Uglies (2005) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit see section history

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Summary edit see section history

Write a summary of the plot or a synopsis of this book.

Characters edit see section history

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• Tally Youngblood: She is the protagonist of the book. She at first wants to fit into society and become a "pretty." As the book progresses, she understands how flawed the "system" really is. In a society not unlike our own, obsessed with physical looks and attributes, she finds out what really happens in the "pretties" society
• Peris: Peris is a childhood friend of Tally Youngblood who turns Pretty before her. He serves as an example of how this world effects those who are taken by it.
• Shay: Shay is Tally's best friend and doesn't let anyone control her. She is a very independent troublemaker. Loves to use her hoverboard. Her Ugly nickname is "Skinny". Is considering the possibility that she will not have the surgery to become a Pretty.
• Sol and Ellie Youngblood: Tally's parents, whom she addresses using their first names. They are middle Pretties.
• David: Was born in the Smoke. Son of the founders of Smoke. David is the face of the Smoke to kids in the city and embodies the idea that people don't need the government's "helping hand" to live in this world. The true question is whether or not people Should be left to themselves to possibly repeat the mistakes of their, now extinct, ancestors. David believes so.
• Maddy and Az: David's parents - doctors who founded the Smoke.
• Dr. Cable: The woman in charge of Special Circumstances. She is absolutely certain that it's her job to prevent her city from repeating the appalling mistakes of the past.
• Jenks and Tonks: The two rangers who find Tally in their helicopter, and deliver her to a secure location to be picked up by members of the Smoke.
• Ryde: Young rebel
• Croy: Young rebel
• Astrix: Add a description of this character.
• Alek
• Crim
• Sussy
• Dex
• Tonk
• Rusty
• Az
• Count Volger
• Fausto

Quotes edit see section history

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• “Pg. 16 excerpt includes a descrption of the look that biological evoluation favors and that surgeons sculpt into every 16 year old... "...big eyes and lips said: I'm young and vulnerable, I can't hurt you, and you want to protect me. And the rest said: I'm healthy, I won't make you sick."”

• “g. 33 "high gravity: in reference tomaneuvering on a"hoverboard." ... her body weighed a ton. Shay called that "high gravity," which happened every time a fast-moving object changed direction."”

• “Pg. 58 Explanation of magnetic levitation, Conversation when Tally and Shay are exploring the forest, a good distance from town. "Walk? ... Yeah, there's a vein of iron about half a kilometer that way. ...Tally, hoverboards work on magnetic levitation, right? So there's go to be some kind of metal around or they don't hover... In town, there's a steel grid bulit into the ground, no matter where you go"”

  Shay

• “Pg 181-182 Introduces genetically engineered plant and monoculture. "About three hundred years ago, some Rusty figured a way to engineer the species to adapt to wider conditions. She messed with the genes tomake them propagate more e asily. .. they turned into the ultimate weed. What we call a monoculture. They crowd out every other species, choke trees and grass, and notheing eats them ..."”

• “Pg. 345 oil eating bacteria changed civilization "A bug got loose, but it didn't infect people. It infected petroleum. ... It changed the chemical composition of the oil. Have you ever seen phosphourus? ...Itcatches fire on contact with air. .."”

  Shay

• “Shay sometimes talked in a mysterious way, like she was quoting the lyrics to a band no one else listened to.”

  Tally Youngblood

• “The early summer sky was the color of cat vomit.”

  a metaphor by Tally Youngblood

• “Maybe the reason war and all that other stuff went away is that there are no more controversies, no disagreements, no people demanding change. Just masses of smiling pretties, and a few people left to run things.”

