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Extras

(Uglies #4)

Scott Westerfeld (Goodreads Author)

3.60 · Rating details · 108,727 ratings · 5,452 reviews

These days, it’s all about fame…

‘Tech-heads’ flaunt their latest gadgets, ‘kickers’ spread gossip and trends - and it’s all monitored by millions of cameras. The world is like a giant reality TV show, where popularity rules and everyone else is just an extra.

As if it isn’t hard enough being fifteen, with a face rank of 451,369, Aya Fuse is a total nobody. But when she meet ...more

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Paperback, 417 pages

Published by Simon and Schuster (first published May 10th 2006)

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Sep 20, 2018 Miranda Reads rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook

Authors, take note. This is how a companion novel is done!

You see, freedom has a way of destroying things.

Aya Fuse is just fifteen-years-old but already, the world has radically changed since Tally Youngblood freed everyone.

Just a few years ago, it was standard for all kids (16 and up) to get the Pretty surgery - where their faces and bodies were altered to be statistically perfect.

Only, there was a dark side to this surge.

The doctors would also implant a few lesions in choice spots of t ...more

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Jan 01, 2008 Abby rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: teen, sf, dystopia

Like the other books in the Uglies trilogy, Extras is fun and a very fast read. I read this book in about 2 and 1/2 hours, pretty much non-stop.

However, Extras raised the same prickly issues for me that the other books in the series did. My years as a student steeped in cultural studies and gender theory make it pretty much impossible for me to read works of popular fiction without subjecting them to critical analysis, and Westerfeld's books certainly lend themselves to this sort of critique. E Like the other books in the Uglies trilogy, Extras is fun and a very fast read. I read this book in about 2 and 1/2 hours, pretty much non-stop.

However, Extras raised the same prickly issues for me that the other books in the series did. My years as a student steeped in cultural studies and gender theory make it pretty much impossible for me to read works of popular fiction without subjecting them to critical analysis, and Westerfeld's books certainly lend themselves to this sort of critique. Especially if you are like me.

Like most dystopian science fiction, Westerfeld's books cast a critical eye on disturbing aspects of our present-day society -- obsession with looks, fame, etc -- by taking those aspects to extremes and weaving them into the very fabric of the future society. In Uglies & Pretties, everyone is "cured" of ugliness through a mandatory operation that takes place when individuals turn 16. In Extras, people earn money, respect, and privilege through the "reputation-based" economy, which rewards those who can make a name for themselves by publicizing and popularizing their thoughts, exploits, etc through the "feeds" (read: Internet). (If you think this is an interesting idea, you might want to check out Cory Doctorow's book "Down & Out in the Magic Kingdom" which explores the same conceit but with more skill and humor). In all of these books, the main (female) character desperately wants to be pretty, special, popular, famous or whatever, but ends up questioning the values of her society when she meets outsiders who don't subscribe to those norms.

The problem I have with Westerfeld's books is that these critiques, which are intriguing and thought-provoking, don't actually go far enough. Although the main character openly questions and in some cases initially resists the societal mandate to become pretty, special, famous, etc, she ALWAYS eventually ends up becoming pretty or famous even if it is against her will. Unlike all the other unenlightened pretty or famous folks who have never questioned their society's structure, however, she is well-aware of the pitfalls. She is now in fact doubly privileged -- as a pretty/special/famous person she has all the privileges that go along with being high-status in her society, AND she also has a sophisticated understanding of the "dark side" of her society that others can't see, through ignorance or fear or whatever other blinders they have on.

So although Westerfeld is clearly trying to show the reader how screwed up the dystopian society's norms (and by implication our own) are, in the end, he simply reinforces them. In Westerfeld's world, you can be hip to the ways in which our society's obsession with looks and celebrity oppress others and rail against the system, but you can still benefit from them at the same time. There's no sacrifice to make. And I guess that's why, as much as I enjoy Westerfeld's books, I can't help thinking that ultimately they're as shallow as the cultural norms they purport to critique. ...more

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Feb 22, 2009 Christina rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I really struggled to finish this book, and I thought it was significantly worse than the others in the series. A lot of the dialogue was agonizingly stilted. The characters actually said things like "Not good!" and "uh, oh!" to react to approaching falling objects and other imminent bumps-on-the-head. AAAAAARGH. Those lines drive me crazy enough in movies. I was horrified to find them in a book.
At one point, characters from two different countries meet and have some communication difficulties. ...more

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Oct 22, 2011 Kat (Lost in Neverland) rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: stupid-heroine

Ugh. Finally done.

