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Title: Uglies (Uglies, #1)
Author: Scott Westerfield
Published By: Simon Pulse (2005)
Synopsis:
Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait. In just a few weeks she’ll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunning pretty. And as a pretty, she’ll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun. But Tally’s new friend Shay isn’t sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world– and it isn’t very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally’s choice will change her world forever…(Taken from Goodreads)
Review:
While there were elements I loved about this book, there was a lot of things I either did not understand, or disliked. While there were a lot of positive themes and a pageturner plot, I doubt I’ll read it again and I wouldn’t consider it a “favorite.”
Tally as a character was easy to connect to from a reader’s perspective: while others could complain of her not being brave enough, being flat, boring, etc, I found her written very realistically. She could have been an extremely bold character, taking risks at every move, but that just isn’t realistic. Instead, she acts like the average teenager, with the same hesitancy, same fears, etc.
This book was a long book; while most of it was contributing to the storyline, there was yet a lot that I felt was pointless, just written, it felt, to make the book longer. The end was simply WAY too drawn-out and I skimmed most of those pages, just trying to find the outcome already. The book did start out very well paced—however, by Part Three, it was very dragged out, like I’ve said, and I was wondering when the chapters would stop appearing. And, of course, it ended with an abrupt cliffhanger. Sometimes this can be good, but this time, to me, it just seemed a cheesy and easy way to get people to read the sequel. Not that it’s a bad thing…I just didn’t particularly enjoy it.
There was no real suspense; the one thing that was truly intriguing for me was Shay and Tally’s friendship, and the task Tally is assigned. What I really liked about this book was that it focused on friendship rather than desperate, lovestruck characters; ultimately, it was the interaction between Tally and Shay that was the storyline, rather than a romantic interest (though of course a bit of romance snuck in, as it always does with YA novels).
Negative Content/Notes:
No negative content I can recall.
Overall:
So, to sum up:
—Good characters
—Good storyline
—So-so writing
—Not-that-good ending.
Rating: 4.0