Here’s an interesting question: Is Uglies a “girl book”?
Well, okay, if you put it that way, it’s a stupid question. It’s just a book, and it has as much supposedly “boy stuff” (things exploding, hoverboard chases, science fiction) as it does supposedly “girl stuff” (relationships, plastic surgery, things not exploding).
So the first thing I’ll say is, I’d hate for this post to suggest to anyone that these books aren’t for them. I write for everyone. (Except for boring people.) And I’d especially hate to suggest to any male readers that reading Uglies will “un-man” them. (Snorts derisively.) But it’s still a really interesting question about how readers see themselves, especially teens.
For example, I’ve seen the following in email and comments over the past few months:
A) Girls saying that they couldn’t get male friends to read the series.
B) Boys wondering if they’ll get hassled for carrying the books around.
C) And people of all genders saying the whole question is silly, of course.
It hasn’t been a huge thing. Most people who post here are pretty much into discussing the characters, themes, and imagery—which is as it should be. And no one seems to worry about Peeps, Midnighters, or So Yesterday. But there’s been just enough gender questions about Uglies to make me curious, and I’d like to hear from you guys. Because you’re all really, really smart.
So please answer whichever of these questions feel relevant to you:
1) When you suggest Uglies to friends, is it easier to get girls interested?
2) Do boys ever go “Nah, that’s girly!” if you suggest the books to them?
3) If so, do you think it’s the covers? The beauty themes? The titles?
And some other questions:
4) Do you think that girls read more than boys in general?
5) Do any of you boys feel weird talking about/carrying/liking Uglies?
6) Have I made you paranoid just by bringing this up?
Of course, my ulterior motive for doing this research is my next book, which is called:
Hah! Just kidding. But I had you going there, didn’t I?
Yes, I did.
Ok, i dont have too many guy friends so i have never tried to get them into the series, but i have lots of girl friends and they all love the series. I think the only reason they think its a girly book is because the covers, and the part where its like a female main character. She falls in love with guys, her best friend is a girl, and they live in a plastic surgery world, and that appeals to girls more. But the action sequences make it totally cool for guys too. so i dont really know where it would land. Its definately more for everyone, but the main idea could make guys uncomfortable
haha feels god tyo be the first to post here. and
i gotta say that i’m a guy who read the series and the only reason i got picked (not really it was one of my close friends so he knew me well enough already) but he mocked me a bit about the books. Saying they’re girlie with a combination of the cover, title, and the back of the book. *Note: the back cover of Pretties says how a girl became pretty and how her past has come to haunt her.)
I find that there is no problem getting guys to read Uglies–cool cover, nice title. But when it comes to pretties….Carrying around pretties (as a guy) also gets some weird looks. Maybe its the cover and title (probably.) I don’t think it has anything to do with content, necessarily.
As cool as the UK covers are, I think that they are even more guy-repellent. They look like adult books [not YA, really]. And they look like adult books that are written more for women, sort of–and while girls will read adult books for women and men, boys will read only men adult, generally.
Just my 2 cents, not trying to sound sexist.
aw man took too long posting haha funny though
I have to say some of my post got cut off so what i was saying is that i don’t think it matters being a guy who read, writes, paints, plays sports(well), and is all around popular. They do look girly from someone who is ignorant to the books, but i’m unusual apparently? Anyway gotta say the whole trilogy is good for everyone but it’s not goin to matter to the “preps”(which i consider myself as) because they don’t read anyway. If they did though they would only read somethin like Peeps or maybe Midnighters but they wouldn’t read a book anyway from what i see. All my friends use sparknotes so i asume they don’t read. Or don’t like to read for school
All too worried about their own image
i saw an ‘experiment’ done once, where an author who had written books called “Girls’ Stuff” and “Boys’ Stuff”. She gave the girls book to a boy, and the boys book to a girl, and told them to both walk across the schoolyard to their friends.
the girl held the book, cover facing out.
the boy stuck the book up his jumper.
1) Yes, is it, but that’s mainly because of the covers. The faces on the covers aren’t that guy-image friendly.
2) Yes.
3) It’s the covers, and the title of ‘Pretties.’ I’ll get a guy interested in the book, then hold it up to show him, and he’ll be like “What? No!” I have to convince him it’s not girly despite the cover.
