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The Uglies Trilogy (Uglies #1-3)

4.07 of 5 stars 4.07 · rating details · 9,341 ratings · 629 reviews

This arc of Scott Westerfeld's UGLIES trilogy follows the high-tech adventures of Tally Youngblood. As an ugly, then a pretty, and finally a special, Tally works to take down a society created to function with perfect-looking people who never have a chance to think for themselves.

Boxed Set, 1216 pages

Published October 23rd 2007 by Simon Pulse

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Oct 06, 2008 Cynthia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow, these books are amazing. I guess I'm on a government conspiracy kick lately. But really. Read these books.

Uglies: The world has been perfected. No one is jealous, no one has an eating disorder. No one goes to unreasonable lengths to be beautiful. When you turn 16 you have an operation, and magically you're beautiful, as well as stronger and disease resistant. Tally just wants to grow up, have her operation and be a bubble-headed pretty like all the rest. But, how good of a book would this b...more

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Mar 22, 2008 Jessica T rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved this series. Some of the coolest books i have come across. What with the entire mindset and all. Every one is apparently born ugly. They are taught to hate themselves. Then when they come of age everyone is given a large amount of plastic surgery, to make them "Pretty". I loved the plot of the entire series, from where tally starts out just like all the other uglies, to having to make a choice about whether to turn in her friend or not get the surgery, and then being forced to turn, and...more

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Jul 25, 2011 Juju (Tales of Whimsy.com) rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Uglies trilogy kidnapped me. From the moment I stepped inside Westerfield's futuristic world, I was held captive. Like a dark wild roller coaster, I held on, kept my eyes open, and didn't let go. For three days I could do nothing but read or think of reading.

But what I loved the most was the messages. On the surface one might think the messages are clear. Our people (referred to as the Rusties) died out for being brutal, wasteful, and selfish. This new generation of humans is more energy eff...more

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Mar 23, 2009 Michelle R. rated it 4 of 5 stars

We've now crossed over to YA territory. The series is about Tally Youngblood who lives in a society that makes everybody pretty on their 16th birthdays. Before that, teens are called uglies, and children littlies. Tally meets a girl named Shayla who tells her that there is a secret society of people who opted not to be made pretty, and that there might be some sinister stuff happening underneath all the symmetrical features and glittering parties on the Pretty side of the river.

There is a lot of...more

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Mar 12, 2013 Brandonf added it

Everybody gets to be gorgeous , ‘’what could be wrong with that ? . Even though the people in Ugly Vill are not really ugly, they are considered that way because they have not had the transformation surgery that everyone else in Pretty town has. Ugly Vill is a place where kids that are 15 or younger . Tally really couldn't wait to be 16 , not to get her license but to be pretty and party like everyone else in Pretty town . She sneaked to Pretty Town to see her best friend Paris . When she went t...more Everybody gets to be gorgeous , ‘’what could be wrong with that ? . Even though the people in Ugly Vill are not really ugly, they are considered that way because they have not had the transformation surgery that everyone else in Pretty town has. Ugly Vill is a place where kids that are 15 or younger . Tally really couldn't wait to be 16 , not to get her license but to be pretty and party like everyone else in Pretty town . She sneaked to Pretty Town to see her best friend Paris . When she went to see Paris , he told her don't ever come back until shes pretty, and on her way back its when she bumped into Shay , they started hoverboarding and having fun . . Shay tells Tally that she doesn’t like idea of the transformation and she tells Tally about the smoke , and wanted to show her a whole different way of life besides pretty town .

This book wasn’t horrible. It wasn’t that great, either Shay runs away to the smoke to be ugly for the rest of her life with a friend of hers named david who she really liked , but never said anything to him about it . Tally was not about to lose her chance to become Pretty so she didn't tag along.Tally follows Shay to the Smoke because Dr. Cable threatens to not give Tally the operation. Shay becomes a pretty, and Tally follows, and once again when she becomes a Cutter for Dr. Cable. Shay also becomes cured of her specialness near the end of the third book and remains in Diego. Shay and Tally are often in disagreement about David and Zane. Even though Shay can sometimes seem deeply flawed, she is one of Tally's true friends.

