Uglies Guide

Posted on by scott

So there’s some mutterings around these parts of doing a sort of Guide to the Uglies Universe. You know what I mean: one of those books full of background data about the people, places, and gadgets of Tally’s world, maybe containing a few diagrams, glossaries, and maps for your fannish perusal.

Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi’s Spiderwick Chronicles has the wonderful and richly illustrated Field Guide. Erin Hunter’s Warriors books have a similar companion work, though with more text than pictures.

So what would you guys want in a guide to the Uglyverse? What questions remain unanswered? What background info do you demand?

Here is your chance to ask questions and to list obscure gadgets, slang, places, and characters that you want to know more about.

tallysworld.jpg

Warning: Lame cover mocked up by me. Not in any way real (yet).

629 thoughts on “Uglies Guide”

  1. I’m really curious. In Pretties, you mentioned that Peries told Tally about sex. Next we see that Tally is sleeping at Zane’s house. Are Tally and Zane sexually active with each other or not? It’s a question I’ve been asking myself since the second book.

  2. I am pretty sure they are…. the book never actually says that Zane and Tally have sex but you can inter it.

  3. I don’t really care to read through all 452 comments here already so sorry if some of these things have been brought up already…

    1. Okay, so I think it was in Specials where Tally says someting about how populations of cities can’t go up. I’m guessing this means there’s something put in place to prevent population increase….Are familys only allowed to have a certain number of chlidren? If there is what if someone has more children than is supposed to be allowed? Do they still have children the traditional way like we do now or have they changed that somehow, too? (Like Jonas’s world in Lois Lowry’s “The Giver” where familys apply for and are assigned children, perhaps? Maybe not that extreme, but you get what I mean…)

    2. Pictures of Tally (As an Ugly, Preety, and a Special) and all the other main characters, as well. I’ve always wondered what a Special would look like…

    3. Stories of Tally and Peris as Littlies and Uglies

    4. Stories of Tally before the timeline in “Pretties” and “Specials” start (In both books it says she’d been pretty/special for a month, what happened in that first month?)

    5. Hovercars and boards. What do they look like and how do they work?

    6. Pictures of Tally’s city, Diego, and Aya’s city

    7. Information on other places…I’m fairly certeain Aya’s city is in Japan, but surely there have to be other cities across the other continents? Are they all the same?

    8. How Tally’s parents feel about her become Special

    9. Info on where all the important characters are now

    Also, since I’ve noticed there’s quite a few people hoping for an alternative ending…I just thought I’d say what I thought about an alternative ending…I’d actually say don’t do it. I’m usually a sucker for happy, even somewhat cliched endings, but I actually kinda liked the ending of Specials (Zane dying was sad and all that…but it would have been kinda boring if he had lived, I think…)

    Now, an alternative ending to The Midnighers trilogy…That I would not object to, lol

  4. I want to know what age you become ugly/new pretty ect.
    info on what tally’s parents think of her
    are the middle pretties(like tally’s parents) still bubleheaded?
    where’s mandy in Extras
    what happened to peris in Extras
    Where did the operation come from
    what came first, the leisions or the operation
    I WANT ANOTHER BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  5. (This is the same Amanda-la who commented a few days ago…I thought of some other things to ask after I made my last podt)

    Okay, so we all know that once people turn pretty, perfect teeth and eyesight are part of the operation. But are there still glasses/contact lenses and braces avalible for those who can’t make it sixteen years without them? I’d be turning pretty in a little over 5 months, but if I didn’t have my contact lenses in, and if I’d never goten braces, it would be very hard to get by. I’d have to hold everything like an inch from my face to see since my eyes are so bad (and therefore would get a terrible headache from reading anything), and my teeth would be so terrible they’d likely impare my ability to talk and eat. I’ve needed glasses since I was in like 3rd grade, and it was only a few years after that that my vision was bad enough that I couldn’t really function without them. As for my teeth…they were pretty much always a nightmare until I got my braces…My teeth were very uneven, I had an underbite, I even had a tooth that was up much higher than all the others! I imagine they would have only got worse without the braces…

    So yeah….Sorry to type so much..>_>…Just throught I should say way I thought it important to know that…

  6. movie? yes i think so.
    also wouldnt mind seeing backround info on all the gadgets, cities, and whatnot.
    i happen to be doing a research paper for my english class on the settings of both the uglies trilogy and the book “Anthem” by Ayn Rand.
    Both books being set in futuristic societys.
    however they have two different takes on the way the society would evolve in three hundred years.
    so it would be great to have some information about the setting of the books.
    plus i pretty much love these books…..i would marry them if they were human.
    ha.
    completley happy-making.