This is how this book made me feel;

description

because it was such a disappointment.

and maybe a bit of this;

description

because it was so boring.

and also;

description

because...well, it fucking sucked.

I've noticed that I've been rating these 'Uglies' books in a pattern:

Uglies: 5 Stars
Pretties: 4 Stars
Specials: 3 Stars
Extras: 2 Stars

Too bad they don't have a fifth one. If that had sucked as bad as this one, I would have loved to give that a one star, then the pattern would be complete. ...more

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Dec 27, 2007 Paige rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-own, ya-fiction, asian-stuff

Honestly, this book was kind of a disappointment. I liked how it was all accumulated around the Japanese society, but other than that, I was expecting much more of this book. In my opinion, Aya is a very whiny, self-absorbed suck up. I don't like the way Scott Westerfeld portrays Tally in this either because he renders her as a know-it-all b word, to say the least. Which, I don't think Tally has ever been. Her character is not put to justice in this book. ...more

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Aug 13, 2015 Ahmad Sharabiani rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 21th-century, fiction, romance, apocalyptic, adventure, literature, united-states, young-adult, science, fantasy

Extras (Uglies #4), Scott Westerfeld

Extras is a young adult science fiction novel written by Scott Westerfeld. The novel was published and released by Simon & Schuster on October 2, 2007, and is a companion book to the Uglies series.

Aya Fuse is a young girl living in the futuristic city of Yokohama. One night, accompanied by her hovercam Moggle, she crashes a party in New Pretty Town hoping to track down a group she saw surfing a mag-lev train, a story which she believes will make her famous.

S ...more

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Oct 13, 2007 Emma rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

Extras is the fourth book in Scott Westerfeld's critically acclaimed, New York Times bestselling series (originally it was a trilogy). The first three books Uglies, Pretties, and Specials follow Tally Youngblood, a fifteen-year-old girl living in a futuristic world so dominated by plastic surgery that anyone who looks normal is ugly. Extras is set three years after the events of the trilogy unfold, in a different city, with different main characters. The trilogy, however, sets the framework for Extras is the fourth book in Scott Westerfeld's critically acclaimed, New York Times bestselling series (originally it was a trilogy). The first three books Uglies, Pretties, and Specials follow Tally Youngblood, a fifteen-year-old girl living in a futuristic world so dominated by plastic surgery that anyone who looks normal is ugly. Extras is set three years after the events of the trilogy unfold, in a different city, with different main characters. The trilogy, however, sets the framework for everything that happens in Extras so while the book is great on its own it definitely assumes you know the story of the trilogy.

In this new world, where everything is changing, being pretty isn't enough to get by. Now it's fame that matters. The more famous you are, the higher your face rank is. A higher rank means more currency in a world where celebrity is everything.

Everyone is trying to get more attention somehow: "tech-heads" are obsessed with gadgets, "surge monkeys" are hooked on the newest trends in plastic surgery, and "kickers" use feeds (think blogs but techier and cooler because it's a Westerfeld idea) to spread the word on all the gossip and trends worth mentioning. But staying famous is a lot easier than getting famous. Just ask Aya Fuse. Fifteen-year-old Aya has had her own feed for a year, but her rank is still 451,369--so low that she's a definite nobody, someone her city calls an extra.

Aya has a plan to up her rank though. All she needs is a really big story to kick. Aya finds the perfect story when she meets the Sly Girls, a clique pulling crazy tricks in utter obscurity. As Aya follows her story she realizes it's much bigger than one clique: maybe the biggest story since Tally Youngblood changed everything.

Some sequels that bring in all new characters are annoying. Not this one. All of the "new" characters are original and, equally important, likable. The story is also utterly original covering very different territory than the rest of the series. It doesn't pick up right where the trilogy left off, but a lot of questions are answered by the end of this book.

Like the other books in the series, this one moves fast. The story has a lot of action and several twists and surprises (some old characters even turn up). The plot is never overly-confusing though. Westerfeld does a great job of creating (and explaining) the futuristic world he has created in these pages so that it truly comes to life on the page.

At the same time, Extras is a very timely book. In a world where everyone seems to have some kind of website and is trying to be more popular or more famous, it's fascinating to read about a city where everything literally depends on your reputation. Westerfeld raises a lot of interesting questions as Aya deals with the ethics of kicking her new story and tries to decide if honesty really is more important than fame.

You can find this review and more on my blog Miss Print ...more

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Sep 24, 2008 Christina rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, science-fiction, 2008-reads

Finishing a series always makes me feel like I'm losing a friend. I've spent a good week or so reading these four books, absorbed in the pages and the characters and their lives, and now I just feel lonely.

Extras is set a few years after the huge finale of Specials, or the "mind-rain" as they now call it. It's also a bunch of new characters (although Tally, Shay, David and Fausto make a reappearance which I'm extremely happy about!), a new city, and a spanking new economy known as the "reputati ...more

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Jan 09, 2009 Kelly rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-sci-fi, worst-books

You know this book started out okay but it quickly went down hill. I was actually annoyed to see Tally in this one and her attitude. I mean this book was not about her so I don't understand why she HAD to be in it. I didn't like how she was portrayed at all. I also quickly got annoyed at Aya.

The Uglies series was my first exposure to Westerfeld and though I really liked Uglies and liked Pretties and pretty much liked Specials I gotta say i'm noticing a pattern with his characters. They all want ...more

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Jul 02, 2008 Clara rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: never-finished, dystopian-post-apocalyptic-fiction

When is it ever a good idea to add a fourth installment to a trilogy?

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Oct 31, 2008 Bridget rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, audio-books

I can't believe that I am finished with this series. (What to start on next, hmmm.)

This was my least favorite of the series. I really liked it for the first half. I liked Aya Fuse (cool name) and her brother, Hiro, and his friend, Ren. I liked the whole premise of popularity and fame being a commodity for living.

I can't believe that I am saying this, but I didn't really like Tally in this book! Once, she came on the scene, I thought the writing became very sloppy. The whole second half of the st ...more

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Aug 27, 2013 Sam rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Can I give this no stars?

What was that? What was the purpose of this book? Ugh. I kind if hated Aya. She was whiny and no matter what situation came up, no matter how dire, ALL SHE CARED ABOUT WAS IF HER CAMERA WAS CATCHING IT. All she cared about was being a kicker. And what happened to Tally? She just seemed really annoyed the whole time, and not anything like her previous self. The plot, I felt, was also pretty loose. It's just about a fame obsessed girl who finds out about these "freaks" th Can I give this no stars?

What was that? What was the purpose of this book? Ugh. I kind if hated Aya. She was whiny and no matter what situation came up, no matter how dire, ALL SHE CARED ABOUT WAS IF HER CAMERA WAS CATCHING IT. All she cared about was being a kicker. And what happened to Tally? She just seemed really annoyed the whole time, and not anything like her previous self. The plot, I felt, was also pretty loose. It's just about a fame obsessed girl who finds out about these "freaks" that she thinks are gonna take over the world, when in the end, all they want to do is make sure that the planet doesn't over populate. And I thought the Sly girls were going to be some huge awesome part of the book, but all that happens is they act like they don't know what's going on, then launch Aya into the sky, tell her they knew she was lying, and then tell her that OH YEAH IT'S FIIINNNE. Go on and kick out story! Sure thing! ??? Aya's "relationship" also just kind of happened, and it didn't build up AT ALL. They just suddenly cared about each other. Oh yeah, and then the ending really wrapped things up super well with Tally putting on a dress, going to Nana's party, and sneaking off with David to one of the gardens. (Please note the sarcasm) Why? Why was this book even written? Uuuugghghgh I'm EXTREMELY disappointed. -_- (I hate to be so harsh, but I was WAAYYY nitpicky with this one)

