A review by jess_tries2read
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

adventurous dark emotional funny tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a nostlagic re-read for me. The book is set in a post-apocalyptic eutopia. All residents of cities grow up with their parents, move to boarding schools at age 12, then undergo a compulsory operation to become pretty at age 16.

Tally is a 15 year old whose operation is imminent. Everything changes for her when she meets Shay, a teen who is thinking of running away. During Tally's adventure she learns more devious consequences of the pretty surgery. 

There is a bit of pre-dot com bust, pre-market crash, pre-2016 and pre-COVID innocence to this story. Sci-fi is a great way to make commentary on humanity. This book is more in the vein of 1984 and brave new world, where free will is valued and government oppression is warned against. I just don't know if the current public has the same concerns as when this book was written ('06).

Because like... if daddy government paid all my bills and no one in my family ever had to worry about disease or poverty... plus they throw in free lip fillers... sign me up? Sorry, Tally, I'd choose oppression. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings