Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Title: Uglies
Author: Scott Westerfeld
ISBN: 9780689865381
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Copyright Date: 2005
Genre: Science Fiction; Dystopian

About the Author:
Scott Westerfeld is a New York Times bestselling author of YA. He was born in the Texas and now lives in Sydney and New York City. In 2001, Westerfeld married fellow author Justine Larbalestier. He is best know for the Uglies and Leviathan series, and his next book, Afterworlds, comes out September 23, 2014.
His book Evolution's Darling was a New York Times Notable Book, and won a Special Citation for the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award. So Yesterday won a Victorian Premier's Award and both Leviathan and Midnighters 1: The Secret Hour won Aurealis Awards. Peeps and Uglies were both named as Best Books for Young Adults 2006 by the American Library Association.
Goodreads. Scott Westerfeld. http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13957.Scott_Westerfeld.

Curriculum Ties:

• Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze in detail its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
• Analyze how complex characters (e.g., those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme.

Plot Summary:
In the future, all oil based technology has become dangerous and obsolete. Society has changed, requiring extreme surgery which makes everyone pretty at sixteen, while those who do not get the surgery are called uglies. Tally is about to turn sixteen and is excited to become a pretty when she meets Shay, another young girl about to turn sixteen but is terrified about the thought of becoming pretty. Shay runs away, and the government requires Tally to go and find the Smoke, a hideout for people who do not want to be pretty. Tally goes and meets Shay there, as well as a young man named David, whose parents founded the Smoke and who begins to fall in love with Tally. Tally begins to enjoy the life in the Smoke, but accidentally brings the government to the settlement, resulting in everyone’s capture except her and David. They then must work together to find and free their friends, and find out the secrets of the government.

Critical Evaluation:
There are a few major themes in the book which are emphasized repeatedly. The first of these is the sense of identity. During the course of the book, Tally regularly struggles with what her decisions should be, including going with Shay, staying in the Smoke, and saving the others from the government. This culminates in the choice she makes to be pretty, but only to show that it can be cured. Over the course of the book, Tally evolves from a normal citizen of the society to a person who makes her own choices and works to help others. Tied into this theme is the idea of beauty being what is important, an idea that is emphasized in the society they live in. This view is highlighted when confronted with the Smoke’s emphasis on ability, like David’s survival skills or his parents’ intelligence. These themes help make the story more engaging and give a greater depth to the story.

Readers Annotation:
Tally is soon going to become a pretty, getting the plastic surgery to become a member of society. But when she meets Shay, she begins to wonder if that is the choice she wants to makes, and if it's not, what she should do.

Book Talking Ideas:

• Discuss what beauty means in the book. What is the harm of placing beauty before everything else?
• Talk about Shay as a character. What are her motivations for not wanting to be a pretty.

Reading Level/Interest Age: 12-18

Challenge Issues:

• There is some violence, including vivid descriptions of surgery

Defense Collection:

• Gr. 7-10. Fifteen-year-old Tally’s eerily harmonious, postapocalyptic society gives extreme makeovers to teens on their sixteenth birthdays, supposedly conferring equivalent evolutionary advantages to all. When a top-secret agency threatens to leave Tally ugly  forever unless she spies on runaway teens, she agrees to infiltrate the Smoke, a shadowy colony of refugees from the “tyranny of physical perfection.” At first baffled and revolted by the rebels’ choices, Tally eventually bonds with one of their leaders and begins to question the validity of institutionalized mutilation--especially as it becomes clear that the government’s surgeons may be doing more than cosmetic nipping and tucking. Although the narrative’s brisk pace is more successful in scenes of hover-boarding action than in convincingly developing Tally’s key relationships, teens will sink their teeth into the provocative questions about invasive technology, image-obsessed society, and the ethical quandaries of a mole-turned-ally. These elements, along with the obvious connections to reality programs such as Miami Slice, will surely cause this ingenious series debut to cement Westerfeld’s reputation for high-concept YA fiction that has wide appeal. Suggest M. T. Anderson’s Feed (2002) and Westerfeld’s own So Yesterday (2004) to readers antsy for the next installment. -- Jennifer Mattson (BookList, 03-15-2005, p1287)
• Gr 6 Up –Tally Youngblood lives in a futuristic society that acculturates its citizens to believe that they are ugly  until age 16 when they'll undergo an operation that will change them into pleasure-seeking "pretties." Anticipating this happy transformation, Tally meets Shay, another female ugly , who shares her enjoyment of hoverboarding and risky pranks. But Shay also disdains the false values and programmed conformity of the society and urges Tally to defect with her to the Smoke, a distant settlement of simple-living conscientious objectors. Tally declines, yet when Shay is found missing by the authorities, Tally is coerced by the cruel Dr. Cable to find her and her compatriots–or remain forever "ugly ." Tally's adventuresome spirit helps her locate Shay and the Smoke. It also attracts the eye of David, the aptly named youthful rebel leader to whose attentions Tally warms. However, she knows she is living a lie, for she is a spy who wears an eye-activated locator pendant that threatens to blow the rebels' cover. Ethical concerns will provide a good source of discussion as honesty, justice, and free will are all oppressed in this well-conceived dystopia. Characterization, which flirts so openly with the importance of teen self-concept, is strong, and although lengthy, the novel is highly readable with a convincing plot that incorporates futuristic technologies and a disturbing commentary on our current public policies. Fortunately, the cliff-hanger ending promises a sequel.–Susan W. Hunter, Riverside Middle School, Springfield, VT --Susan W. Hunter (Reviewed March 1, 2005) (School Library Journal, vol 51, issue 3, p221)
• Awards: 
• Eliot Rosewater Indiana High School Book Award (Rosie Award)
• Garden State Teen Book Awards (New Jersey): Fiction (Grades 6-8)
• Golden Duck Awards: Hal Clement Award for Young Adult
• Illinois Readers' Choice Awards: Abraham Lincoln Award
• School Library Journal Best Books: 2005
• Virginia Readers' Choice Award: High School (Grades 10-12)
• YALSA Best Books for Young Adults: 2006
• YALSA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults: Post-Apocalyptic: It's the End of the World As We Know It (2016)
• Reconsideration Policy
• Freedom to Read Statement
• ALA Library Bill of Rights
• Springville Public Library Collection Development Policy
• The Library Director and designated staff actively evaluate and select materials. The Springville Public Library Board, acting under the authority given to it by Title 4, Chapter 6 of the Springville Municipal Code and Title 09 of the Utah State Code, has the ultimate responsibility for the determination of the policies for selection and acquisition of materials.
• Library materials are selected based on the following (not necessarily in order of priority):
• Local public demand and usage potential
• Popularity
• Subject coverage
• Relevance
• Accuracy and currency
• Presentation, readability and format
• Point of view (all sides)
• Cost
• Local connection
• Social values
• Collection balance
• To assess the item based on the above criteria, staff utilize:
• Nationally recognized and relevant pre-publication reviews
• Staff expertise
• Bestseller lists

Purpose in Collection:

The Uglies has a very positive message about how beauty isn't the most important thing in life. It also features a female protagonist as the main character, which helps bring this point home. It is also a fairly popular book that begins a series.