Uglies
Tally Youngblood is 15 years old and lives in a futuristic dystopian world. She’s also known as an “Ugly.”
When teenagers turn 16, they go through numerous complex plastic surgeries to become Pretties—mega-beautiful supermodels whose jobs are simply to party, be happy, and simply exist. Racial and social issues are no longer a problem. Everyone stays happy for the rest of their lives.
As Tally looks forward to her 16th birthday, which is only weeks away, she meets Shay—an adventurous, free-thinking and intelligent girl her same age who isn’t quite excited about being “Pretty.” In fact, Shay knows the real reason doctors are turning people into Pretties, and it’s not pretty (sorry, I couldn’t help it).
When Shay runs away to escape the world of Pretties, Tally is recruited by the government to track her down. She’ll never become a Pretty herself unless she brings Shay back.
At that point, Tally must decide if she wants to deceive her best friend to become a Pretty or risk staying an Ugly forever.
Uglies
Also, Westerfeld “tells” rather than “shows” Tally’s character development. Fortunately, the story itself is amazing. I didn’t like Tally at all and probably won’t read any more of these.
The books that come after Uglies in this series are:
Have you read this series — if so, what are your thoughts on the Uglies
Last Updated on January 3, 2026 by Sarah Ann
Affiliate Disclosure: There may be affiliate links in this content. This means I earn a small commission if you buy anything from those links. This comes at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support.
Leave a Reply