In the conclusion to the Uglies trilogy, Specials, Tally has become a Special Circumstances agent against her will. But, now that she sees the clarity and awareness that comes with being a Special she is beginning to enjoy herself. Tally, Shay, Tachs, Fausto, Ho and several other specials are known as "Cutters." The Cutters were created by Dr. Cable and are referred to as her "special specials." Many cutters were crims back when they were pretties. At the beginning of the story a few Cutters are sent to an Ugly party where a Smokie is thought to be distributing the cure. The Cutters end up following the Smokie to the nearby woods, where they are ambushed by five Smokies.

Tally is distraught and decides to go back to her city to confess to Dr. Cable, hoping that this will end the war. When Tally reaches the Rusty Ruins she meets David, who gives her a syringe containing the cure. Once Tally reaches special circumstances she manages to cure Dr. Cable. Tally is locked up, where she learns that all specials have been cured and Dr. Cable has lost power. When Tally is about to be despecialized Dr. Cable comes to her rescue and tells Tally that she wants her last Special to survive. Tally escapes and finds David. At the end of the book Tally sends a ping to Shay, Peris, and Maddy regarding her future with David.
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Oct 08, 2012 Lu (Sugar & Snark) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Series review:

This is a series I have wanted to read for awhile and finally got the chance to when a group member on goodreads nominated it for a challenge. Well only the first book, but I couldn’t stop there, I devoured the series in a about 4 days!

Tally Youngblood’s world was absolutely fascinating! The way society view beauty and what is beautiful felt very real and very scary.

Characters:

Tally – Although she often irritated me with her decisions she came into her own and I must say the Tally...more

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Jul 19, 2012 Doreen Fritz rated it 4 of 5 stars

Tally Youngblood is almost 16, the age at which teens in The City have the surgery to make them Pretty. In this world, young kids are known as littlies, and pre-16-year-old teens are called Uglies. Their noses are too big, their skin might be flawed, they may be under- or over-weight, their eyes too squinty -- or some other imperfection may mar their "perfect" appearance. All of that is corrected in the surgery. Pretties live in Prettytown having nothing but fun -- drinking, partying, having sex...more Tally Youngblood is almost 16, the age at which teens in The City have the surgery to make them Pretty. In this world, young kids are known as littlies, and pre-16-year-old teens are called Uglies. Their noses are too big, their skin might be flawed, they may be under- or over-weight, their eyes too squinty -- or some other imperfection may mar their "perfect" appearance. All of that is corrected in the surgery. Pretties live in Prettytown having nothing but fun -- drinking, partying, having sex, and doing outlandish stunts. During the summer before her 16th birthday, after hef best friend Peris has left for Prettytown, Tally meets a new friend, Shay, who introduces her to the idea that she needn't have the operation - she could remain Ugly but free. She tells her about the Smoke, a group of people living in the wild. Shay runs away to live with the Smoke, but Tally really wants to be Pretty. Just as she is in the hospital awaiting the surgery, she is taken instead to the headquarters of Special Circumstances, the police force for The City. They are convinced that she knows where Shay has gone, and force her to follow Shay into the wild in order to betray the Smoke. Thus begins the big conflict for Uglies, which is followed by at least two sequels (Pretties and Specials) as the free-thinking Smokies continue to recruit new rebels from the City, and Special Circumstances continue to try to trap and capture all the rebels and control their minds and bodies through the surgeries they can order to be done. And somehow, through all these books, Tally Youngblood is in the middle of the action.
I just read these books over Spring Break, and couldn't put them down. The way that so many of the characters idolized good looks and popularity was way too similar to our society. I loved the inventions that the characters use -- like when they dash through the forests on their hoverboards (mostly solar-powered!), leap off tall buildings wearing bungee jackets, choose their clothes from a revolving closet that brings them whatever they ask for, and stuff like that. There was romance, suspense, intrigue, and friendships. The series has spun off into websites, online forums, and the first movie in the trilogy will be released in 2011. How would you like to be cast as one of the Uglies?!
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Jun 21, 2012 Katie rated it 3 of 5 stars

The concept as a whole is interesting on the surface of it, but it just isn't substantive enough and in the end all of the messages that Scott Westerfeld seems to be trying to touch upon or get across simply fall short. This book certainly has an agenda other than simply to entertain; however, instead of making a single sophisticated and nuanced argument, Westerfeld attempts to address far too many issues of the day (environmentalism, self-image, freedom and determinism, overpopulation, etc...)...more

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Jan 03, 2012 Liz Bollinger added it

Tally Youngblood, a fifteen year old girl who recently lost her bestfriend Peris. She didn't lose him to death however, he turned pretty. On everyone's sixteenth birthday they get a special operation, to where they turn pretty and live on a whole different side of town. The "uglies" which include Tally, her new friend Shay and anyone under the age of sixteen, have to stay out of sight from the pretties. Tally doesn't exactly follow the rules, and in the mist of all this, she meets a girl named S...more

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Dec 20, 2011 Tzippy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: dystopia, post-apocalyptic, unlikeable-main-character, young-adult, series, reviewed, the-future

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. http://tzipwich.blogspot.com/2011/12/...