4) Yes. Girls read a lot more than boys in general. However, adult men read just as much as adult women, in my opinion. I think girls read more than boys because boys are always pressured into sports and other ‘guy’ things. There is also theory that one of the differences inherint in girls and boys is that girls are naturally better at being still and absorbing information from a source, such as a book, whereas boys have to develope that ability- at first most of them need to act everything out.
Haha still posting…
It does seem that more girls read but i know my friend and i always read at home more than in school, which means more time to finish straight through. Although my girlfriend always brings books to school to read.
So i would say that it can be assumed that girls read more in school, and guys if they read, read more at home.
So i guess people just think girls read more because they read at school. Although all my other friends don’t even read at all “too busy”. Haha hard to make a stand cause i know better than to make assumptions.
Anyway main point is love the books and tell people the old cleshay “Don’t judge a book by its cover”
As much as I hate to say it, book covers matter. I think boys would pick up a book with a cover of new pretty town and hoverboarding and bungee jackets much sooner than some *random* girl hiding behind a plant.
I LOVE this trilogy. couldn’t put the books down. loved the characters, themes and amazing action scenes.
That’s it. When I write my first girl-oriented YA novel, I’m calling it “Things NOT Exploding”. Too good not to steal. 🙂
Debra Doyle wrote an essay over at Viable Paradise called The Girl Cooties Theory of Literature that I think is relevant to this debate: http://www.sff.net/paradise/girlcooties.htm
I’d say Uglies has plenty of hardness and rigor (she cracks me up), but is still crawling with cooties.
However, what did Lex Luthor say about reading? “Some people can read War and Peace and come away thinking it’s a simple adventure story. Others can read the ingredients on a chewing gum wrapper and unlock the secrets of the universe.”
When my wife read LOTR for the first time, she loved it. I asked her what she loved best, and she said “the characters”.
To which I said, “Huh?”
You find what you’re looking for. With everything going on in this series, I think you’ve got something to attract everybody.
Of course, as far as the cover, I’ve got to agree. Pouty pretty people on the cover says “girl book”. Unless they’ve got fangs.
When is Last Days coming out again? 🙂
Katelyn
there is one exception to that–> ME. Haha i do practically everything including, golf, running track, ultimate frisbee(which is alot more fun than it sounds), paint, read, write, and i’m believe it or not popular as well as having a 98 average in school. NOw what should i do with my newfound exception(alism)?
sorry for stealing your thunder rob ^.^
1) I feel like it’s eaier to get girls to read it.
2) Boys usually ask me if anything blows up in it, and I’m like, “Hell yeah!”
3) I think it’s mostly the themes.
4) At my school, yeah I definetly think girls read more than guys. That’s what I notice, anyway.
6) I’m a little paranoid now, yeah.
Oh, and I was really looking forward to The Pink Fairy Learns Ballet. I bet Anna Pavlova could have owned a machine gun.
hahaha no problem Korbe 😛
[/sense]
I’m parinoid about ANY book I’m toting around people will say, What’s that book? Most of the time, I don’t want to tell them. Something about people knowing what I’m reading freaks me out.
I also don’t say to other people “Hey, that’s a good book.” When I see them reading a book I’ve read.
If the cover is, say, pink or somethign of the sort, I’ll just put it face-down on the desk and lean over it, then slip it into my bag between classes.
I don’t know if many girls at my school read more than I, but I don’t stalk all of them home to find out. (I swear.)
And, I don’t think people feel concious about carrying the Uglies books. Except for the second one with the Pretty Boy and Girl. That got me a pok ein the shoulder, but nothing serious.
I think I got more questions about Peeps than most other books with the big eye and things. But I liked the eye. I just stood it up on it’s edge and pointed it at someone. It’s just like starign at them, but you can pay attention in class as well. A bonus.
SO WERE STILL WONDERIN WHAT THE BIG NEWS IS…… I Don’t Know if i can wait any longer!
