By: Scott Westerfeld
Review by: Skitty
Warning: All reviews may contain spoilers.
 |  |  |
| So, I've just finished reading this high paced, sci-fi trilogy and I gotta say...teen fiction really is the place to be these days. I know that a lot of us, having reached a certain age, tend to shy away from the teen section thinking "surely these books will be far to flighty and immature for me." But not so, friends. Not so. I have found deeper reading here than I have in a very long life of slogging through the fiction and sci-fi sections. Here, we have found gold.
Uglies, Pretties, and Specials follow the tale of Tally Youngblood who seems to be your average teenager. However, in Tally's world, there are some very distinct classes. At the age of sixteen, all children, "Uglies," are given an operation to make them beautiful. In theory, this keeps everyone equal. It stabalizes the populace, eliminating things like war and over population, both of which were contributing factors to the near extinction of the human race several hundred years ago. Tally herself cannot wait to become beautiful. That is, of course, until her friend runs away, choosing to stay Ugly forever. From there, the trilogy truly begins. This series takes us through the wilds of a highly futuristic world as Tally first accepts life as an Ugly, then as a Pretty, and lastly, explores just what it really means to be Special. I think what I liked most about this series was the way there really are no clear answers. When it starts, you find yourself thinking as the Uglies do, that certainly it's a crime to brainwash the public with the operation. People should have the right to free will. But by the end, when you see what can become of a world in which there is no control, and how ultimately destructive human beings can be, you find yourself questioning that logic. All in all, this series is a must read. I was, myself, a bit hesitant to begin it, knowing that my own tastes tend to run more towards fantasy than Sci-fi. But this one I couldn't put down. What with the almost non-stop action, the unpredictable twists, and the compellingly written characters, I managed to fly through these books with a speed that amazed even me. These are not complexly written books, and are excellent for a bit of light, though thought provoking reading. I highly reccommend them for summer reading, say pool side, or down by the beach. | ||