This is a trilogy of three books: Uglies, Pretties and Specials. Set several hundred years in the future in California, society has determined that the reason for wars is that people are jealous of people who are prettier than they are. Therefore, at the age of 16 everyone receives plastic surgery and is moved to Pretty Island where they party all night long.

Tally longs for her sixteenth birthday but in the meanwhile enjoys forbidden pranks such as spying on the Pretties on their territory. When a friend of hers runs away to avoid the operation, Tally is blackmailed into searching for her in the wild area outside the city. This trek changes the way Tally looks at her society, especially when she makes a startling discovery about the “pretty” operation.

Reviewed by Janeway