OOOOOOHHHHHH and ALIENS? WHAT. THE. ACTUAL. HECK. When these strange silver creatures were sighted and investigated, I thought they were going to be some crazy plot twist enemy race that were going to change Aya and make her shed her flawed, selfish character. Well, of course, after all this trouble that surfaced around them, all they wanted to do was FREAKING BUILD A ROCKET. What was the point of any of this? Seriously? And to finish it all off, a children's book happy ending was the obvious choice for the end of this FABULOUSLY written book. *sarcasm*. We have the head alien, the sly girls, and tally all at the party, laughing at how well their stupid lives turned out. Yay. ...more

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Jun 23, 2016 Phoenix2 rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: uglies fans

Extras is not a Tally Youngblood story, but she appears in it. It takes place in Japan, where the economy is based on popularity. Aya Fuse wants to become famous by "kicking" a story that will attract everyone's attention, just like her brother, Hiro. So she goes undercover, and she stumbles on a very "kickable" story that will make her famous but also set her in danger.
To be honest, I liked Aya better than Tally. Tally was a great heroine and one of my favs in Uglies, but in Extras she is hard ...more

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Jul 29, 2012 Sarah rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Sorry, Scott. I'm gonna have to throw in the towel this time. I just give up. I loved all of your other books (Peeps, Uglies, Pretties, Specials, the Midnighters series) but I just can't, and I mean CAN'T, understand how this book wormed its way into existence.

Why, Scott? Why?

Why make such a despicable protagonist? You know, I actually felt antagonistic towards Aya, so I don't think the term "protagonist" even applies. I tried to love her, and try I did. But try as I might, I JUST HATED HER GUTS ...more

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Oct 15, 2018 MissBecka Gee rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: completed-library-rentals, audio-books, z2018-books-i-read

It's finally over!!!
I was surprised that the last book was so much better than the first three in the series.
This was largely due to a entire new cast of characters from the first 3 books and a bit of a plot change as well. The annoying language from the first 3 books is almost non existent in this one. There is new terms they use here but they seem to make more sense and are used a little more sparingly.
Aya is a slightly more likable character than Tally, but only slightly.
All in all I'm glad t ...more

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Dec 04, 2012 Mery rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

I am just going to pretend that this book doesn't exist! ALIENS????? ALIENS??????? ALIENS?????????? That's a cruel joke. I got so pissed I erased it off my Kindle.It's one of the few books I have abandoned in my life but it was spoiling the thrill and excitement that had built up in me. It's such a disappointing ending to the Uglies series - as if a completely different person came up with it. Even the writing is not at paar with the previous books. The action is abrupt. At one moment the charac ...more

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Sep 27, 2007 Trin rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: american-lit, sci-fi, ya

The fourth, surprise volume in the Uglies no-longer-a-trilogy. I liked this way more than Specials, the last book in the series (which I actually kind of hated). This novel doesn't center around Tally, the protagonist of the previous three books, but around a new character, Aya Fuse, who's growing up in a post-Pretties world. The Important Teen Topic Westerfeld is tackling this time is fame, not beauty, as following Tally's act of liberation, the world has evolved into one where wealth and soc The fourth, surprise volume in the Uglies no-longer-a-trilogy. I liked this way more than Specials, the last book in the series (which I actually kind of hated). This novel doesn't center around Tally, the protagonist of the previous three books, but around a new character, Aya Fuse, who's growing up in a post-Pretties world. The Important Teen Topic Westerfeld is tackling this time is fame, not beauty, as following Tally's act of liberation, the world has evolved into one where wealth and social merit are derived purely from notoriety. In other words, Paris Hilton would still be in our faces all the time, dammit.

