Dirty, pretty things
Ta-da! I didn't want to jinx it by writing it down, but I found a very special book at my library and was determined to finish it before FINALLY going home tomorrow (or maybe I should say later today?).
I think this is the first sci-fi novel I've reviewed. I've stayed away from the genre since the days of elementary school, but this seemed so enduringly popular that I had to try.
Tally is a fifteen-year-old living in a peaceful, self-sufficient futuristic city where she is able to have or do almost anything. Living in a dorm away from her parents, she spends her days going to classes and playing pranks around the city. Only one thing is missing from her life: she is an Ugly, and wants to become a Pretty. All senior uglies get an operation at sixteen that turns them into incredibly beautiful people, and then they all go on to lead blissful lives. But Tally's made a friend, Shay, who doesn't want that to happen to her. Shay says there's a place where ugly people go to escape the operation, the city, the only world they know. At first, Tally doesn't believe her, choosing to be content in the knowledge that once you turn pretty, your happiness is garunteed. But then Tally is sent on a mission by the mysterious Specials, and she discovers the encampment called the Smoke, and within it, an entirely new outlook on life.
This is undoubtedly one of the heaviest YA books out there - gripping, intense, action-filled, and thought-provoking. In many ways, it's quite like The Giver. It has a protagonist who is chosen (in this case, chooses) to fulfill a task that ultimately leads her to gain a whole new perspective on her picture-perfect society. Tally is endlessly engrossing, a spirited teen with a biting sense of sarcasm who proves to have the endurance to face every new adventure. Her relationship with Shay changes as she gets to know David, a sort of leader of the Smoke whose interest in Tally far outstrips his interest in Shay (who ironically proves to be somewhat superficial, only not about beauty like Tally is). Her loyalty is tested severely more than once, beginning with Peris, her oldest friend who turned pretty before her. She also learns something about being ugly vs. being pretty, as well as an important discovery David's scientist parents made about how the operation affects people negatively. The way we learn about this future - no wars, no poverty, no trash, no waste - is skillfully inserted in the prose; it's all very second nature to Tally. Oh, and they have hoverboards. Because what future society doesn't? Actually, the hoverboards help create some of the most amazing and fast-paced action scenes I've ever read. Westerfeld has succeeded in creating a world entirely its own - incredible and believeable at the same time. And the story never lets up, not even after the couple of late plot twists that grabbed me by surprise.
The society of the ugly/pretty people is mind-blowing in its perfection. They are huge on recycling, perserving the environment, and not screwing up like the "Rusties" did - those people from centuries ago who drove themselves to extinction. Pretties were invented, we are told, so that appearances do not cause fights or wars - because that's one of the things the Rusties succumbed to. We learn that New Pretty Town's idea of "pretty" exceeds more than we can imagine. More importantly, we learn that the uglies aren't ugly at all - they're just like us. Only they're scared of ugly.
It's a heady trip, and one you have to take. I plan on tracking down the rest of this series soon, because I've got to finish this. Rating: 4 hoverboards out of 5.