Uglies - Book Review (repost)

Uglies (Uglies #1)
by Scott Westerfeld

What is it about:
In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there.

But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to be pretty. She'd rather risk life on the outside. 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 the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever.

What did I think of it:
Yet another book with world building that had me frowning a bit.

Don't get me wrong: the whole 'Uglies turn Pretty at 16 and then get to party all the time' was an intriguing idea, but I would have wanted to learn a bit more. Who's doing all the work when all those Pretties are partying? Where does the city get its resources? Stuff like that. It felt incomplete and that made it hard for me to believe in the world Westerfeld created. (Later on in the book you learn a little bit more, but still not enough.)

Luckily the story was really suspenseful and full of action, so I quickly was able to forget about the inconsistencies and concentrate on the story.

And the story is really cool!

Tally is a total brat, but still likeable enough that you want to root for her. She might not always make the smartest choice, but the way Westerfeld wrote her made me able to go along with it and understand why she made certain choices.

Tally's choices lead her outside of the city (eventually) and I must confess I was very happy about that. The world outside is much more intriguing than the city and felt more real to me. I wouldn't mind learning even more about the outside in future books.

In the end I enjoyed this book much more than I had expected after reading the first few chapters and I will certainly try to get hold of the next book to see how this story continues.

Why should you read it:
It's a suspenseful and intriguing YA Dystopian read.

Pretties - Book Review

Pretties (Uglies #2)
by Scott Westerfeld

What is it about:
Gorgeous. Popular. Perfect. Perfectly wrong.

Tally has finally become pretty. Now her looks are beyond perfect, her clothes are awesome, her boyfriend is totally hot, and she's completely popular. It's everything she's ever wanted.

But beneath all the fun -- the nonstop parties, the high-tech luxury, the total freedom -- is a nagging sense that something's wrong. Something important. Then a message from Tally's ugly past arrives. Reading it, Tally remembers what's wrong with pretty life, and the fun stops cold.

Now she has to choose between fighting to forget what she knows and fighting for her life -- because the authorities don't intend to let anyone with this information survive.

What did I think of it:
Although a nice read I didn't like this book as much as Uglies, the first book in this series.

The world building is still lacking enough explanation to satisfy my curiosity. The whole society feels unreal because of that.

Then there's the mixed messages Westerfeld is giving in this book. The Pretties and their world are wrong, he seems to want to say, but at the same time his lead characters, who are fighting against the system, are all but anorexic (there's a reason they're not eating, but still) and at one time in the story Tally practically gets worshipped because of her Pretty looks.

And of course: We can't have a YA series without a love triangle, now can we?

Those annoyances aside I enjoyed the story. Tally is still likeable, even as an airheaded Pretty and Zane (the newly introduced last side of our love triangle) was a very interesting and cool character as well. I rooted for them to find a solution to their problems.

The book ended in a cliffhanger ending that would have annoyed me if it wasn't for the fact I know I can borrow the next book in this series from a friend as soon as she has finished reading it.

Why should you read it:
It's a nice Dystopian YA read

Uglies - Book Review

Uglies (Uglies #1)
by Scott Westerfeld

What is it about:
In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there.

But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to be pretty. She'd rather risk life on the outside. 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 the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever.

What did I think of it:
Yet another book with world building that had me frowning a bit.

Don't get me wrong: the whole 'Uglies turn Pretty at 16 and then get to party all the time' was an intriguing idea, but I would have wanted to learn a bit more. Who's doing all the work when all those Pretties are partying? Where does the city get its resources? Stuff like that. It felt incomplete and that made it hard for me to believe in the world Westerfeld created. (Later on in the book you learn a little bit more, but still not enough.)

Luckily the story was really suspenseful and full of action, so I quickly was able to forget about the inconsistencies and concentrate on the story.

And the story is really cool!

Tally is a total brat, but still likeable enough that you want to root for her. She might not always make the smartest choice, but the way Westerfeld wrote her made me able to go along with it and understand why she made certain choices.

Tally's choices lead her outside of the city (eventually) and I must confess I was very happy about that. The world outside is much more intriguing than the city and felt more real to me. I wouldn't mind learning even more about the outside in future books.

In the end I enjoyed this book much more than I had expected after reading the first few chapters and I will certainly try to get hold of the next book to see how this story continues.

Why should you read it:
It's a suspenseful and intriguing YA Dystopian read.