Uglies
“Uglies is the first book of a trilogy that shouts from the rooftops of literature why Westerfeld is a master of his genre.” If you like to wonder what the future might hold, I recommend reading Uglies by Scott Westerfeld because of his idea that in the future, things are going to change, the realistic characters in such an unrealistic book, and all the nail-biting moments of suspense.

I hope that if anything is drastically changed in the future, that this is what happens. Instead of getting your license or your first job when you’re sixteen, you get an operation that turns you from a frizzy-haired, squinty-eyed ugly to a sparkly, bubby, perfect pretty. In Uglies, the face you’re born with is considered ugly, but that all changes on your sixteenth birthday. Who wouldn’t want to be pretty? The operation changes what you look like completely. They even change all of your skin. They peel it off like a cat plucking feathers out of a bird. They have such worry-free lives. Their job is to party and have fun. But Tally meets somebody while crashing a pretty party. Tally and Shay run into each other trying to escape New Pretty Town, where uglies are not allowed. Tally figures it’d be nice to have a friend while she waits to be with Peris in New Pretty Town, so Shay and Tally become friends. One day when Tally and Shay were talking about the operation, Shay says that she doesn’t want the operation. She doesn’t even want to use the computer screens that show you what you’d look like as a pretty. Imagine the suspense you’d feel if you weren’t allowed to see what you’d look like as a pretty. “This whole game is designed just to make us hate ourselves. So what if people look more alike now? It’s the only way to make people feel equal.”

One thing I loved about this book is how real the author made it sound. For being a science fiction book, that characters were so believable. Something that I didn’t expect was how realistic the problems were that the characters faced. After Tally meets Shay, the Special Circumstances hears that Shay doesn’t want to get the operation. They gave Tally a choice; She either turns in Shay, or Tally won’t ever become pretty, ever. Tally doesn’t know whether or not to run away with Shay, and leave behind New Pretty Town, or to turn Shay in, and join her best friend Peris, who is two months older than her, and has already turned pretty.

If that isn’t enough for you to want to run to the nearest library and check this book out, let me tell you more. Uglies keeps you guessing the whole time. You will never get bored reading this book. For example, when Shay introduces Tally to her friend David, her friend who lives in The Smoke, (an abandoned town outside of Uglyville) David asks his parents id they can share their secret with Tally, but David’s parents aren’t sure if they can trust her. After David convinces them, David’s dad, Az, says to Tally, “I suppose we’ll have to tell you, Tally; The truth about being pretty.” That’s when Tally starts second guessing the whole operation. Her final decision isn’t nearly the most gut-wrenching moment in the book. It’s at the end when the reader is left hanging; when they find out they have to read the nest book in the Trilogy, Pretties, to see what happens next.

After you finish this trilogy, you’ll be so happy to hear there’s a fourth book, Extras, but after that, you’ll wish it wasn’t over. This book would be a good book for any teenager. Scott Westerfeld has also written thirteen other books for young adults. Not only is this a good book because of the ideas that might happen in the future, but also how real it feels, and also the suspenseful moments that keep you on your toes. I highly recommend reading Uglies.