Like a lot of Westerfeld's work, this book is the most enjoyable if you don't think about it too much. There's a fun, exciting action plot to be had here, but the whole world kind of falls apart if you ponder it for more than five seconds. How is it that Aya's city—which is clearly not the same one as Tally's, as much is made of the language barrier later—was set up in exactly the same way as Tally's? Especially when Uglies made each community seem so wonderfully isolated? And I really don't see the logic of the post-Pretty world, as it's left at the end of Specials, evolving so soon into the world Aya introduces us to. And—but no. Let's go back to nothing thinking about this too hard, okay?

Well, first: I also have to say that I find the idea of all these teenage characters—Aya is fifteen—doing and accomplishing all of this stuff on their own vaguely ridiculous, which officially makes me too old for these books. (Part of my brain can't stop thinking, Where are their PARENTS?) But, uh. If you set all that aside, this really is a fun book! Really! And it provides a slightly more upbeat ending for Tally and David, which I really appreciate. So if you like the other books in this series—or even just the first one—this is a worthy addition. I'm much, much happier having this, instead of Specials, as my final impression of the Uglies world and these characters, and that's worth a lot, I think. ...more

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Jan 13, 2014 Andrea ❤Ninja Bunneh❤ rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: do-not-pass-go, wtf-were-you-thinking, snooze-worthy, no-bunnehs-for-you, seems-familiar, u-likey-me-no-likey, hack-slash-boom, series-series-series

So,

*******Spoilers ahead******although not many since I don't feel like writing much about this fuckery*******

Welcome to the world of Aya ~~Tally 2.0~~. Aya has one focus in life which is to become famous. In the new post-Tally world (of Japan), the goal is to become as noticed as you can. Think of it as YouTubers being ranked according to how many hits they get. The higher the hits, the more famous you are. Fame gets you out of being any type of normal productive member of society. You just run aro ...more

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May 31, 2018 Mimi 'Pans' Herondale rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Although this wasn't as good as the other books, I really enjoyed it. I was a bit disappointed when it wasn't about Tally Youngblood, but it was a really interesting adventure and I am glad that she showed up later.
Aya was a bit annoying, how she was obsessed with fame and all. But in the end, I ended up liking her. I thought Frizz was really sweet, Hiro is a jerk, and Ren is a pretty nice character.
...more

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Jul 24, 2020 Jay G rated it liked it · review of another edition

Want to see more bookish things from me? Check out my Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfer...

The fourth and final book in the Uglies series!

This was a bit weird as it follows completely different characters for the majority of the book, bringing Tally back in the final act. Aya was an interesting enough character, but I didn't care too much about her and her journey. The Sly Girls were what intrigued me, but they ended up only being a small part in the overall story. The concep ...more

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Aug 17, 2010 Cora Tea Party Princess rated it liked it · review of another edition

Listened to series via audio, series review to come.

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Apr 29, 2008 Izlinda rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: utopian-dystopian, science-fiction, teen-angst-growing-up

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Set in the same "Uglies" universe as the previous three books, but set three years after Tally caused the "mind-rain" (when bubbleheads were given the choice to have their lesions repaired so they weren't empty-mindedly happy), this book takes place in Japan.

Aya Fuse's city decides to award resources to people based on their reputation/fame. This is done by everybody being given their own feed (Internet) once of age and their own hovercam. The more often someone's feed is watched, or name is men Set in the same "Uglies" universe as the previous three books, but set three years after Tally caused the "mind-rain" (when bubbleheads were given the choice to have their lesions repaired so they weren't empty-mindedly happy), this book takes place in Japan.

Aya Fuse's city decides to award resources to people based on their reputation/fame. This is done by everybody being given their own feed (Internet) once of age and their own hovercam. The more often someone's feed is watched, or name is mentioned, the higher their rank, and the more luxuries they are allowed. For example, the higher rank you have, the more luxurious your house can be, or clothes given to you. This is called "face." People can also gain "merits" by doing good deeds, like finish homework on time, working hard, volunteering to babysit, etc.

Aya is pretty desperate to raise her rank so when she finds a secret clique of girls who do tricks with their hoverboards (such as riding the mag-lev train), she decides to join them and secretly spy on them so she can "kick" their story. This leads to a discovery of hidden steel cylinders in a mountain which starts this avalanche of events that inevitably brings in Tally Youngblood and her group of Cutters.

I admire the premise, but I do wish Westerfeld had gone more in depth about the type of fame-obsessed, notice-me society Aya lives in and the negative impact of it. While he does a good job of how relationships can be screwed due to the difference of ranks (called "difference of ambition" in her world, which is a reason people can break up their relationships, much like our "irreconcilable differences") or make things awkward, it doesn't go much further than that.

Also, I found it a little eye-rolling that the heroine does attain a very very high rank in the end, after all, which kind of deflates the purpose of the book, or a purpose. This purpose being a look at the impact of such a society. I mean, seriously, it's like Aya rolls out through perfectly, despite the lies and hardships on the way. And she does "truth-slant" a lot. It doesn't seem like there's enough of a difference shown in her personality by the end of the book, so while she does understand truth-slanting to get ahead for something as shallow and frivolous as fame, she doesn't seem to fully get it.

Tally's inclusion in the book as a peripheral character is an interesting difference from the past three books (two I've read). She seemed harsher and more violent seen from a third-person's viewpoint than when we're inside her head and see her struggles to rewire herself. Kind of brings into mind how we view ourselves is sometimes completely different from how others view us.

Overall a good book, but not really one I would recommend buying, but only checking out. ...more

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Dec 05, 2010 Cathy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Okay, this is the very LAST book I am going to read by Scott Westerfeld! I love his dystopic world in the future with all the imaginative people and ways to be. His mysteries and conflicts which send the protagonists, whether they are uglies, pretties, specials, or extras, are quite exciting and keep you reading to see the solution. But the last two books, Specials and Extras, have now put him into the writing genre of Eco-Novelist. His message of it would be better to change your body to a zero ...more

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Oct 12, 2015 Cara rated it did not like it · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 29, 2013 Peter Meredith rated it liked it · review of another edition

Despite that Extras was written for an audience of teenage girls I rather enjoyed it. It was a quick, easy read that kept me interested as it moved splendidly along...until we came nigh of its conclusion and then the floor sort of just dropped out of the story.
*Here there be spoilers*
The story revolves around Aya Fuse, who at the tender age of fifteen is desperate for attention--fame being the only way to become rich in the city of the future's "Reputation Economy."
You heard that right.
I know Despite that Extras was written for an audience of teenage girls I rather enjoyed it. It was a quick, easy read that kept me interested as it moved splendidly along...until we came nigh of its conclusion and then the floor sort of just dropped out of the story.
*Here there be spoilers*
The story revolves around Aya Fuse, who at the tender age of fifteen is desperate for attention--fame being the only way to become rich in the city of the future's "Reputation Economy."
You heard that right.
I know it sounds stupid, but the city built its economy around two ideas: merits(i.e. money...but don't call it money because that's for primitive morons like us) and fame. Merits are for schlubs who do the grunt work--ditch diggers, teachers, proctologists ((There aren't enough merits in the world for me to be a proctologist...but I digress)) In other words, the help: "Be a dear and clean up that vomit." They are hardly ever mentioned.
If you enjoyed this review you'll probably like my Youtube reviews--be warned, I enjoy some good snark! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZ6D...
Fame is the other fork in the road, and down this fork everyone adores you and everything that you ever wanted just magically pops out of the wall--I'm not kidding.
Which way does Aya chose? That's a toughie, right? Hardly.
Like anyone else with a touch of ambition and brains she opts for the fame, which begs the question: who would ever unclog her toilet? This is a legitimate question. If doing a crazy stunt--say mag-surfing on a bullet train--would make you rich why would you ever sink your arms up to your elbows in someone else's filth? You wouldn't.
The world would be a "Look At Me" economy and nothing would ever get done. Yet for this book the philosophy is never questioned, and thus works beautifully.
Aya proves my point by immediately doing something dreadfully dangerous in order to Kick a story. It turns out she is a teen journalist and she's hot on a lead--the Sly Girls.
The Sly girls are rebels. They do super-duper crazy stunts, but do so in secret(I guess there are people who do like to work a plunger.) They make no sense. Adrenaline junkies are almost always exhibitions but the story flows along so nicely you don't even notice.
You see, Aya and the Sly Girls discover a race of Aliens who have carved out a mountain near the city. Now is Aya's big chance to be famous because her kicking story is that the aliens are about to destroy the world!
Except they aren't.
*Sigh* Here's where the story falls apart for me. The "aliens" are actually surgically augmented humans who are trying to save the planet from...drum roll please...humans. Ugh!
And they are saving the planet in the most ridiculous fashion. They are stealing metal from abandoned, "Rusty" cities and are then shooting the metal into orbit where they plan to build a space colony. Supposedly this will stop the evil humans from spreading out and overrunning the wild open spaces, despite the fact there aren't that many humans left after the devastating Diego war.
So everyone turns out to be a good guy. There wasn't ever any real danger to our heroes. And we get a dose of enviro-preaching about the evils of mining and over population. That's what I call a sucky ending--though some of you with the high brows might call it anti-climatic. I was hoping for more. Three stars for an engaging writing style and a good beginning. ...more

