(no subject)
34/50 Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
35/50 Pretties by Scott Westerfeld
Recently, I've been in the habit of hating the beginning of books, settling down in the middle, then thoroughly enjoying myself for the rest of it. Uglies was no exception, probably because I didn't like the main character until she matured a bit. Uglies, Pretties and Specials (which I haven't gotten a hold of yet, argh) is a trilogy about Tally Youngblood who lives in a world where everyone undergoes an operation, at the age of 16, to turn pretty. Before 16, people are "ugly" although we would probably describe them as normal. A few months before her 16th birthday (and the operation), Tally meets Shay who isn't sure she wants to become pretty. Shay runs away, and Tally is forced to run after her or else Tally will remain ugly forever. (A real threat out of the book... and not one of its stronger points.)
I think I was disappointed at the beginning because I expected Westerfeld to make an indictment about our society's standards of beauty or something. But that isn't exactly what I got. I did get a nice story of a girl growing up, learning the truth about the world she lives in, then going about solving her problems with creative thinking. Which was a satisfactory substitute. I can't wait to get my hands on the third book (Specials).
Westerfeld's writing was okay (not awful, but not a deterrent for my eyes glazing over) and peppered with "futuristic" slang that were a hit or miss. I liked the "dizzy-making" "pretty-making" pretty talk, but cringed at the word "littlies." It's too painful to say. :P
Next: Kabul Beauty School, The Frog Princess, or Poison Study
Rest of My Reading List
35/50 Pretties by Scott Westerfeld
Recently, I've been in the habit of hating the beginning of books, settling down in the middle, then thoroughly enjoying myself for the rest of it. Uglies was no exception, probably because I didn't like the main character until she matured a bit. Uglies, Pretties and Specials (which I haven't gotten a hold of yet, argh) is a trilogy about Tally Youngblood who lives in a world where everyone undergoes an operation, at the age of 16, to turn pretty. Before 16, people are "ugly" although we would probably describe them as normal. A few months before her 16th birthday (and the operation), Tally meets Shay who isn't sure she wants to become pretty. Shay runs away, and Tally is forced to run after her or else Tally will remain ugly forever. (A real threat out of the book... and not one of its stronger points.)
I think I was disappointed at the beginning because I expected Westerfeld to make an indictment about our society's standards of beauty or something. But that isn't exactly what I got. I did get a nice story of a girl growing up, learning the truth about the world she lives in, then going about solving her problems with creative thinking. Which was a satisfactory substitute. I can't wait to get my hands on the third book (Specials).
Westerfeld's writing was okay (not awful, but not a deterrent for my eyes glazing over) and peppered with "futuristic" slang that were a hit or miss. I liked the "dizzy-making" "pretty-making" pretty talk, but cringed at the word "littlies." It's too painful to say. :P
Next: Kabul Beauty School, The Frog Princess, or Poison Study
Rest of My Reading List