I can't really fault Tally for wanting to be pretty and go to parties. However, I'm not a fan of the choices she makes throughout the book. The fact that she goes looking for the Smoke on Special Circumstances's orders is forgivable, because she doesn't know any better. But once she gets there and changes her mind? Stupid stupid stupid! There are so many things she could have done differently. I mean, she could have at least said, "Hey guys, I have a track...more http://tzipwich.blogspot.com/2011/12/...

I can't really fault Tally for wanting to be pretty and go to parties. However, I'm not a fan of the choices she makes throughout the book. The fact that she goes looking for the Smoke on Special Circumstances's orders is forgivable, because she doesn't know any better. But once she gets there and changes her mind? Stupid stupid stupid! There are so many things she could have done differently. I mean, she could have at least said, "Hey guys, I have a tracker on me, don't worry I was only lying to them so they would let me go, what do you think I should do with this?"

I'm also not a fan of the Tally/David pairing. I liked Tally and Zane in Pretties because they were on common footing--both of them pretties who rebelled against the status quo and woke themselves up. But Tally and David can't fully relate to each other. David can never understand why Tally made the choices she did (and like I said, I wasn't impressed either) because he's never lived that life. He's always been free and has no frame of reference from which to understand her. It will never not be true that Tally's thoughtlessness caused David's father's death, and it will never not be true that David doesn't know what it's like to grow up in the city or have your mind altered. I don't think these are things that they can realistically get past.

However. I did like a lot of things about this series. My favorite part was the imagination of the author and all of the stunts, especially the hoverboarding, but also the flight jackets and the ice prank and all that (I don't really remember details; I think I read these books at least two years ago). I also liked how Tally had to start each book from square one and how the second and third books, she again was able to successfully overcome her programming. I felt bad for her in those two books because all of the progress that she'd worked for had been erased, but I liked how the book reached the conclusion that everyone, despite their brain damage, had the ability to overcome their surgeries and rewire their brain.(less)

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Nov 08, 2011 Jackiepellecchia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Jackie Pellecchia
English
Ms. Peritore
November 8, 2011

The Uglies

I am not a huge fan of fiction books based on magical lands and things that are out-of-this-world. I like books that are simple and could happen in real life. The book The Uglies, by Scott Westerfield is a combination of both.

It is very interesting how descriptive and detailed Westerfield writes. The book is based in the future, in about 300 years. He makes you feel as if you are there by the way he describes the hover craft zooming o...more Jackie Pellecchia
English
Ms. Peritore
November 8, 2011

The Uglies

I am not a huge fan of fiction books based on magical lands and things that are out-of-this-world. I like books that are simple and could happen in real life. The book The Uglies, by Scott Westerfield is a combination of both.

It is very interesting how descriptive and detailed Westerfield writes. The book is based in the future, in about 300 years. He makes you feel as if you are there by the way he describes the hover craft zooming over your head, or the detail he uses in describing what a pretty was.
Tally is a 15 year old girl who can not wait to turn 16 so she can be transformed from an ugly into a pretty. Where Tally is from, once you turn sixteen you undergo a surgery that turns you “pretty.” This mean perfect lips, eyes, nose, everything will be perfect and everything would be the same. Everyone looks forward to becoming a pretty and moving out of Uglyville. Everyone that is, except Shay.

Shay is a girl that Tally meets and she does not want to become a pretty. She is involved in a rebellious group called The Smoke. When it is about time for Shay to be turned into a pretty she runs away with the members of The Smoke. She leaves Tally a note just incase she wants to come and join with her. Tally promises never to tell anyone where Shay is.

Tally was getting so excited because it was almost her big day, she was almost sixteen. Dr. Cable who was a member of the secret police and a “special,” told Tally that she could not get her surgery until she told them where The Smoke was. Tally decided to find out where The Smoke was and turn them in, until she fell in love with their leader David. This is when I started too really like the book because it was no longer just about the uglies being turned into pretties. It showed a story of a girl’s life. No matter how different her world may be, she still has tough decisions and falls in love.

Tally then learns that when someone is turned in to a pretty they also tweak the brain so people will listen to authority more. This is where to me the book gets realistic. It is a little far-fetched because I don’t think people cutting peoples brains and changing people’s thoughts is realistic, but I think people can manipulate others and change their ideas. I think in the whole mess of space talk and surgery this book shows the story of a girl growing up going through a big change with a huge decision to make. She has to choose between love, what she has wanted her whole life, a new best friend, or what society thinks is right. What would you do?
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Sep 11, 2011 Diego rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review is about the Uglies book by Scott Westerfeld. I already read the book, and I enjoyed it. I enjoyed it so much, and I would like the movie directors to make a movie of the book. I like it because it has many surprises, and it is a science fiction book. The point I do not like is that the main character Tally is a liar. She promises many things, but she never accomplishes them. The character that I like is David, because he does not lie. He trusts people, and he does not care about bei...more

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Mar 29, 2011 Nora Trapp rated it 3 of 5 stars

I just started the book "Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld. Everyone told me it was a good book, so I went and got it. The first couple of chapters are short, but usually talk about the same thing. I think it will get more interesting. Right now Tally is about to turn 16 and once you turn 16 you get an operation to make you pretty, this is something to look forward to, because as a pretty you have nothing to do except for have fun, stay up late and go to parties everyday! But lately Tally meant Shay,...more

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Aug 06, 2010 Lauren rated it 5 of 5 stars

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love this book with all of my freaking heart. you cant seperate us!!!!

forget team edward and jacob! I am team david!!!(less)

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Feb 11, 2010 Nicholas added it

I recently read the Uglies series by Scott Westerfield, and I have to say it was one of the best series I’ve ever read. Scott Westerfield blends action with everything else in his series, creating a great science fiction book. In the series there are four books; Uglies, Pretties, Specials, and Extras. In Uglies we are introduced to Tally Youngblood, a 15 year old girl, who is eagerly awaiting the Pretty Operation, which turns everyone pretty. The book slowly evolves into Tally meeting Shay, ano...more I recently read the Uglies series by Scott Westerfield, and I have to say it was one of the best series I’ve ever read. Scott Westerfield blends action with everything else in his series, creating a great science fiction book. In the series there are four books; Uglies, Pretties, Specials, and Extras. In Uglies we are introduced to Tally Youngblood, a 15 year old girl, who is eagerly awaiting the Pretty Operation, which turns everyone pretty. The book slowly evolves into Tally meeting Shay, another fifteen year old ugly, who is less ambitious for the Pretty Operation. Slowly the reader becomes aware of Specials; genetically enhanced Pretties, The Smoke a civilization outside in the Wild, and Shay’s ambition to go and live in the Smoke. Tally is recruited by Special Circumstances to lead the Special’s to the Smoke, so they can destroy it. Tally slowly realizes however how good life is in the Smoke, and throws her locket, a Special Circumstances tracker, into a fire, sending a damage signal to Dr. Cable, the head of Special Circumstances. Soon the Smoke is in smoke, and Tally and David, the leader of the Smoke, escape back to Tally’s city to reveal the truth about the Pretty Operation. As Tally was in the Smoke she learns about certain brain alterations done to patients of the Pretty Operation. Tally finds the Special Circumstances headquarters and realizes that Shay has become a pretty. Shay refuses to be cured of the lesions and Tally sacrifices herself to go to the city and become a Pretty.
This opens the way to Pretties which starts off with Tally as a pretty, enjoying life without any care, due to the lesions. She and Shay go to a party in New Pretty Town where they meet a member of the Smoke who gives them clues to the location of the pills to cure the lesions. She and her boyfriend Zane-La, split the two pills and soon the lesions no longer blur reality. Now Tally and her clan of Pretties, the Crims, have a new goal; to stay Bubbly. Bubbly meaning clear thinking full of adrenaline, where the lesions don’t cloud everything they do. As the Crims get more and more bubbly Shay starts to remember how Tally betrayed her and the Smoke. Shay then starts a new clan, the Cutters, who cut themselves to stay bubbly, not a very good habit. Zane starts to have bad headaches, which Tally attributes to the pills, and then she decides to escape to the New Smoke. It turns out that the pill Zane took contained nanos, which needed the second pill to stop them from eating healthy brain tissue, and then they realize that Tally became Bubbly all on her own; previously thought impossible. Tally allows herself to be caught, and it turns out that Shay has become a Special. Shay knocks out Tally forcing her to become Special.
The other two books you must read for yourself but I can guarantee you won’t be disappointed.
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Aug 16, 2009 Amy rated it 2 of 5 stars

The Uglies Trilogy contains three stories about the same character, Tally, as she finds her place in a post-apocalyptic earth. A biochemical weapon went out of control and invested the world's oil supply, destroying life in the process. Now, controlled cities with extreme rules on physical appearance are the name of the game. In the first book, The Uglies, Tally watches as all her friends turn 16 and get the extreme plastic surgery to become Pretties. As an Ugly, she can't wait. Until she meets...more

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Jun 20, 2008 Katie S rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: young teens

Tally (the main character) is living in a world where the goal is to become "pretty". Until Tally turns 16, she lives in dull Uglyville. The book Uglies, tells of Tally's journey to become prettified, and her friend Shay's fight to escape the pretty operation. This book is hard to describe so I recommend reading it for yourself. This is the same with the other books in this series, Pretties and Specials. Please just read them i cant think of anything to say about the books, sorry.

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Dec 02, 2011 Jonathan Smith rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Uglies is a story about futuristic civilization in which one goes through a surgery at the age of 16 to be pretty. Tally Youngblood can’t wait to be pretty and join her best friend forever, Peris, in New Pretty Town. In the months before Tally is scheduled for her operation, she becomes friends with Shay. Tally and Shay enjoy hoverboarding and pulling pranks like most uglies do. Eventually, Shay tries to convince Tally that turning pretty is not the right thing to do and that everyone should...more

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Jun 22, 2010 Chilila rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: scott-westerfeld

Pour tout dire, le thème abordé était très intéressant, le fait d'écrire un livre sur l'apparence physique en général, l'image que nous montrons de nous même...
Ce livre nous fait nous poser des questions sur ce que nous pensons de notre société, de nous en règle général. Tout cela combiné aurait pu faire une très belle histoire, pourtant, j'ai eu beaucoup de mal avec ce livre de SF.
Le style d'écriture est simple et directe, mais de mon point de vue, les intrigues sont menées de manière "bizarres...more

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Jan 13, 2013 Grace Ellingson rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Uglies is a fiction story about a young girl named Tally who is destined to be "Pretty". In this world, when you turn 16 years old you transition from being "ugly" to being "pretty". For most uglies, this day is the best day of their lives. For few, like Tally's friend Shay, this day is something to run away from. Right before Shays 16th birthday, she runs away to live in an abandoned city with other uglies who were unwilling to turn pretty on their 16th birthdays. Ironiccally, Shay and Tall...more

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Mar 23, 2012 Brianna rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Everyone!

Recommended to Brianna by: My little sister.

I love this series. They are so interesting. The Uglies is set in the future and looks back to our current time as being savage and outdated. It's makes you look at the way we live our lives now, right now when we are at the peak of technology and culture.
One of the best thing about this trilogy is that there is no simple good and evil. In the first book, you think the good and evil is clear, but then in the second book things change, and the good is not purely good, and the evil not purely evi...more

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Apr 02, 2008 Heather added it

This book is not my ball of wax, I got about half way through and had no desire to finish it. It started out with a society 300 years into the future, who call the kids 0-16 in age “uglies” and then they have a transformation with surgeries to make them “pretties” they then party and play for years…

Uh… no thanks.

There are rebellious ones who go off to another society, and whatnot, but it’s just not interesting enough to keep me reading.

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Jan 31, 2013 Hannah Hanson rated it 3 of 5 stars

In the book Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Tally Youngblood lives in a futuristic society. At the age of sixteen everyone has a surgery turning them from a dreaded Ugly into a stunningly beautiful Pretty. As a Pretty your only responsibility is to live in sparkling New Pretty Town and have fun. Tally is only weeks away from her sixteenth birthday when she meets Shay. Her whole world changes. Shay does not want to become a pretty. Shay escapes to the secret Smoke. The Smoke is a hidden civilization...more

In the book Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Tally Youngblood lives in a futuristic society. At the age of sixteen everyone has a surgery turning them from a dreaded Ugly into a stunningly beautiful Pretty. As a Pretty your only responsibility is to live in sparkling New Pretty Town and have fun. Tally is only weeks away from her sixteenth birthday when she meets Shay. Her whole world changes. Shay does not want to become a pretty. Shay escapes to the secret Smoke. The Smoke is a hidden civilization of Uglies who never became Pretty, and do not want to. Tally gets in big trouble with her city’s Special Circumstances. She is forced to either find the Smoke and turn her best friend in or stay Ugly. Forever. Tally accepts the challenge. She leaves New Pretty Town on an overly exciting adventure to the Smoke. But is being a Pretty all that it is said to be?

Before people turn sixteen they are an Ugly. They live in Uglyville. Their whole lives up to the point of their sixteenth birthday are dreadful. They are brainwashed into thinking they are ugly. Tally can’t wait until she is sixteen and pretty. The Pretties live in New Pretty Town. Their only responsibility is to have fun. They walk through beautiful gardens. They dance in in tall, brightly colored, twinkling towers. The streets are full of life. Tally can’t wait can’t wait to get out of Uglyville and join the fun that awaits her.
“The river was sparkling under a cloudless sky, and Tally allowed herself to be swept away by the beauty of New Pretty Town. Even without the nighttime lights and fireworks, the city’s surfaces shone with glass and metal, the unlikely spindles casting thin shadows across the island. It was so much more vibrant than the Rusty Ruins, Tally suddenly saw. Not as dark and mysterious, perhaps, but more alive.” Page 96

When Shay runs away, Tally is left alone. A week later, on her birthday, she is taken to the hospital to have her Pretty surgery. Tally is excited to become a pretty and leave Uglyville behind. She will be able to forget Shay. She is unexpectedly told that there is a problem with her surgery. She is immediately taken to Special Circumstances, a place very few Uglies have ever been. There, Dr.Cable tells her that she has two choices. The first choice is to go on a mysterious journey, by herself, to find the smoke and turn it in, betraying her best friend. The second choice is to stay ugly forever. An outcast. Tally chooses to embark on the mission to the Smoke. She is given a necklace to activate once she is in the Smoke. She travels through the ruins of the old cities. She travels on rivers, through fields of white flowers, and forests. She finally reaches the Smoke after a couple of near death experiences. The familiar sight if her best friend, Shay, makes her wonder if she really wants to turn her in. The Smoke may be better than she thought.
“When Tally reached the turnoff, she slowed and turned the board around, taking a last look at the city. It shone brilliantly in the dark valley, so distant that she could blot it out with one hand. In the clear night air, Tally could make out individual fireworks unfolding like bright flowers, everything in perfect miniature. The wild around her seemed so much larger, the churning river full of answer, the forests huge with their secrets hidden in its black depths.
She allowed herself a long stare at the city light before she stepped on the shore, wondering when she would see her home again.” Pages 137-138

When Tally reaches the Smoke she is reunited with Shay. As she is shown around, she realizes she might not want to turn the Smoke in quite yet. She falls in love with the Smoke and the people in it. She decides to stay in the Smoke. Tally destroys the necklace. Little does she know that destroying the necklace activates it. The next morning Special Circumstances arrives. They destroy the entire Smoke. Tally is left to escape and save the others before they are turned pretty against their will.
“The Smoke really was smoky.
Open fires dotted the valley, surrounded by small groups of people. The scents of wood smoke and cooking drifted up to Tally, smells that made her think of camping and outdoor parties. In addition to the smoke there was a morning mist in the air, a white finger creeping down into the valley from a bank of clouds nestled against the mountain higher up. A few solar panels glimmered feebly, gathering what sun was reflected from the mist. Garden plots were planted in random spots between the buildings, twenty or so one-story structures made from long planks of wood. There was wood everywhere: in fences; as cooking spits; laid down in walkways over muddy patches; and in big stacks by the fires. Tally wondered where they had found so much wood.” Pages 186-287

Tally Youngblood went on an interesting journey, to say the least. She learned that sometimes what you think you want is not what you really want. She realized that friendships are more important than yourself. She was taught that life is not all about what is on the outside, but what is on the inside that really matters.
Overall, I enjoyed this book for the most part. It was a little too young for me so it took away from some of the enjoyment. However, I thought that it was a really interesting concept. I really enjoyed the adventure aspect of the book. It kept things always exciting. However, it was hard for me to keep interested because of how young it was for me. I would definitely recommend this book to younger teens.
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Aug 14, 2008 Kenda Kat rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a futuristic series based on the adventures of Tally, Shay and her many friends. They go on many adventures (most often a bit rebellious). The not so nice Dr.Cable is always trying to get her to follow the rules. (As you read the books, you'll see that there are quite a number of rules. Like I said about the book series of Stefanie Meyer's, as you read these books, you will not want to put them down. So hope you enjoy!

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Jan 30, 2013 Daria Hall rated it 4 of 5 stars

When I was kid people use to talk about how big my eyes were.Also asked me what was for lunch the rest of the week.And what put the icing on the cake people use to talk about my hair too,ooohhh lord knows I hated my hair.And that made me feel that I was ugliest person in the world. But have you ever been the type of person who cared about how other people look?You change your self to just to fit in.You have to live in different community because people can't accept how look.Do you ever feel lik...more

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May 21, 2009 BOOK BUTTERFLY rated it 5 of 5 stars

This series is one of the best I have ever encountered. There are so many levels to the different issues, morals and politics that Scott Westerfeld delves into in this highly imaginative perception of the future. Tally Youngblood on her hoverboard is an unorthodox heroine and I loved her sense of adventure. I loved how nothing was simple in this book--the good guys weren't so pure and the bad guys weren't all bad. The Rusties could be touted for their desire to live live on their own terms, but...more

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Jul 29, 2012 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Uglies trilogy begins with a sentence. That sentence begins with "The evening sky was the color of cat puke." Or something along those lines. I have never read another book that does what the Uglies does--creates a unique voice and sets a tone with one sentence. Tally is one of my favorite heroines of all fiction. I can't even explain why! Westerfeld's dystopia is very different from many other dystopias I have read about. It combines science and society. That itself is nothing new. But the...more

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Aug 12, 2010 Ady rated it 5 of 5 stars

So convinced that this could really happen! The future is Utopic--as soon as you turn 16, you go under the knife and come out supermodel beautiful--and you move to another part of the city and every whim of your pleasure is granted either via synthetic creation or the company of your other "pretty" companions. But there is a mysterious and sinister side to all of this that Tally has suddenly had a taste of when her best friend, wishing to escape the Pretty operation, runs away to the outside of...more

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Aug 14, 2010 Lois Carroll rated it 5 of 5 stars

This series is an amazing. It is a book for Teens. Its about a civilization of kids who are taken from their parents and sent to live in a school like environment. Once they reach a certain age, go from being normal to beautiful. They undergo surgery to their brain to change the way they think to make them perfect and also make them pysically beautiful. Then send them into pretty city. The uglies are in one city and the pretties are in another. A small group of kids decide they like how they are...more

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Jan 16, 2012 Dine rated it 5 of 5 stars

Sie wollte doch nur schön werden ...

Das Cover zeigt mit dem Mädchengesicht, auf dem Schönheitslinien und -pfeile um Augen und Nase gemalt sind, worum es in diesem Roman geht. Schönheitsoperationen!
Tally hat nur noch ein paar Monate, bis sie sich mit 16 einer Schönheitsoperation unterzieht, wodurch sie endlich hübsch wird und zu den „Pretties“ gehört. Diese Station durchlaufen alle 16jährigen und es ist das Normalste der Welt.
Doch nicht für alle scheint es die beste Alternative zu sein, denn ihre...more

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Vocabulary Question	3	5	Apr 14, 2013 09:14am
Books, Books, and...: Uglies	34	21	Aug 21, 2012 07:11pm
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About Scott Westerfeld

Scott Westerfeld is a New York Times bestselling American-born author of YA sci-fi literature. He was born in the Texas and now lives in Sydney and New York City. In 2001, Westerfeld married fellow author Justine Larbalestier.
His book Evolution's Darling was a New York Times Notable Book, and won a Special Citation for the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award. So Yesterday won a Victorian Premier's Award and...more

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Trivia About The Uglies Trilogy

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Quotes from The Uglies Trilogy

“Nature didn't need an operation to be beautiful. It just was.” — 765 people liked it

“Frighteningly Beautiful, Dangerously Strong, Breathtakingly Fast.
Face it Tally-wa you're special...” — 72 people liked it

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