One: I have never tried suggesting Uglies to any boys. All the girls I have suggested it to have been excited to read it (the book was suggested to me…well, only so I would stop bothering my friend. She gave me the book and was like “read this and let me do my homework”. And of course I read it, finished it in a day, then went out and bought my own copy…)
Two: I don’t think I’d get that reaction to the books If I told the guys what the story was about. Possibly if all I said was that the main character was a girl and that the title of one book was Pretties that might happen though…
Three: The cover is a picture of a girls’ face. That does sorta scream girl book…But on Uglies it makes you think more of someone hiding in the woods, not someone getting pretty-making surgery. Titles…only the title Pretties I’d think would be off-putting. Uglies and Specials sound fine, I think
Four: Yes, I do think that girls read more. At least at my age (high school)
Five: I have no idea, but it seems like the guys here are fine with liking the book…
Six: No. But should I be?
And I would read that Pink Fairy book. I can’t wait to see it in print 😛
1) Yes, I suppose it’s easier. I only talked to about 3 guys about it. They were all like, “Oh, interesting,” but otherwise they didn’t really inquire further.
2) No. I guess they never said that because they never saw the cover. Also because I explained it in a way that they understood the story, not all the relationships and cliche things that create a girl novel.
3) Beauty themes, covers, second book title… I guess that would make boys a little uncomfortable. I read another book called “Self-Made Man” and it went into the workings of males amoung males… Very paranoid of being called homosexuals and whatnot according to the book. But it’s just a book about a later generation of men, so what do I know.
4) Yes. It has themes that apply towards more females than males, I think. All over magazines, women are obsessed with being beautiful. 578 tips on how to lose weight fast! How to dye your tresses without frying them! When is a good time to get a boob job? Beauty and plastic surgery. The other theme in the books, about retaining who you are in a beauty-obsessed world, is universal to anyone though. Men are slowly becoming more concerned with their looks (bulking up and styling their hair), but the Uglies series focuses on a girl’s thoughts and dilemmas in this obsessed world, and that makes it more female accessible.
5) I’m not a boy.
6) No. You sent me on a ranting rampage.
1) When you suggest Uglies to friends, is it easier to get girls interested? This one’s hard to answer, because I’m a college student, and it’s hard to get other college students to read YA at all. I suppose most of them feel like they’ve outgrown the characters, who are now mostly younger than they are. I write YA, therefore I read YA. Plus it’s just way more fun and you don’t have to worry about being “literary.”
2) Do boys ever go “Nah, that’s girly!†if you suggest the books to them? If you can convince college students that it’s not YA (or just hide the fact that it’s YA 😛 ), then usually, by that age, most boys are comfortable enough with themselves that they’re not worried about carrying around a book that might be considered “girly.”
3) If so, do you think it’s the covers? The beauty themes? The titles? Yes, to all three, unfortunately. It’s stupid, but I think especially in high school, when everybody’s worried about how they look to everybody else, boys don’t want to carry around something that might cause others to “question their manhood” or whatever. My brother’s like that. It’s just so annoying though, and there’s not really a good solution. Make the covers too “boyish” and you’ll lose female readers. If you can manage to make the covers androgynous without making them boring, then so much the better, but it also has to do with the female main character and the subject matter. These issues pertain to boys too, but many of them would like to pretend they aren’t as worried about their image as girls are.
Another thing I’ve noticed is that girls can cross over into the boy world much more than boys can cross over into the girl world. For example, girls wear skirts and pants. Boys could never wear skirts. Girls hug each other and sit in each others’ laps. Not boys. Et cetera. I once knew girls named Michael Ann, Taylor, and Ryan. But it’s much more rare to find boys with names that could go either way, and Shannon, Courtney, and Ashley, while originating as boy names, would definitely feel amiss for boys today. Maybe it has something to do with women’s rights movements, sort of. Because women in most cultures have had to fight their way into the workforce, sports (seen any women’s football teams lately?), and various other formerly male-dominated fields/areas/social positions/etc. so people are used to seeing women fitting into roles that traditionally belonged only to men. But if a husband decides to stay home while his wife works, most people won’t bat an eye because men could always choose to do something like this (i.e. it was never against the law the way it was for, say, women to vote). Oops, I’m rambling. Next question.
And some other questions:
4) Do you think that girls read more than boys in general? It seems like it, although once again, I can’t really judge because the crazy people I hang around with have never much cared about what other people thought of them. It does seem like, on the whole, girls do read more than boys. But maybe it’s like Rob said: girls read more in public and boys just stick to it when no one sees them.
5) Do any of you boys feel weird talking about/carrying/liking Uglies? I am a girl, so no, but on the other hand, when I was in middle school I loved (and still do, to some extent) Star Trek. Heh heh, confessions. Anyway, it was definitely very weird for a girl to like such things. I suspect boys feel the same about the “girl stuff” they may happen to like.
6) Have I made you paranoid just by bringing this up? If this had happened several years ago, I would have said yes (not to Uglies but about stuff like I mentioned above). I face a somewhat less severe but similar thing by reading “kids books” in college. But I’ve long since joined the ranks of my crazy friends and told myself to get over it. If I hadn’t, I would seriously be missing out. 🙂
Hey everybody i forgot to apologize for my self-centeredness attitude earlier. But who hasn’t bragged every now and then?
its ok rob, i think that we can find it in our hearts to forgive you. (lol)
I loved your little joke scott. If anyone enjoys a really good book, then they shouldnt care what anybody else thinks about them having it. And you can never, EVER label a book for a certain sex, anyone can read anything. Plus, I know plenty of girls who love stuff exploding, and lots of guys dont like stuff blowing up as well. Gosh, isnt variety wonderful?
i feel much better now. (although it is true). Damn i did it again. When will i learn?
Honestly, I don’t think the cover is a problem. the cover of the first harry potter book was purple and the second one was pink. But it was about a boy named harry and it was written by someone with no gender.
I’ve heard many industry people say that a book about Harriet Potter written by a chick named Joanne would not have sold the same, because while girls read books by and about boys, boys only read book by boys about boys.
Scott, however, is a boy writing a book about a girl. Do people tend to think of The Golden Compass as a Girl book, I wonder?
Woah, Rebecca, you wrote HEAPS!
Anyhow, back to the questions.
1) So, I don’t think I’ve ever recommended Uglies to a guy before. I was actually wondering before this post, that most people here seem to be girls? And wondering if your books were ‘girly’ (ha, ha). Pfft, as if! But anyway, it’s probably easier to get a girl to read something called ‘Pretties’ than to get a guy. Or to get him to read at all? lol, jk
3) No, I think the covers are fine. The beauty themes might be an issue, but it’s not really about beauty as such, it’s like finding your own identity and the right to make your own decisions.
4) Yeah, I reckon girls read more in general. Maybe we’re not so into video games and such? I don’t know. Obviously lots of guys read, but not as much as girls.
And yeah Rob, totally humble pie there. Lol.
Sigh.
“Woah, Rebecca, you wrote HEAPS!”
Yeah, I tend to do that. 😀 😛
Uglies is not a girl book. (Or should I say, “Cha, Uglies is SooOOoo not a girl book, k?”)
If it was in the adult sci-fi section, men would be buying it and I’d have a hard time selling it to women. However, it’s in the teen fiction section, which is more heavily trafficked by young women.
And so it goes. (Thanks, Vonnegut.)
I hate gender bias and I defy it constantly with the books I show different people because I can’t stand hearing, “Oh, that’s for girls, that’s for boys…” Unless it says I’M A BIG SISTER NOW! on the cover or the title is CONGRATULATIONS ON BECOMING A FATHER!, then there’s no need to have gender issues.
As per that last book title/image: You ought to tap Stephen Colbert for a collaboration on that one. 😉
Okay well I read the books in class and I only had one person even notice that the cover had a picture of a girl on it for uglies and only had 3 people bug me about reading a book called pretties.
I have to admit I tried to hide the cover of pretties, because .. I like to be left alone and the last thing I need is being bugged about what I want to read. I have read books that seem to be mostly for girls (only one that comes it mind is speak but I know there are more) I don’t like girl main characters for the most part because I find it hard to relate to (duh) but this series had enough supporting males to make it not a “girl book”
I read more and faster than anyone I know (other than my mom but I think we read somewhere near as fast as each other) but that isn’t saying much since I seem to surround myself with people who hate books
Diana said “…while girls read books by and about boys, boys only read books by boys about boys…” and speaking as an industry professional, that’s largely true. Largely, not entirely – there are always exceptions.
It’s also true that as readers get a little older, they tend to become less terrified of reading outside that narrow gender divide. Which is all to the good.
