Pretties: Uglies Quartet, Book 2
By Carrie R. Wheadon,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Sci-fi series sequel less fresh but still discussion-worthy.
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TERRABLE FOR KIDS
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What's the Story?
"Tally-wa" as our heroine is now called, is suddenly "Pretty," which means she was made into a perfect human specimen like everyone else over 16. After her big operation, she is living large and often intoxicated in New Pretty Town. Because of her exciting past escape to the wilds -- something she barely remembers after the operation robbed her of a fully-functioning brain -- she's a shoe-in for the Crims clique, where all the Pretties who want to pretend they're still "bubbly" (the least brain addled) hang out. Zane, one of the bubbliest Crims, helps Tally find the pills her Ugly friends left her, which could cure her. Only, as the security team closes in, Tally panics and splits the pills with Zane, a move with potentially disastrous results.
Is It Any Good?
After the cliffhanger at the end of Uglies, readers are bound to have high hopes for PRETTIES; and while there's certainly still plenty to discuss, this one is a little less fresh. Part of the problem is that Tally is in New Pretty Town for so long. It's weeks before Tally and Zane get the pills, motivate their friends, and hatch another escape plan. New Pretty Town is a bit like a futuristic Las Vegas, and while it's fun to gawk and listen to the Pretty-speak for a bit ("Did you see the frost, Zane-la? So icy-making."), but it soon grows thin. Readers may be frustrated by page 200 when the main characters still haven't left the city. Even so, Westerfeld masterfully crafts another jaw-dropping cliffhanger at the end of this installment, which will get readers excited about the series -- especially since the next book, Specials, is named after the city's dreaded security force.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the popularity of this series. Why are book about controlling future societies so popular right now, especially with teens?
If you have to choose between being a Pretty or being truly human, which would you choose? What are the pros and cons of each choice? What do you think the author was trying to get teens to think about?
Book Details
- Author: Scott Westerfeld
- Genre: Science Fiction
- Book type: Fiction
- Publisher: Simon Pulse
- Publication date: May 5, 2005
- Publisher's recommended age(s): 12 - 17
- Number of pages: 368
- Last updated: July 12, 2017
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