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Uglies (Uglies, #1)

Scott Westerfeld

Start date: August 12, 2015

Finish date: August 31, 2015

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What Members Thought

Jun 01, 2015 Carrie rated it really liked it

Shelves: library, young-adult, 1st-in-a-series, dystopia, post-apocalyptic

A little me for me at the start, couldn't get into to it but then bam it took ahold.

From birth until you are 16 years of age you look the way you are meant to, ugly as they call it. Then sweet sixteen roles around and you are taken away and made "pretty", in otherwords you are made to be like everyone else. Not only are you physically beautiful but mentally your mind is changed, you've "grown-up".

Fantastic story, brilliant even. ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

May 19, 2012 Yzabel Ginsberg rated it did not like it

Shelves: young-adult, did-not-finish

How to start this review... "I lasted until part two, and then I had to put it down"? Or "I can't decide if this book is as bas as Twilight, or if it is worse"?

The pitch seemed interesting at first. A tiny part of me also feared it had some potential to be a trainwreck waiting to happen, but I thought, well, let's read, we'll see: if it's well-done, it may be quite interesting nevertheless.

It wasn't.

First, because the writing itself was rather awful, and made me feel like the book wasn't even fo How to start this review... "I lasted until part two, and then I had to put it down"? Or "I can't decide if this book is as bas as Twilight, or if it is worse"?

The pitch seemed interesting at first. A tiny part of me also feared it had some potential to be a trainwreck waiting to happen, but I thought, well, let's read, we'll see: if it's well-done, it may be quite interesting nevertheless.

It wasn't.

First, because the writing itself was rather awful, and made me feel like the book wasn't even for 'young adults' but for grade schoolers, in terms of S-V-C sentences. Did anyone ever edit that book? I've read fanfics that were better than that. Actually, some of my pupils in middle school write better than that, and they're not even native speakers. The pace was slow and boring, just like the dialogues. It was nerves-grating at best, and if I had had a paper version in hands instead of an e-book, I think I'd have flung it through the room at some point; the only reason I didn't do it was because I didn't want to break my computer.

The characters were too shallow to grab my attention for long. Alright, I get it, it's a dystopian world, everyone's been brainwashed into thinking that pretty is the only valid option, and Tally wants nothing more than to be pretty, otherwise her life would be ruined. Only I was sort of hoping that there would be something else to her. Alas, in all the pages I managed to read, she just remained flat and uninteresting. Her friend Shay wasn't that better. The other characters were caricatures, just like the world itself: not convincing enough from the start. (Note to authors: don't call your cities "New Pretty Town" or "Uglyville". It doesn't highlight how shallow society is, it just looks, sounds and feels ridiculous.) The whole backdrop held interesting promises on the back cover, but the way it was developed didn't work the least bit. I enjoy my dystopias with a few shades of grey, which in my opinion usually enhances all the more the oppressive sides of such societies; here, it just seemed bland, made of artificial contrasts that had the subtletly of neon signs flashing "look, look, this society is flawed, I tell you".

I'd like to say that I'm too old for such stories, that they're aimed at a younger audience, and that the reasons why I couldn't get into "Uglies" was because I'm 32 and not 14. Unfortunately for this book, even at 14, I had already moved to "Brave New World" and "1984", so this is no excuse. ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Apr 28, 2019 Angie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-books, adventure, sciencefic, post-apocalyptic, toughgirl, great-reading-challenge, dystopia, 2019-books, bookclub

3.75 stars. 🌟 I've been meaning to read this for ages! Thanks to my pal Tori for moving it to the top of my TBR list. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

May 09, 2012 Gremlin rated it liked it

Shelves: ya, dystopia

Premise: At the age of 16 folks go through cosmetic surgery, allowing them to change their status from "Ugly" to "Pretty." The theory behind this dystopian world is that if everyone is beautiful, then everyone gets equal status. (But anyone who reads YA - or lives in the world, even - knows that behind most good ideas are puppetmasters looking for power).

Enter the Smokies. A group of "Uglies" living off the grid with no surgery, attempting to make a new life for themselves. After a series of eve ...more

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Oct 19, 2010 Angie Taylor rated it really liked it

I liked this book better than I thought I would. It is a very interesting commentary on what it would be like to live in a world where plastic surgery was required when you reached a certain age. This books deals with a group of rebels who create their own community to remain like themselves, or what the plastic surgery doll people call, Ugly. Very interesting!

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