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Apr 01, 2015 Jess rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: culled, 2016

I'm so proud of you, Scott. You seem to have finally caught on. After three whole books of what was more or less trial and error, you've produced an engaging plot in a style that doesn't read like a piece of GCSE coursework!

I'm pleasantly surprised; it looks like my investment in this series did eventually pay off. Extras is a decent add-on to a trilogy which I didn't think was really going anywhere.

Westerfeld has generated another really interesting dystopian reality. The concept is very sepa I'm so proud of you, Scott. You seem to have finally caught on. After three whole books of what was more or less trial and error, you've produced an engaging plot in a style that doesn't read like a piece of GCSE coursework!

I'm pleasantly surprised; it looks like my investment in this series did eventually pay off. Extras is a decent add-on to a trilogy which I didn't think was really going anywhere.

Westerfeld has generated another really interesting dystopian reality. The concept is very separate to Uglies/Pretties/Specials (a world which has been milked) and could totally be read as a standalone. The notion that drives Extras is fascinating, I think, and so relevant. In this particular reality, your entire quality of life is dictated by how much fame you can acquire rather than how pretty your face is. Both are unstable and highly questionable ethics, but so thought-provoking. On a more objective level of quality, the plot as a whole was considerably stronger: it was engaging, compelling and intriguing- something I didn't think was within Westerfeld's capacity, to be completely honest. It's solid, different and the ending has no loopholes, hallelujah! Crucially the characters were distinctive, credible and the sibling dynamic was so convincing.

But: some of those annoying characteristics of Westerfeld's writing has persevered, like the infuriating ambiguity. It took me a good 250+ pages to actually have the revelation that the novel is set in Japan - and that was only after one of the characters explicitly said that she was speaking in Japanese. The writing style was, at times, still a bit crude and lacked an essential credibility. The descriptive pieces comprised of some excruciatingly simple images and all of the similes were "{insert what teenage character is doing} like a littlie". And the uncreative names persist. Like the innovative 'Uglyville', the bad-ass clique of mysterious girls who perform dangerous tricks in secrecy were also christened badly - 'The Sly Girls'. Sly. Girls.

Westerfeld certainly has a talent for conjuring up new and interesting concepts and he constructs his worlds convincingly, introducing the vocabulary and orthodoxy of the times with ease. The writing could do with a bit of a makeover to keep things more interesting and less repetitive. So, if you felt underwhelmed by the original trilogy, I still recommend giving this a go because I think that Westerfeld has stepped up his game at long last. ...more

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Dec 31, 2015 Faith M ✨ rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommended to Faith by: Megan Murri

Shelves: science-fiction, dont-believe-the-hype, 3-stars, owned, young-adult, dystopia, read-2018, 3rd-person, mc-gurl, soulless

Once you told yourself a story enough times, it was so easy to keep on believing it.

Wow, this was kind of a big disappointment.

Honestly, the first half before Tally showed up was way better. Speshul Tally was Extra Speshul Tally sometimes and it really dragged down the story with her angry sanctimoniousness. Aya, besides that, was quite annoying most of the time, and I feel like very few people actually learned any real lessons and changed in any real, deep way; other than being perhaps a bit le ...more

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Dec 27, 2008 Darbus rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 13, 2011 Colleen Houck added it · review of another edition

Shelves: spy, science-gone-wrong, future, tech-gadgets, doctors-medical

I think this novel was so creative. The constant monitoring of your stats reminds me of all the stuff I do with Facebook and Twitter and blogging. It's easy to see how this could happen in the future. What a strange world. ...more

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Dec 08, 2007 Caryn rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: youngreaderandteen, scifi

There is an interesting arc to my appreciation of Extras.

I wasn't so sure at first. The girl on the front is obviously not Tally Youngblood, and so I was rather nervous about starting a Westerfeld book that wasn't about Tally Youngblood. But start it I did, and for the first half or so I was in young adult fiction bliss.

Extras does it all right when it comes to futuristic fiction with a bit of a social commentary. Insert Aya Fuse, a fifteen-year-old in post-mind-rain (see Specials) Japan, where There is an interesting arc to my appreciation of Extras.

I wasn't so sure at first. The girl on the front is obviously not Tally Youngblood, and so I was rather nervous about starting a Westerfeld book that wasn't about Tally Youngblood. But start it I did, and for the first half or so I was in young adult fiction bliss.

Extras does it all right when it comes to futuristic fiction with a bit of a social commentary. Insert Aya Fuse, a fifteen-year-old in post-mind-rain (see Specials) Japan, where they've set up the face-rank system. Your place in society is determined by your face-rank, or how much people talk about you. And poor Aya is stuck at about 400,000.

But there is hope for Aya! If she can find a story to kick, she can catapult herself into top-20,000 in no time. It's just a matter of finding that perfect kickable story.

And it lands in her lap.

The idea of a society where popularity of a feed (read: blog) is more important than how much money you make or what you wear, or what you do for a living is closer on the global horizon than you might think, in a world of YouTube and mySpace.

And of course, this makes Extras CHOCK full of neato futuristic stuff (that's a technical term). Hovercams, mag-lev trains, smart matter (matter than can transform itself at any time), wall screens, eyescreens, skintennae, hoverball rigs.

Keep in mind, this is all that first half of the book I liked.

I wanted to like the last half, really, I did. But it didn't really have an ending. Not a Scott Westerfeld ending, at least.

Other Scott Westerfeld endings had crazy turns, like (spoiler warning) Tally abandoning reason and becoming pretty, even thought it screws with your brain, or like Tally turning Special, even though it screws with your brain, or Tally not fixing her brain after she fixes everyone else's to keep things in order.

No. At the end of Extras, we learn that it was all a big misunderstanding and then go to a party.

Wha....?

Of course, if Scott Westerfeld writes something else to follow this one, I'll read it because I love his books, and I want him to fix this ending. ...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. YA Dystopian-type Futuristic world where social media dominates everyone's lives. Girl protagonist tries to make her social blow up by uncovering the truth about a group of girls who ride on sides of trains. [s]	3	23	Aug 23, 2020 04:49PM
Play Book Tag: Extras by Scott Westerfeld (Uglies, Bk 4) - 3.5* (round to 3*)	1	7	Apr 14, 2020 06:25AM
Awesome Blossoms: CREATE	12	8	Apr 06, 2020 10:09AM
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. A YA dystopian/scifi about a society that gives everyone a popularity number, lower number=more popular. [s]	4	35	Dec 29, 2019 12:30AM
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. YA Sci-fi about a girl in a city where popularity is currency. [s]	4	19	Oct 09, 2019 05:05PM

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About Scott Westerfeld

Scott Westerfeld

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Scott Westerfeld is a New York Times bestselling author of YA. He is best known for the Uglies and Leviathan series. His current series, IMPOSTORS, returns to the world of Uglies.

The next book in that series, MIRROR'S EDGE, comes out April 6, 2021. ...more

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Uglies (4 books)

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Interview with Scott Westerfeld

The creator of the Uglies and Leviathan series answers your questions about his writing rituals, gives NaNoWriMo tips, and talks about Afterworlds,...