Abigail's Book Blog

Synopsis: Like every other teenager, Tally Youngblood can’t wait to turn 16. In her world, 16 is a magic number: it is the age at which every undesirable, “ugly” teen undergoes surgery to become their true, “pretty” selves. Remaining an ugly is unthinkable, or so Tally thinks, until she meets fellow ugly Shay, who reveals to her that the business of becoming pretty is not all it is cracked up to be. Tally must decide whether to embrace her childhood dreams or give them up, and face a new reality where appearances no longer matter. General Thoughts: Uglies has always been in my general periphery; my friends and I read Scott Westerfield’s Leviathan back in middle school, and I have vague memories there being quite a buzz about Uglies at the time. I realize I am very late to this particular party, but I have to say I’ve definitely enjoyed the experience. The premise alone is a fascinating one, but I believe it’s what Westerfield does with it that really brings it to life. I was also pleas...

Synopsis: In a legend come true, young Prince Ardwin is cursed to live with a swan’s wing in place of his left arm. Under the watchful eye of his father the king his life is bliss, but when war threatens their kingdom, Ardwin flees to the far reaches of the country. Ultimately, he must make a decision about the path his life will take: should be lose the wing, and risk losing himself? Or keep it, and risk losing everything? General Thoughts: I’m a sucker for stories about animal people, and Birdwing far exceeded my expectations. It maintains it’s fairy-tale like aesthetic while still having an engaging plot, something that’s not always easy to do. This is easily one of the best books I’ve read this year, and it’s one that I will probably be thinking about for a long time to come. Birdwing reminds me a lot of Summer and Bird, another fairy-tale like story about swans and ancient curses and children who have to deal with them. Summer and Bird was genuinely one of my favorite books at the...