Welcome and Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Welcome to my Blog!

Hello people of the Internet! This is Chely, coming at you live from my computer! On this blog we I'll talk about many things, mostly books though because, after all, this is a Book blog. But first, a little about me. My name is Chely, and I love books with a burning passion that cannot be contained. I love books of all kinds, and have a small, but compact, shelf of books in my room that holds more than one-hundred-and-twenty books (I counted). I try to read a variety of books, but it appears that at a young age, I'm a hopeless romantic (wait, scratch that. Hopeful romantic, I'm too young to be hopeless), and tend to read books with some sort of paranormal something, because I typically find real life boring.  This is my first Blog, so please be patient with me as I lean the trade and rules of the Blog world, and forgive me for my errors, as I try and work out the kinks I know are bound to happen here. And another thing, I can be pretty terrible at spelling, so please forgive me for any spelling and punctuation errors that can, and will happen.

I will try and have a variety of books, older and newer, and I will constantly need suggestions on what everyone want me to read and review. I can't promise that I'll read them all, due to how much it will cost me, and the fact that I have other things I need to accomplish during the week. I'll try to post once a week, at the least. Oh, and don't be surprised if you see a movie reference here and there. I absolutely adore movies, and if books didn't exist, this would probably be a movie blog. Just to give you an idea about how much I love movies, I have one going in the background as I type this.

So enough about me, lets get to the books! For my very first blog post, I've picked one of my favorites:

Original Cover

Uglies By Scott Westerfeld 

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and can't wait. In just a few weeks she'll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunning pretty. And as a pretty, be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun.
But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to become a pretty. 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 a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally's choice will change her world forever.

New Cover

Summary: Tally is just an average fifteen-year-old, she just wants to fit in. But she lives in a dystopian world where the face you were born with is considered ugly, and your only considered 'pretty' if you're sixteen, and had the operation that completely changes who you are- inside, and out. This operation gives you new, unblemished skin, big eyes, full lips, and symmetrical features. But this operation changes among lots of other things, like your mind.  When her friend Paris turns sixteen, gets the operation, and moves into New Pretty Town, a place for pretties only, all Tally wants to do is get the operation, and join him at the wild parties and events that take place in New Pretty Town. But when Tally makes a new friend named Shay, they get along great, except for when it comes to the subject of the operation. Unlike all the other fifteen-year-olds, Shay doesn't seem to want to become a pretty. And right before her sixteenth birthday, Shay disappears, leaving Tally a note that only she will understand with directions on how to find her. But Shays sudden vanishing act has more impact on Tally's life than she knows. On her sixteenth birthday, when Tally is suppose to finally get her operation, she learns there is more to her Ugly world that she knows. The people who control her world give her a choice: find Shay and the new crowd she's running with and then turn her in, or never become pretty, which is all Tally has ever wanted. To avoid being a social outcast for the rest of her life, Tally heads off to find Shay, on an wild and scary adventure, filled with crazy obstacles.When she eventually finds Shay, shes surprised by what she finds: a whole thriving society of people determined to not be pretty, who live in a place called the Smoke, and they accept her with open arms. It's there she learns something important about the operation: being pretty, isn't all its thought to be. With this new information Tally has to make a choice: betray her new friends in the Smoke, or get the outer beauty she's always dreamed of.


Characters: This book has a slew of lovable characters. You really get to know Tally and how she thinks before you jump right into the story. Also, Tally is and isn't too different from the fifteen-year-olds nowadays. She wants to fit in, but stand out, and she wants to do the right thing, but she isn't quite sure what that is. And as Tally struggles with right and wrong, you begin to see her grow as she's trying to make her choice. Shay has become one of my favorite co-characters, as I call them. People who are important to the story, but it isn't all about them. She's basically the reckless friend that's a bad influence on you, and your parents wish that you two had never met.

Romance: Though it's not really expected, there is some romance throughout the book. But don't expect to start reading and be greeted by an kissing scene. This well-developed romance happens in the later half of the book. You can tell that the romance was well thought-out and planned because it played a part in the story, unlike some books who seem to have a last-second idea to throw a love interest in there. This romance is important to the story, and plays an important roll later on in the series. 

Intro & Ending: The very beginning is a bit hard to get into, due to the fact that the author has created a world all his own, with technological advances that you have no idea about (i.e. hoverboard, interface ring, ect.) but Westerfeld does a good job guiding you through it, so that eventually you know and understand what each object does. The ending left me shocked and wanting more. It's not a cliffhanger exactly, but it leaves you wanting to know what happens next. Lucky for you, the other three books have long since come out. 

Originality: This is probably a category that you don't see in most reviews. I think it's very important for authors to come up with their own stories, own ideas. I hate it when I'm reading a book and I can totally tell what inspired that part of the book because of how similar it is! But in this book, you have no idea what inspired it, it's all his own creation. Westerfeld has created a world entirely his own, and invented things that make me wish to be part of the story. Writing from the future is difficult for some, because you have to think of what happened in the past. But Westerfeld has come up with enough information on the fictional history in this story to be a short history lesson! Not only has he created a new world, but also the reason that world was created, and its not confusing to the reader, which is a bonus. For Originality, I'd give this book a 5 out of 5.

Rating: Overall, this book is getting a rating of 5 out of 5 stars. It was totally original, with lots of twists, and turns that leave you surprised. With a hint of unexpected romance, this book has it all. Not only is it dystopian, but it address the idea that you shouldn't have to go along with what society thinks is 'pretty'. Uglies is a book suited for just about any age, and with it being the first book in a four-part series, it leaves you wanting more.




Well, my movie has started to roll its credits, and the fact that I've looked up at it long enough to notice that means I've finished my first blog entry. And I have to say, it feels pretty good. Hope you enjoyed this blog as much as I did writing it, and I hope that you read more from here in the future. Enjoy your books!