What does your 16th birthday mean to you? Getting a license? A new car? Throwing a crazy party with all your friends? For Tally Youngblood, turning 16 means turning pretty. In Tally’s world of the near future, “turning pretty” is a complicated operation everyone undergoes on their 16th birthday. The operation transforms you from an average Ugly into a flawless, beautiful person, called a Pretty, with no responsibilities or worries. Sounds good, right? But not everything is as it seems...



“I don’t want to be ugly all my life. I want those perfect eyes and lips, and for everyone to look at me and gasp.”


Tally can’t wait any longer to turn pretty. Since she’s the youngest in her group of friends, Tally has been alone for months in Uglyville until she meets the mischievous Shay. The girls become fast friends, sharing a love of hoverboards and pranking. It seems nothing can tear them apart, until they face the biggest prank of all: running away. Shay leaves the city to join the Smoke, a civilization of runaways who don’t want to be pretty, leaving Tally behind with coded instructions to the Smoke’s secret location. When reinforcements get involved, they offer Tally the hardest decision of her life: betray Shay and bring down the Smoke or remain ugly for life. The choice Tally makes will lead her on an incredible journey that makes her question everything she knows, and changes her life forever.







Uglies is an exciting novel that captivates me from page 1. Scott Westerfeld really explores the subject of beauty not being all it’s cracked up to be, and his humorous touch on an overall serious plot proves that he is one of the greatest authors of our generation. Westerfeld, author of Midnighters and honored on BBYB Best Books of the Year selection, combines sci-fi with everyday problems in a novel that attracts both teens and adults. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys adventure, comedy, and futuristic themes. Uglies is a book I will definitely read again and easily rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars.