Book Review: Specials

Title: Specials

Author: Scott Westerfeld

Genre: Dystopian/Sci-Fi

Page Count: 372

Publication Date: September 2007 (first published May 9th, 2006)

Publisher: Scholastic

Source

*WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

     Specials by Scott Westerfeld is the third and final book in the Uglies trilogy. This book follows Tally Youngblood's journey as a dreaded special. Specials are the equivalent to our modern day police. They have razor-sharp teeth, body modifications to make them lethal, and extremely high-tech technology. Dr. Cable has finally managed to turn Tally into a special so she can use her for her own purposes. As members of Special Circumstances, Tally and Shay must hunt down the New Smoke and stop them from curing the pretties. This book is action-packed, delivers a significant message, and is an excellent conclusion to the trilogy.

     First of all the story was action-packed. The beginning of the story starts off with Tally, Shay, and Fausto, the Cutters, running after some members of the New Smoke, a group of people who choose to live in the wild instead of living in the luxurious city. This opening scene instantly hooked me. Both the Cutters and the New Smoke were using a technology, called a sneak suit, to blend in with their surroundings so one couldn't see the other. As I have mentioned before, I love this technology! Also, throughout the story Tally and Shay are on a wild chase to capture the New Smoke and stop them from curing the pretties. During this journey, Tally tries to get over her ex-boyfriend, Zane, and move on to become a better special. I found this part very annoying. Tally was constantly watching Zane and questioning his wellness. She kept telling herself that she didn't need him but deep inside she really did. I kept thinking to myself,"Get over him already! Do what you need to do, you don't need to be so obsessed with him." Besides that, I liked how Tally went through, yet another, stage of finding her true identity during that adventure. I don't know why but I really love seeing characters build into fantastic people. Additionally, I enjoyed the city of Diego. I found it interesting how the people living there were constantly changing their style and trying out crazy fashion trends. I was really enthralled by the scene where Tally was locked up by the Diego doctors. I was in suspense to find out Tally's fate and how she was going to get out of the situation. In addition, I thought it was unrealistic that a small prank that Tally and Shay pulled could start a huge war between cities. I know that Dr. Cable took advantage of the situation to create the war, but in reality I don't think that people would be so stupid to go into waging a war. The war, however, was interesting to read about.

     Secondly, the story left an important message. The story ended with Tally defeating Special Circumstances and ending the rain of brain damage. Tally and David leave a letter behind stating that they don't think that anyone needs them to do the saving anymore and that the city civilians shouldn't be completely free because "freedom has a way of destroying things". I really appreciated the ending because it shows that people don't need to be dependent on others to do all of the heavy lifting for them and that people are fully able to survive and thrive on their own. I also believe that the phrase "freedom has a way of destroying things" is true because if you leave the population with no set of rules or laws and let them run free, they will find a way do stupid things and endanger the people around them. Also, the whole trilogy centers around how outer beauty is more important than inner beauty which is later proved false. This dystopian city gives everyone plastic surgery and messes with his/her brain when they turn sixteen to make them "pretty". Later on in this last book, Tally stops the city from doing this operation to prove that the world can survive without cosmetic surgeries and brain-dead people.

     All in all, this book was excellent! The story was very action-packed and left a significant message for readers. I am sad that this trilogy is over but I am looking forward to moving on the companion novel Extras. I recommend this series to people who like stories about alternate realities and science fiction.

Book Review: Pushing the Limits

Title: Pushing the Limits

Author: Katie McGarry

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Page Count: 416

Publication Date: July 31, 2012

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Awards: 2013 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Readers, RT Magazine's 2012 Reviewers Choice Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel, 2012 Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel
Source  Source

*NO SPOILERS*

     Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry is about two complicated teenagers, Echo Emerson and Noah Hutchkins, who's lives intertwine in the most unexpected way. Echo has no memory of what happened one terrible night when she went from popular girl with a jock boyfriend to the school freak with gross scars on her arms. Also, her home life is very complicated. Her mom is bipolar while her dad and stepmom are very strict on her and don't allow her to do what she wants. Noah is the school bad boy who everyone tries too avoid. Noah has a reputation of using girls and being a druggie. One day after an intense session of therapy, Echo is forced to tutor Noah and their relationship builds from there. Noah and Echo go through a journey of self-discovery together and realize that their lives can be healed over time. This book had very well-thought-out characters, touched very deep topics, and a storyline that wouldn't let me put the book down and left me in awe. 

      First of all, this book had excellent well-thought-out characters. Echo struggles with depression after her brother died and her mom is placed under a restraining order. She has to live through the strict conditions of her dad and stepmom while trying to keep herself happy. Throughout the course of the story, Echo tries to remember what happened to her that awful night. I thought that this part of the story really helped show Echo's character by exposing her determination that she didn't even know she had. I found that Echo was a very insecure character but I liked it because I think that some people will be able to relate to her. Also, Echo competes with her inner conscience to decide whether to stay with her jerk boyfriend from her past or to trust her newfound feelings for the bad boy, Noah. This, I feel, helped build her self-trust and showed that she didn't care what the other students thought of her after hiding in the shadows for so long. Noah has a different, but at the same time similar, situation to deal with. He has a reputation he has to live with at school but he also has to face being a foster child and not being able to see his two younger brothers. This revealed Noah's love of his brothers and his persistence to get his brothers back. He is a very strong character who copes with his own lack of self-confidence as well as the pressure that others put him under. I think that Echo and Noah fit very well together and worked great together to conquer their issues.

     Also, this book discusses some very deep and serious real-world problems. For example, Noah had to live with an abusive foster father. I think that issues, such as child abuse, don't get talked about a lot in young adult literature. Also, Echo's boyfriend, on several occasions, tried to pressure into having sex. This was a big issue Echo had to deal with throughout the story. She was conflicted with not doing it , upsetting her boyfriend and staying a virgin forever and doing it just for the sake of satisfying her boyfriend. This happens in the real-world and I don't think that people at such a young age should be pressured into having sex just for "bragging rights". 

     Lastly, this book had a storyline that hooked me and left me in awe. The relationship between Echo and Noah kept me engaged the whole time. Noah and Echo were an unlikely couple but worked perfectly. They comforted each other through each other's time of need and helped each other other find the secrets to their past. The dual perspectives really helped deliver the full effect of the story. Both Echo and Noah had very different train of thoughts and I really enjoyed reading from both of their perspectives. The beginning of the story was a little slow but it gradually picked up the pace. I think that the pacing of the story worked really well.

   Overall, Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry was amazing. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good contemporary novel. I went into this expecting a light fluffy romance, and there was a good majority of romance, but it wasn't completely focused on the romance and more on self-discovery. It still greatly satisfied me!

Friday Reads: April 11th

     First of all, I apologize for my absence the last two weeks. I went on a school trip and was unable to read anything or update my blog. As a little update I decided to do a Friday reads! As you may know, I was reading Specials by Scott Westerfeld, but when I came back from my trip I wasn't in the mood at all to continue that book and was in the mood for a contemporary. So, I decided to pick up Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry. Don't worry! As soon as I finish this I will be finishing Specials and reviewing it! From the inside flap, "No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with 'freaky' scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal. But when Noah Hutchkins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible. Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again,". I am currently on page 122 and so far, this book is pretty gripping! The story is deeper than I thought it was going to be. I'm anxious to see the romance pick up and how Echo and Noah resolve their problems.