I have trouble getting guy friends to read it because there are females on the covers.
1) When you suggest Uglies to friends, is it easier to get girls interested?
I’ve never suggested it to any guys, though one of my guy friends did see me reading Pretties, and told me it looked like a girls book… However when I’ve suggested it to girls, theyre like ‘ooh gimme!” One of my friends actually stole my copy of uglies…
2) Do boys ever go “Nah, that’s girly!†if you suggest the books to them? As I said in the above answer, the one guy I’ve mentioned the book to did pass it off as a girly book
3) If so, do you think it’s the covers? The beauty themes? The titles? All of the above. Especially the cover and title for Pretties. Uglies could almost be passed off as a weird psycho nature story if you looked at the cover, and Specials definitely looks more like a Sci-Fi book. But Pretties? Sounds totally like a girl’s book. The beauty themes themselves I think are just generally more important to girls than guys. While I’m sure that guys are under pressure to conform to some sort of physical standard, its hardly as strong or publicised as the pressure on girls. It becomes part of our daily life. I have to admit there have been times where every 10 minutes or so in class I’ve thought “should I have worn this today?” “Gah I feel fat” “Eep, my makeup is smudged!”, and I’m one of the least ‘girly’ girls in my class, so I’d hate to think what the others go through. Point is, I think the beauty themes are simply easier for girls to relate to than boys.
4) Do you think that girls read more than boys in general? Yeah, at my school you hear girls discussing the DaVinci Code. You hear guys discussing the baseball game last night.
1) When you suggest Uglies to friends, is it easier to get girls interested?
Actually, guy friends seem to be more interested… most of my girl friends minus a few are not into any sort of SciFi, Action, or Fantasy besides Harry Potter…
And a note about the covers… they probably do look more girlish… Well, uglies for example… I picked it up and had no idea that is was going to be futurisitc at all…
And some other questions:
4) Do you think that girls read more than boys in general? I think so, more books are marketed towards them…
6) Have I made you paranoid just by bringing this up? Saying as I’m a girl… no
but btw… I was at a bookstore this weekend… almost positive it was Borders… whichever one started that every song in the world thing… although those machines like simultaneously (and spontaneously of course) combusted or at least broke down, froze, and restarted… So anyway back to your books… they were in these display of new books in the midst of several Georgie Nicholson books, The Secret Life of GIdeo something or other (new GGesque book) and several other books that no boy would be caught dead reading…
Gildeon*
… I think
1) Actually, of all the people I’ve advertised to, (which is a grand total of five) only my kid brother has actually taken it up. And he’s reading it with an astonishing vigor. So no.
2) Not in my experience.
4) In general? Yes. But I know heaps of boys who read and love to read, and can have really interesting conversations about what they’ve read.
Of course.. I’m in college, where it’s nowhere near as socially damaging to be smart, bookish, and intellectual.
And when I read “my next book, which is called..” I got all excited! I thought it was the big news! You’re a hope squasher, Mr Westerfeld. *sighhhh*
🙂
Er.. addition to my answer to #1: Of the five, four were girls. The boy took up my offer partly because he didn’t have to buy the book himself. He didn’t take it to school though, which might mean that he didn’t want to be seen reading it, or it could more simply be explained that he didn’t want to bring down the wrath of the sister by ruining a book at school. Heh. I’d go with the latter.
And as for the other four girls, one is getting Uglies for her birthday. And two others are going to spend a week here, so I’ll press it on them then. *wink* Never fear, I shall continue spreading the good word!
(WARNING content might offend people that want to be janitors or get offended over nothing)
books are books….with words…long words that boys at my school don’t
understand. No really, the boys at my school are braindead. not all boys though, the smart ones that actually read and will not end you working at the school as lunch workers. The Uglies is a great book and the rest of the trilogy is too but (some) boys are too jugdemental and will refuse to pick up a book without the words War or Bikinis in the title. Don’t blame the books content blame the people that pick it up and read the back
Is “Uglies” a girl book!? I don’t think it’s just based to any one gender. I’ve gotten two guys to read it. The one said that it was very thought stimulating and the other is now on a quest to make a hoverboard of his own (weirdo). But it was a hassle to get them to read Uglies at least. They said the cover looked feminne and unintersting to a guy. Specials was a lot easier to push over on them cause there was a guy on the cover (David right?) Specials….well haven’t quite gotten around to telling them about it, just finished it myself. [Edited to remove spoiler. The spoiler zone is the place for spoilers.] I think girls deffently do read more then guys. It’s just how we are. I mean my friends are different but in general, you don’t see many guys carring books with a girl on the cover. (why I don’t get cause once they read it they love it) We spend hours talking about Tally and her adventure. Her romance with Zane and David is always heated even amoung my guy friends. We talk about Shay and houverboards. We always get into what character we associate with, if we’d turn Pretty or go to the Smoke, and even if our lively hood is coming to a world like Tally’s. We even sometimes link the phrases into our daily lives. Like…”I’m so bubbly today!” or “Pretty-making shirt!” then when people ask what the heck we’re talking about we explain and suck more people into the captivationg plot! The question isn’t silly, every intersting infact! I was recommened to the series by a girl but I haven’t had any real problems getting guys to read it! And just to throw the question out there: have you seen any fanfics for Uglies? Like I said, just throwing it out there!
oh i think you mean the pretties with the guy on the cover becuase if on the cover of specials if that is a guy…wow i wouldn’t like to be him 🙂
1. Yes. This is because I don’t usually talk about books with my guy freinds. It might also be because the usual one sentence summary is “It’s about a girl who lives in a futuristic world where cosmetic surgery is mandatory,” which unfortunately sounds more interesting to girls. I think it’s more difficult to convince a guy to read something. However, if I could get a guy interested enough to read Uglies, then I’m pretty sure that he’d be hooked.
3. The cover of Uglies is the girliest of the three, which is unfourtunate because it’s the first one. The beauty theme is suggested by the title and would probably give a girly first impression.
4. Yeah, I do. My best guy friend is really into music, and likes to tease me about reading and writing so much. Not in a bad way, though. In my expirience, most guys who talk about books with their freinds are mainly into stereotypical sci-fi, which Uglies is not because it’s so much cooler and more original. And a few are into Harry Potter. Now that I think about it, girls are probably just a lot more vocal about reading than guys. But it does seem as though they’re less likely to go into a bookstore and browse until they find something that sounds good, which is how I got to be a fan of your books. I think that might be because there are so many YA novels targeted at girls, while there aren’t many that are really “guys only”.
If I knew A smart, neat (not as in tidy i mean nice/cool(not as in popular))guy who was as hooked on this trilogy as me, I would definetly go out with him! I’m not shallow but I’m a sucker for pretty eyes and the nerdy type! Anyone can read this book as long as they don’t trash talk it!
1) When you suggest Uglies to friends, is it easier to get girls interested?
I think so b/c guys think that books are the devil or something. The last time I saw a guy w/ a reading book was The Giver for a school assignment. Whearas some of my friends who are girls started reading the series (Jillibean!)
3) If so, do you think it’s the covers? The beauty themes? The titles?
Maybe. Though UGLIES isn’t really something to keep a guy away from a book. I mean, the title PRETTIES may. But then again, Pretties and Specials could have the guys going “Hot girl on the front! I wonder what that book is about!” So I don’t think that’s it. Of course, if the title were A GIRL IS UGLY AND RUNS INTO THE WILDERNESS TO DECIEVE ALL HER FRIENDS AND THEN GETS CAPTURED AND TURNED INTO AN IDIOT, that would get ANYONE’S attention.
And some other questions:
4) Do you think that girls read more than boys in general?
Yeah. Especially in Jr. High. Guys don’t really start reading untill college.
AND ANOTHER THING….
The Pink Fairy Learns Ballae
Wow. That’s funny. Cuz there is a gun on the front of the book. Ha. Hahaha. I would buy that if you published that.
Well I think what matters is how the font cover looks like. Make it look both guyish and girlish so we all wont have any problems carrying it around. I know, I know, dont judge a book by its cover, but hey, it just an idea.
1) When you suggest Uglies to friends, is it easier to get girls interested?
A. Well, I’ve never recommended it to a guy before. But most girls, save one, that I recommended it to read it. The one couldn’t get past the cat vomit sky.
2) Do boys ever go “Nah, that’s girly!†if you suggest the books to them?
A. See above
3) If so, do you think it’s the covers? The beauty themes? The titles?
And some other questions:
4) Do you think that girls read more than boys in general?
A. Depends on what you mean by read. Guys read a lot of mags and comics, and a lot of girls love Gossip Girl, A-List, or Emo books, so if you’re talking books, definitely.
5) Do any of you boys feel weird talking about/carrying/liking Uglies?
Like Mo’Steel from K.A. Applegate’s Remnants series would call me: I’m a fem.
6) Have I made you paranoid just by bringing this up?
^
Also, I say you write the Pink Ballet Book. That would be funny as….well, it’d be pretty funny!
i really dont care if the book is girly or boyish. if it’s a good book i’ll try it. I really liked Uglies..I’m just now finishing it up..for the 7th time. and starting Specials soon!
MAN!! that would have been an awsome book. well i dont think they are that girl-ish. just about anyone i offer the book to says no. not b/c its a bad book, i am just known for reading wierd books… but i do think that girls read more that guys.
ok i was wondering if i was the only one this happens to: when i am reading a book and my friend asks to see it, they read the back out-loud in this ‘drAMATIC’ voice and it makes the book sound really stupid. even tho it is good. i hate when that happens(that is why i an known for reading wierd books)
My friends that are girls are usually easier to get interested, mostly because they are usually open to anything. they guys are usually repelled by it because of the cover and the titles sometimes (usually pretties). and the fact that the main character is a girl.
Amy- my friends do that all the time and its soo annoying. i hate it! but then i just get them to read the book and I make fun of them for making fun of my book.
Not being in school anymore, I can really only answer these questions as an observerant bookseller.
All of the kids asking me when “Specials” was coming out (and telling me I had to read the series) were girls. I haven’t tried to sell Uglies/Pretties/Specials to boys because well…
People ask me for both “boy” and “girl” books. I mean this quite literally. Grandmothers come in asking for books for their newborn grandkids and when I suggest Sandra Boynton they will often ask for something more “girlie” or “boyish?” (huh?) Mothers (it does seem to be mostly mothers, unfortunately) who are trying to pick up books for reluctant readers will ask for “girl stories” or “a story a boy would like.” Most of the times I’ve suggested action stories that feature girls to boys or their parents, I get funny looks. I’ve had a grandmother tell me she couldn’t buy “Ella Sarah Get’s Dressed” (she asked for a book about learning how to dress oneself) before even opening it because it was for her grandson. I’ve had other people tell me that they couldn’t get “Faerie Wars” for a boy because the cover features a butterfly, and that their grandson won’t read “The Series of Unfortunate Events” because it’s about two girls and only one boy. I do get girls that gravitate towards stories that are actually about girls, but on the whole girls seem to have an easier time crossing the gender divide than boys do.
Then again, I stopped trying to suggest “The True Confession’s of Charlotte Doyle” to boys interested in adventure fairly early on. Maybe I just gave up too soon. Plus, the most extreme rejections seem to come second or third-hand. Sometimes I wonder if the boy in question is just being stubborn, in part because…
I’m sure it doesn’t help that it’s usually women who work in the kids/teen sections of bookstores and that it’s usually mothers and grandmothers asking for help. If I were a boy, and everyone helping me pick out books was female, I’m not sure I’d trust the lady bookseller’s opinion either. Which is why I usually add something about my brother loving it, my male co-workers loving it, and/or other boys loving it, when applicable. (And hey! Thanks to comments on this site I get to say truthfully that I know guys who liked Uglies!)
But that’s just in my part of the world.
ps – Yes, fathers do come into the store, thank goodness. Quite often they even asking me questions along with the mother. It’s just very rare that such fathers will have sons who are having trouble reading or finding books they like. hmmm….
I haven’t suggested Uglies to my guy friends because they don’t read so i guess maybe girls do read a tiny bit more but then again, boys like comics though….
i think girls are more into it than boys are though.
i rarely hear about boys reading this and that…..or waiting to read about a book coming out soon. All in all i don’t think it should matter when a book seems interesting to read and i think its their big male ego that prevents them to do it. The fact that it could be a girl book gets to them i guess…..