID is while it is set in a future where the majority of the population live in Hab-Belts - vast purpose-built buildings which allow them to plug into the Perspecta Universe and exist almost solely in a virtual reality - the London of the Offliners still feels vividly recognisable. This melding of past and present (or present and future) even extends to the music Kid and his friends, twins Eliza and Pascal listen to on their Walkman CD players. In order to breathe in the toxic environment, they must inhale Roxi pellets which allow them to scavenge for supplies in the ghetto of what was Soho. Here, they pick up CDs from the former Foyles bookshop on Charing Cross Road and listen to the likes of The Beatles, Oasis and Stormzy, and bicker about whether Coldplay or the Red Hot Chilli Peppers were more musically significant. They describe the period we currently live in as the Golden Dusk which is almost unbearably poignant given what the future holds for the human race.
When Kid charges an old iPhone which once belonged to his father, he discovers he is able to communicate with Isabel Parry, a sixteen-year-old girl living in 2021 and in doing so we learn that this current pandemic is just the first in a series of deadly viruses which progressively worsen as the air becomes increasingly polluted. It's a depressing scenario but although KID is a chilling warning of what could happen, there is still some humour to be found here, particularly in the exchanges between Kid and Izzy, who at first can't believe she is communicating with somebody living in 2078, resulting in a frustrated Kid desperately trying to convince her that he isn't making the whole thing up. While most of the book is about him, there are some sections featuring their Instagram conversations, and chapters set in 2021 which allow us to know more about Izzy, who really doesn't realise how brilliant and significant she is. She lays out her thoughts in a diary, which she acknowledges is old-fashioned but as she explains, she is tired of just being a Body and wants to be a Somebody who writes a story her future self can devour on the train. She is refreshingly normal; she loves celebrity gossip and writes about her evenings sharing Deliveroo takeaways she shares with her boyfriend, Stephen and yet she is also a fiercely intelligent science nerd who is able to put forward some theories how this incredible time-travelling exchange of messages might be possible.
Sebastian de Souza's debut is richly imagined world-building at its most immersive; I loved the juxtaposition of futuristic technologies - from the flying Podd vehicles to the holo-pop advertising holograms - and the Heath Robinson style contraptions used by the inventive Offliners. As the novel progresses, Kid makes discoveries which change everything he knows and the authorities, led by the sinister Hamilton Rogers, become more powerful and dangerous than ever. The virtual and real words become increasingly blurred but despite being a complex story, it is thoroughly engaging from start to finish.
The combination of events which led to the world's population willingly succumbing to having their daily existence controlled by Gnosys, the planet's most powerful company feels like a warning to us all. Climate change, cyber-terrorism and worldwide pandemics allow Governments to shape communities at their will, driving people into the sterile environment of the Hap-Belts while leaving the dregs of society to eke out a meagre, perilous existence below ground or in the disused buildings of a once vibrant city. It's a sombre premise but the resourcefulness and courageousness of Kid, Eliza, Pas and the other Offliners gives cause to hope too. Going back to the beginning of this review, I think this is what makes dystopian fiction so irresistible. By celebrating the enduring resilience and morality of those who are worse treated by an authoritarian regime, it allows us to believe that perhaps humankind will eventually prevail.
A happy ending isn't yet in sight for Kid but this exciting, beautifully constructed introduction to the trilogy is a superb opener. Packed with twists and turns, dramatic revelations and some deeply emotional scenes, KID - A History of the Future is an outstanding, intricately plotted debut which would translate perfectly to the big or small screen. I highly recommend it.
The KID of the title is Josh 'Kid' Jones who, having spent the bulk of his childhood as an Offliner is now becoming an adult, at a time when the lives of these dissident groups are becoming more precarious than ever. Kid's father disappeared when he was very young and his mother died when he was just eight years old so his family are the other members of the Offliner community he lives with in the subterranean Cell, built in what used to be the Piccadilly Circus tube station. One of the things I most loved about KID is while it is set in a future where the majority of the population live in Hab-Belts - vast purpose-built buildings which allow them to plug into the Perspecta Universe and exist almost solely in a virtual reality - the London of the Offliners still feels vividly recognisable. This melding of past and present (or present and future) even extends to the music Kid and his friends, twins Eliza and Pascal listen to on their Walkman CD players. In order to breathe in the toxic environment, they must inhale Roxi pellets which allow them to scavenge for supplies in the ghetto of what was Soho. Here, they pick up CDs from the former Foyles bookshop on Charing Cross Road and listen to the likes of The Beatles, Oasis and Stormzy, and bicker about whether Coldplay or the Red Hot Chilli Peppers were more musically significant. They describe the period we currently live in as the Golden Dusk which is almost unbearably poignant given what the future holds for the human race.
When Kid charges an old iPhone which once belonged to his father, he discovers he is able to communicate with Isabel Parry, a sixteen-year-old girl living in 2021 and in doing so we learn that this current pandemic is just the first in a series of deadly viruses which progressively worsen as the air becomes increasingly polluted. It's a depressing scenario but although KID is a chilling warning of what could happen, there is still some humour to be found here, particularly in the exchanges between Kid and Izzy, who at first can't believe she is communicating with somebody living in 2078, resulting in a frustrated Kid desperately trying to convince her that he isn't making the whole thing up. While most of the book is about him, there are some sections featuring their Instagram conversations, and chapters set in 2021 which allow us to know more about Izzy, who really doesn't realise how brilliant and significant she is. She lays out her thoughts in a diary, which she acknowledges is old-fashioned but as she explains, she is tired of just being a Body and wants to be a Somebody who writes a story her future self can devour on the train. She is refreshingly normal; she loves celebrity gossip and writes about her evenings sharing Deliveroo takeaways she shares with her boyfriend, Stephen and yet she is also a fiercely intelligent science nerd who is able to put forward some theories how this incredible time-travelling exchange of messages might be possible.
Sebastian de Souza's debut is richly imagined world-building at its most immersive; I loved the juxtaposition of futuristic technologies - from the flying Podd vehicles to the holo-pop advertising holograms - and the Heath Robinson style contraptions used by the inventive Offliners. As the novel progresses, Kid makes discoveries which change everything he knows and the authorities, led by the sinister Hamilton Rogers, become more powerful and dangerous than ever. The virtual and real words become increasingly blurred but despite being a complex story, it is thoroughly engaging from start to finish.
The combination of events which led to the world's population willingly succumbing to having their daily existence controlled by Gnosys, the planet's most powerful company feels like a warning to us all. Climate change, cyber-terrorism and worldwide pandemics allow Governments to shape communities at their will, driving people into the sterile environment of the Hap-Belts while leaving the dregs of society to eke out a meagre, perilous existence below ground or in the disused buildings of a once vibrant city. It's a sombre premise but the resourcefulness and courageousness of Kid, Eliza, Pas and the other Offliners gives cause to hope too. Going back to the beginning of this review, I think this is what makes dystopian fiction so irresistible. By celebrating the enduring resilience and morality of those who are worse treated by an authoritarian regime, it allows us to believe that perhaps humankind will eventually prevail.
A happy ending isn't yet in sight for Kid but this exciting, beautifully constructed introduction to the trilogy is a superb opener. Packed with twists and turns, dramatic revelations and some deeply emotional scenes, KID - A History of the Future is an outstanding, intricately plotted debut which would translate perfectly to the big or small screen. I highly recommend it.
March 18, 2021
This is a massive novel, 600 plus pages and is necessarily large as the entire landscape of London is re-imagined as a dystopian nightmare, dividing the population into the Offliners and other counter culture groups who rejected the 2060 Upload movement. All those who accepted the Upload, turned themselves over to an authority who knows what you think, listen to, believe and track your every moment.