  David

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Uglyville: At the age of 12, you move to Uglyville, because you are considered Ugly. These dorms are closely monitored and very depressing.
• New Pretty Town: At the age of 16, after the operation, they move to New Pretty Town, a high-tech, fun-filled town where they throw parties every night.
• The Smoke: Founded by Maddy and Az, several uglies travel here to escape turning pretty. This is a wilderness camp, where no one is forced to become pretty.
• Special Circumstances: This is where the Specials live and keep their offices, which are used to "protect" the city from outside danger.
• Garbo Mansion: One of the many mansions in New Pretty Town.
• The Rusty Ruins: The ruins of a city that remains after the Rusties (the earlier civilization that did not survive) abandoned.

Organizations edit see section history

• Smokies: People who live in the Smoke. They are somewhat like wilderness people since they live outside in tents. All of them are Ugly, and have no desire to become pretty.
• Specials: Special Circumstances. Their faces are a beautiful, but frightening. They are super-human, and protect the city from outside danger. Most people believe they don't exist.
• New Pretties: They just recently became pretty. They live in New Pretty Town. (16-29)
• Uglies: The people that live in Uglyville and haven't yet gotten the procedure to turn them into a pretty. That will only happen when you are 16. (12-15)
• Littlies: The children that are 11 and younger and are still cute in a way, not pretty. Soon will be Uglies then when 16, they will become Pretty.
• Middle Pretties: They are the Pretties who are middle age. They are the working class. They have a minor operation to make them look older. (30-49)
• Late Pretties: These are the oldest of them all. Despite thier old age, they look still fresh and new due to all the medicine they take. They also take life extending treatments. They may live until the age of 200. (50-end of life)
• Wardens: The Middle Pretties that watch over the city. They run the city interface.

First Sentence edit see section history

Table of Contents edit see section history

Glossary edit see section history

• Uglies: The Uglies are those people who are under 16 who have not had the operation to make them "Pretty." Uglies look like what everyday people look like, but because they are seen as so ugly to the Pretties, they must live in a separate town called Uglyville.
• Pretties: The Pretties are those who have had the operation to make them "pretty." The Pretties are exceedingly good looking and their main job is to party and have a good time.
• Bubbly: basically means a postitive feeling, like giddiness or happiness. Is the "Pretty" word for good.
• Bogus: The "Pretty" word for anything bad, or anything they don't like.
• Specials: The people who keep peace among pretties. And who control the uglies.
• Rusties: The term for the people preceding the society. The Rusties are described as a barbaric people in the way that they had no regard for the environment and destroyed anything in their path. Rusties include everyone present-day today.

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

• conformity: If everyone does something, should you do it, too? Should you accept and believe everything you are told? What happens when you step out of the expectations of society and the majority?
• body image: How much do looks matter? How much pressure are we under to meet the standards set out by society? Who defines beauty?
• self-worth: Where does self worth come from? What role does society play in determining our worth? How can we develop a sense of self-worth?
• peer pressure: How much do our friends influence us?
• individuality: Is there a value to being different?

Series & Lists edit see section history

Followed by Pretties.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Scott Westerfeld (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Awards edit see section history

• Gateway Readers Award (2008: Grades 9-12)
• Iowa Teen Award
• Aurealis Award (Finalist, 2005: Best Young Adult Novel)
• Texas Lone Star Reading List (2006)

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: PZ7.W5197 Ugl 2005
• Dewey: WEST

Notes for Parents edit see section history

This book (the series actually) is good especially for young girls who are so caught up in the way they look. My daughter suffered with an eating disorder. She was hospitalized for it. Because the media pushes being skinny, unrealistically skinny, kids go to extreme measures to look the way the media tells them they should. The books address this issue in that it is a time when select people can change their looks to order...but at how great a price?

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Teens › Science Fiction & Fantasy › Science Fiction
• Books › Teens › Literature & Fiction › Adventure & Thrillers
• Books › Science Fiction & Fantasy › Science Fiction › High Tech
• Books › Science Fiction & Fantasy › Science Fiction › Adventure
• Books › Teens › Science & Technology › Computers

Links to Supplemental Material edit see section history

• Scott Westerfeld

Movie Connections edit see section history

• Uglies (IMDb)

More Books Like This edit see section history

Books Influenced by This Book edit see section history