Those who don't,live a fugitive life such as Kid, a scavenger who goes into the wild abandoned city to reclaim items of past times, such as CDs and musical instruments and so on, only enabled to breathe the toxic air by use of pellets which are strictly rationed by the UN. Even at this point in history, the choice of autonomy has been taken away from the individual-dwell under ground and be safe or explore for a maximum of 2 hours in unsafe air.
Kid is one of a group of orphans, free wheeling spirits who listen to the sounds of Brit pop in a way that recalls past times when things were freer, more simple and straight forward. They are like a future version of Peter Pan's Lost Boys, both outside mainstream society with little in the way of guidance,they take the brief sliver of freedom afforded to them of opting out rather than become part of the overarching, personality stealing culture.
The linking device between then and now is an iPhone(as an unashamed anti-Apple user I would question whether the use of this is symbolic of not really being able to avoid cultural references, maybe it is used to pinpoint the unavoidable nature of consumerism?)
Without spoiling the story, Kid can talk with a girl from back in our time, Izzy, whose diary intertwines with Kid's narrative and by using her phone, she can try to warn Kid about the mistakes made in 2021 which set up the reality that he lives in in 2078. But what risks is she taking telling him about the future?As we all know, messing with one tiny thing can cause a rippling butterfly effect of consequences....
Kid is an astonishing feat, mixing now and potential future tech which is not too far evolved from what we currently use, to highlight the dangers of mindless consumption, mass consumerism and the rise of mega corps. Opting in and opting out of the mainstream is so very difficult, many aspects of modern life, even writing this blog post, is aligned to social media accounts. We invite spies into our homes via phones which are more closer in nature to mini computers who track your every move. Anonymity is now not possible, and by referring to 'Kid', he becomes emblematic of a movement designed to make a better future for everyone, a neat twist on the way that millennials are blamed for the apparent 'wokeness' of modern society yet they are the ones, in this novel, with the potential to remake the future.
I absolutely loved it, it's a book with remarkable maturity for a debut, it has immense world building yet makes itself accessible and, more importantly, relatable to any age reader. It's challenging read due to the dystopian subject, and I am aware lots of us are struggling to read end of the world scenarios when it feels like we are existing in a end of the world type of world, but I honestly highly recommend trying 'Kid', you may be pleasantly surprised!
Those who don't,live a fugitive life such as Kid, a scavenger who goes into the wild abandoned city to reclaim items of past times, such as CDs and musical instruments and so on, only enabled to breathe the toxic air by use of pellets which are strictly rationed by the UN. Even at this point in history, the choice of autonomy has been taken away from the individual-dwell under ground and be safe or explore for a maximum of 2 hours in unsafe air.
Kid is one of a group of orphans, free wheeling spirits who listen to the sounds of Brit pop in a way that recalls past times when things were freer, more simple and straight forward. They are like a future version of Peter Pan's Lost Boys, both outside mainstream society with little in the way of guidance,they take the brief sliver of freedom afforded to them of opting out rather than become part of the overarching, personality stealing culture.
The linking device between then and now is an iPhone(as an unashamed anti-Apple user I would question whether the use of this is symbolic of not really being able to avoid cultural references, maybe it is used to pinpoint the unavoidable nature of consumerism?)
Without spoiling the story, Kid can talk with a girl from back in our time, Izzy, whose diary intertwines with Kid's narrative and by using her phone, she can try to warn Kid about the mistakes made in 2021 which set up the reality that he lives in in 2078. But what risks is she taking telling him about the future?As we all know, messing with one tiny thing can cause a rippling butterfly effect of consequences....
Kid is an astonishing feat, mixing now and potential future tech which is not too far evolved from what we currently use, to highlight the dangers of mindless consumption, mass consumerism and the rise of mega corps. Opting in and opting out of the mainstream is so very difficult, many aspects of modern life, even writing this blog post, is aligned to social media accounts. We invite spies into our homes via phones which are more closer in nature to mini computers who track your every move. Anonymity is now not possible, and by referring to 'Kid', he becomes emblematic of a movement designed to make a better future for everyone, a neat twist on the way that millennials are blamed for the apparent 'wokeness' of modern society yet they are the ones, in this novel, with the potential to remake the future.
I absolutely loved it, it's a book with remarkable maturity for a debut, it has immense world building yet makes itself accessible and, more importantly, relatable to any age reader. It's challenging read due to the dystopian subject, and I am aware lots of us are struggling to read end of the world scenarios when it feels like we are existing in a end of the world type of world, but I honestly highly recommend trying 'Kid', you may be pleasantly surprised!
March 18, 2021
*I voluntarily reviewed this book from the tour organiser.
WOW. Simply wow! Engaging characters, a compelling and addictive plotline, and a story that will make you stop and think about so many elements of life long after you turn the page, this is KID: A HISTORY OF THE FUTURE by Sebastian de Souza.
In 2078, our world is not the one we know now. After multiple pandemics and climate disasters have destroyed the air, most people have stepped out of the real world and plugged into a virtual world called Perspecta, run by tech company Gnosys. But not everyone wants to abandon real life. Josh Jones, also known as Kid, is an Offliner, living in one of the Cells that exists in the London Underground, where his friends have become his family. Whenever they need to scavenge above ground, they take Roxi, which gives them a limited amount of time up top, but this is something else that is controlled by the tech company that wants to wipe the Offliners from the face of the planet. After all, if you aren't plugged in, you are less than human in their eyes. As the Cells are targeted, Josh is desperate to find a way to stop Gnosys and Hamilton Rogers, the man in charge of it all, but how can they take down the most powerful company in the world? When Josh finds an old iPhone, he stumbles into a conversation with Izzy and they become friends. But Izzy is special - not only is she intelligent and savvy, but she is also living and breathing in 2021. And maybe, just maybe, she can find a way to put a stop to Perspecta before it can begin ...
KID: A HISTORY FOR THE FUTURE deals with every issue that is forefront in our minds these days and deals with them in such a relatable way that I genuinely think it will make me people stop and evaluate some of their choices, and come together to make a change. From our obsession with social media and being a 'somebody', to climate change and its devastating effects, to powerful and corrupt governments putting money before people, this story weaves it all elegantly throughout each chapter but it never feels forced or too heavy. The music references, descriptions of London, and the relationships that bloom in this book make this story all the richer. The characters are witty, likeable, and sharp, and while you may think this is a large book to sit down with, you will find yourself engrossed immediately and unwilling to put this book down. I have read dystopian fiction before but never like this - the future, our present, all come alive and I cannot wait to read more from Sebastian de Souza.
KID: A HISTORY OF THE FUTURE by Sebastian de Souza is an excellent book for young adults and adults alike, and one that is sure to spark many interesting family conversations.
WOW. Simply wow! Engaging characters, a compelling and addictive plotline, and a story that will make you stop and think about so many elements of life long after you turn the page, this is KID: A HISTORY OF THE FUTURE by Sebastian de Souza.
In 2078, our world is not the one we know now. After multiple pandemics and climate disasters have destroyed the air, most people have stepped out of the real world and plugged into a virtual world called Perspecta, run by tech company Gnosys. But not everyone wants to abandon real life. Josh Jones, also known as Kid, is an Offliner, living in one of the Cells that exists in the London Underground, where his friends have become his family. Whenever they need to scavenge above ground, they take Roxi, which gives them a limited amount of time up top, but this is something else that is controlled by the tech company that wants to wipe the Offliners from the face of the planet. After all, if you aren't plugged in, you are less than human in their eyes. As the Cells are targeted, Josh is desperate to find a way to stop Gnosys and Hamilton Rogers, the man in charge of it all, but how can they take down the most powerful company in the world? When Josh finds an old iPhone, he stumbles into a conversation with Izzy and they become friends. But Izzy is special - not only is she intelligent and savvy, but she is also living and breathing in 2021. And maybe, just maybe, she can find a way to put a stop to Perspecta before it can begin ...
KID: A HISTORY FOR THE FUTURE deals with every issue that is forefront in our minds these days and deals with them in such a relatable way that I genuinely think it will make me people stop and evaluate some of their choices, and come together to make a change. From our obsession with social media and being a 'somebody', to climate change and its devastating effects, to powerful and corrupt governments putting money before people, this story weaves it all elegantly throughout each chapter but it never feels forced or too heavy. The music references, descriptions of London, and the relationships that bloom in this book make this story all the richer. The characters are witty, likeable, and sharp, and while you may think this is a large book to sit down with, you will find yourself engrossed immediately and unwilling to put this book down. I have read dystopian fiction before but never like this - the future, our present, all come alive and I cannot wait to read more from Sebastian de Souza.
KID: A HISTORY OF THE FUTURE by Sebastian de Souza is an excellent book for young adults and adults alike, and one that is sure to spark many interesting family conversations.
March 22, 2021
Josh “Kid” Jones, our Main Character, lives in 2078, swiftly introducing us to a world that’s far off our own. Years before the story takes place, in 2060, tons of pandemics, disasters and other environmental catastrophes happen. It’s because of these events that the UN made it mandatory for all citizens in the nations to login to something called the Perspecta Universe. It’s a type of virtual reality by a tech company, that begins the start of The Upload, a time in history that remains cemented as game-changing and life-altering. What began as something that was an alternative reality is now the only one. Billions of people all exist there in a type of unconsciousness, living and working inside the Perspecta Universe.
But Kid, in 2078, is not like them. He’s an “Offliner”, a type of group that rebuffed The Upload all those years ago. He exists in London, which is a shell of the type of place it used to be, a sort of badlands of a city, crawling with Seekers and Offliners, rebels that live off the grid in makeshift homes and communities that they’ve built as a type of shelter. So when he discovers that his father has left him something from years ago, an iPhone, he’s intrigued by the technology, even further startled when he realises that it lets him communicate with someone from the past via social media. Enter Izzy, a sixteen year old living in 2021. They begin a friendship through the space in their times, not realising the implications of their newfound discovery. They’re not only changing their own destiny, but the rest of the world’s future, too.
Overall, KID came into my life as an underdog type of read, quickly turning into something trailblazing and innovative, not to mention page-turning. I was absorbed in Josh and Izzy’s timelines, words and story, becoming utterly fascinated by the story landscape that Sebastian created. It honestly felt as if I was reading something that made a movie inside my mind; colours and descriptors coming to life as I turned chapters. I can see this becoming a much-loved, fan-favourite for YA fans of dystopian action/adventures, just as much as it’s become one of mine. Huge five-stars for this stunning read, sure to be destined for the big screen.
But Kid, in 2078, is not like them. He’s an “Offliner”, a type of group that rebuffed The Upload all those years ago. He exists in London, which is a shell of the type of place it used to be, a sort of badlands of a city, crawling with Seekers and Offliners, rebels that live off the grid in makeshift homes and communities that they’ve built as a type of shelter. So when he discovers that his father has left him something from years ago, an iPhone, he’s intrigued by the technology, even further startled when he realises that it lets him communicate with someone from the past via social media. Enter Izzy, a sixteen year old living in 2021. They begin a friendship through the space in their times, not realising the implications of their newfound discovery. They’re not only changing their own destiny, but the rest of the world’s future, too.
Overall, KID came into my life as an underdog type of read, quickly turning into something trailblazing and innovative, not to mention page-turning. I was absorbed in Josh and Izzy’s timelines, words and story, becoming utterly fascinated by the story landscape that Sebastian created. It honestly felt as if I was reading something that made a movie inside my mind; colours and descriptors coming to life as I turned chapters. I can see this becoming a much-loved, fan-favourite for YA fans of dystopian action/adventures, just as much as it’s become one of mine. Huge five-stars for this stunning read, sure to be destined for the big screen.
April 4, 2021
Pleasantly surprised
As someone who isn't particularly a fan of dystopian or sci-fi novels I wasn't expecting to enjoy it (I bought it because I'm a fan of the actor's work and wanted to support him), however, there was never a moment where I was dreading reading it or not wanting to continue it.
Joshua 'Kid' Jones was an excellent protagonist whose moral 'rightness' didn't feel pushed or unnatural but instead, I got the sense that I really was reading a book about a teenage boy who's being pressured to help save the world. There were moments where I physically couldn't put the book down and the moral messages that I got from the book felt important and not like they were being shoved down my throat which is always nice.
At first, I was dreading reading it when I saw that it was 614 pages but the pacing of the book was excellently done and I was impressed by the quality of the writing and the accurate behaviour of the teens as more often than not I find YA novels too forceful on teen culture and usually completely inaccurate. I'm also pleased to say there was never a moment where I was confused by all the new terminology or I couldn't keep up with the dystopian world - and if I had forgotten a word or two there's a handy glossary at the back.
I would definitely recommend it to everyone regardless of gender or interests but I will say it is definitely geared towards younger teenage age groups but I believe anyone could enjoy it and if he ever decided to write another book I would definitely read it.
As someone who isn't particularly a fan of dystopian or sci-fi novels I wasn't expecting to enjoy it (I bought it because I'm a fan of the actor's work and wanted to support him), however, there was never a moment where I was dreading reading it or not wanting to continue it.
Joshua 'Kid' Jones was an excellent protagonist whose moral 'rightness' didn't feel pushed or unnatural but instead, I got the sense that I really was reading a book about a teenage boy who's being pressured to help save the world. There were moments where I physically couldn't put the book down and the moral messages that I got from the book felt important and not like they were being shoved down my throat which is always nice.
At first, I was dreading reading it when I saw that it was 614 pages but the pacing of the book was excellently done and I was impressed by the quality of the writing and the accurate behaviour of the teens as more often than not I find YA novels too forceful on teen culture and usually completely inaccurate. I'm also pleased to say there was never a moment where I was confused by all the new terminology or I couldn't keep up with the dystopian world - and if I had forgotten a word or two there's a handy glossary at the back.
I would definitely recommend it to everyone regardless of gender or interests but I will say it is definitely geared towards younger teenage age groups but I believe anyone could enjoy it and if he ever decided to write another book I would definitely read it.
February 23, 2022
Firstly I absolutely adored the world building in this. The images of London are incredibly evocative. The characters were interesting with independent personalities and I loved the way the plot showed them make mistakes and grow.
I really hope this story is continued.
I really hope this story is continued.
October 6, 2025
After reading about half this book I realized I didn’t want it to end, so I only allowed myself to read one chapter a day until I inevitably reached the last page. You won’t find anything else quite like this story, it has twists and inventions that take you for a serious ride.
March 31, 2021
Actually lost sleep to this one. Bloody brilliant.
November 26, 2021
AMAZING
i thought i predicted the end but i was w r o ng
i thought i predicted the end but i was w r o ng
July 14, 2023
Amazing read!
August 18, 2021
2.5 stars.
I vlogged my time reading this book so check out the video for all my thoughts!
https://youtu.be/jDPt-FTGb9w
I vlogged my time reading this book so check out the video for all my thoughts!
https://youtu.be/jDPt-FTGb9w
May 6, 2021
I really loved this book! So many twist and turns plus a wake up call to what our world could look like if we don’t take care of it. Joshua “Kid” Jones lives in a future world that has been deviated by environmental disasters. Kid and his fellow Offliner’s scavenge what they can find in London year 2078. Offliner’s are called that because they chose to live in the real world and don’t log in like the majority who are logged into a virtual world called Perspecta. Kid makes an incredible connection to the past to a girl named Izzy who lives in 2021 through an old iPhone left to him by his father. Sebastian De Souza first book is an awesome read and I hope he writes more because I can’t wait to find out what happens next to Kid and the rest of the Offliner’s.
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