  7. how did you end up choosing the names Tally, Zane, David, Dr. Cable, Shay etc.? They are just so… PERFECT! Also, you should write (in the Uglies Guide) about what inspired you to make the Smoke, and why is it called the Smoke? Why isn’t it called Runaway Island or something?
    Oh! Never mind!! I get it, it’s called the Smoke cause they burn down trees and stuff, right? LOL!!! Well, you should also mention things about why and how Dr. Cable became the person in charge of everything that goes on in the Pretties minds and not someone else! Also, why didn’t anyone agree with Maddy and Az back when they were doctors? Were they all just too scared of Dr. Cable?? AND (last thing) does Dr. C have the lesions in her brain too? Cause in Specials I wasn’t sure if she was saving Tally cause she was just a nice person, or because of the needle Tally stuck into her, because I don’t understand why she would give herself the operation. I finished these books a while ago, but have had these questions bottled up forever! Do you know when the Uglies guide will be out???? I really need to read it!!!!! p.s.- you should also make a Peeps and Midnighters guide ( a 4th book would be better) if you can. That would be fawesome! PLEEZ consider writing some of the things I suggested in the Uglies Guide!!!!! Thanks! 🙂 8)

  8. a few more things i forgot to mention…

    1. where does global warming stand? i assume it must have gotten pretty bad before the oil crisis, but did they find a way to fix it, or are the character’s ideas of “cold” just skewed?

    2. something about entertainment…i know that they have music, but how has it evolved? what about movies?

    3. i dont want information about where the other characters are now, i like that it’s up to us to decide…but what happened to special circumstances? what about the other specials that weren’t cutters? were they despecialized?

  9. i think it should mention locations, like in what country/ state is tally’s city and the smoke.my friend and i think they are in san fransico,is that right?

  10. I really want to know why the authorities allow them to watch movies and such. And what kind of movies do they watch? Do they have any modern movies or music, like maybe the government assigns people to make some or something. And I totally wanted to know exactly where this was, I think it was in California, but I’m not positive. And if I have any more thoughts, I’ll just come back.

  11. Oh, and are Tally and David going to be back together, or are they kind of together? I mean, I miss Zane and everything, but David is cool! I hope you make another book from Tally’s perspective!!!

  12. ok i was just reading some parts of this so i dont really know whats been already said or not…just wanted to put in my thoughts. First dont have any pictures of people(it ruins most of our imaginations). Second dont explain everything because no one would have anything left to wonder and thats not any fun. Map are a yes and expaining some of the fashion people. I really like someones idea about the dictionary thing. Certain words ane phrases were really funny. I caught myself saying them a few times. But yeah…all i can think of right at this moment. Later gator.

  13. oh yeah…some people are mentioning stupid things that are already explained in the book. that would be stupid to be so repetitive…so dont put those in there

  14. hey again!
    so i was on this website about a week ago and i found out that there is going to be a film about UGLIES. YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    anyways, i`d like to know more about the movie and if there are some HAPPY-MAKING things in the movie that we (THE TOTALLY DEVOTED uglies-TRILOGY FANS) might die to know about!
    and another thing:
    i`d like to know more about the pics on the covers of the books!
    who are the people on the covers supposed to be portraying?!
    are these pics the ideas you had of the characters faces?!
    AND!!!!!!!!!!
    why does the change of TALLY`S (if ti is supposed to be TALLY`S) face look so different from her transition from PRETTY to SPECIAL?!!!!!!!!!!????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!?????????

    anyways,
    thanks for making such a great CAN`T PUT THIS BOOK AWAY FOR A MILLI-SECOND,YET TOTALLY HAPPY-MAKING TRILOGY!
    SINCERELY!!!!!!!
    dR. cLaRiSsA e. YoUnGbLoOd

  15. I’ve just got one question….
    How do they have babies??
    If Sol and Ellie are Tally’s parents how did they have her?? Like in a tube or something??
    And however they do have kids can Tally do it when she’s special??

  17. i think i know mic..i think they hav babies..like..well..i cant really no i just dont wanna say how i think they do..lol! i hav a very sick sick mind lol

  18. What do Tally and David do when they sneak out to the garden at the thousand faces party? Where is Tally’s city today? Is Diego San Diego? DOES anyone own pets? Why does Tally act so bossy as a Special? How long is Tally Pretty? Why was Shay so mean, making Tally become a special? When a person becomes Special, do they get a special lesion that makes them rude and mean? How old is David? What is David’s reaction to being called an “Ugly face”? Explain as much about the technology as you can; it’s a bit confusing! Doesn’t Maddy stop the mind rain, Not Tally? What happens to Tally and David’s relationship? Why does Zane have to die? Do people”s broken bones get fixed right away? Doesn’t it hurt really bad to cut yourself? What happens to Peris? Why did Az die? Does Shay have a boyfriend? What happens to Croy? Why doesn’t the gas for Tally’s despecialization work on Tally? Why is Shay mad at Tally for stealing David even if she is a pretty surrounded by prettier people? How could 300 year old magazines stay preserved for such a long time, and with that spore floating around? What happens to you during the operation? How did Tally think herself out of the lesions? COULD YOU DESIGN A WEBSITE WHERE YOU CAN DESIGN YOUR “PRETTY” SELF (FLASH TATTOOS AND ALL)? Is David uglier than regular people today? We’re running out of questions (lucky for you)…Are Specials really that scary looking? On the book cover they are nicer looking than the Pretties. Why are people in the future ranked by prettiness while people now are ranked by richness? What is David’s last name? Is Frizz’s hair really Frizzy? Is it Tally on all three covers? And Aya on the fourth? If Pretties’ word is “Bubbly”, and Specials’ word is “Icy” what is uglies’? What animals are alive then and what animals are extinct? Do you need an operation to get an eye screen?
    What’s an eyemouse? What can an interface ring do? Do all pretty mansions float? If Maddy and Az founded the smoke, how did the Boss get there? Can the hole in the wall make old things like ipods, or are ipods history? Why are we ‘the bad guys’? Where did they get all the decorative items in Maddy and Az’s house? If people leave nature alone, why are there things made of metal and rubber and other things that you need nature for? Did Tally only stay at the Smoke because of David? If people don’t recycle the things that the hole in the wall makes, where do all the new things come from? Will you make a fifth book (Not just this ‘Guide’)? Will you answer all of our questions? You’ll need to write a whole book for us!

  19. Sorry about the HUGE comment, but Erica-la and Ellie-wa are very curious… DAVID AND TALLY ARE A PERFECT MATCH!!!!!!!!! Tally should slap Zane and tear out his eyeballs…THEY ARE HORRIBLE TOGETHER AND ARE VERY GOOSHY AND DISGUSTING! Thanks for killing him! You should do a blurb in the guide that explains what happens between Tally and David in the garden! Did Tally’s parents know where Tally was when she was at the Smoke? Why don’t the parents care about their kids once they become Uglies? Why do Uglies believe they are ugly? They just waste a good chunk of their lives waiting to become pretty, and we have to deal with it every day? What’s up with people in the future? Did you know that in another universe this ACTUALLY happened??? UGLY SERIES ROX!!!!!!!! DITTO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! * *
    U

  20. :)~HELLO EVERYONE! * *
    ………………………………U

    :)~THIS SERIES TOTALLY ROX!!!!! IF U HAVEN’T YOU GOTTA READ IT!
    ($)~IT’S TOALLY ADDICTING AND I LISTENED OVER AND OVER TO THE SONG YOU’RE THE VOICE BY DAVID ARCHULETA WHILE I WAS READING IT AND NOW WHENEVER I LISTEN TO IT I THINK OF THE BOOKS!!!!!!!!! PUT THAT SONG IN THE MOVIE IF THERE IS ONE!!!!!
    :)~WE’LL TALK MORE TOMORROW!!!!!!!

    PS~ Erica-la=:)
    Ellie-wa=($)
    Both=*_*

  21. i want another damn trilogy of UGLIES I really do im sad im almost dont with special i dont wanna be done i miss the series
    🙁 tear tear and zane died

  23. We Pretties…, besides the fact that those are a question overload to anyone on earth, you need to calm down and not be so angry. I’m messed up and even I thought it was over the top…

  24. :)~Sorry, guys. I just got a bit hyper back then…Zane IS a good guy, but I still hold a grudge against him for making Tally like him instead of David. Tally and David are such a perfect match! I’m glad that they get back together in the end.

  25. Scott Westfield:
    You HAVE to write another book for the series, and not just a guide, too. You need to write a real book! Maybe you should call it “Sacreds”. Sacreds MUST always be protected, even from death, and everyone except total dummies worships the very ground that Sacreds walk on! Tally should become a Sacred or whatever you want to call it, and then try to run away,so EVERYONE is looking for her and she gets caught by Shay and stuff like that…Think about it.

    🙂

  27. so i’m confused… there is no planne fifth book of the uglies series? just the guide?

  30. What happened with david’s scar!
    I really want a 5th book!
    This is like, the best series!

  31. iT SEEMS LIKE NO ONE LIKES DAVID, BUT I LIKE BOTH DAVIDAND ZANE, AND I WAS SAD 2 WHEN ZANE DIED, BUT YA GOTTA REALIZE HOW DIFFRENT THINGS WOULD B IF HE HADN’T DIED…OH, I THINK IT WOULD BE AWESOME IF YOU WROTE THE STORY OVER AGAIN IN ZANES POINT OF VIEW, AND ONE IN DAVID’S POINT OF VIEW! …OH, AND SOMEONE SAID SOMETHING ABOUT NATURAL BORN PRETTIES BEING CALLED NATURALS….I THINK THAT PERSON IS A GENIOUS BECAUSE THAT WOULD MAKE A GREAT 5TH BOOK!

  32. i LOVE david! when i read it i felt so bad for him because in prettys tally totally just falls ALL OVER another guy. david was always so nice to her. i also HATED tally when she said: “GET UR UGLY FACE OUT OF HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” It was SOOOO mean! I felt SO bad! he was just trying to SAVE her becuz he LOVES her!

  33. NATURALS….. Great 5th book name!!!! But if Scott doesn’t make a 5th book, I’ll be fine. I will be content ether way, with or without a 5th book. I think he should leave it the way it is though.

  35. W3LL I HOP3 H3 MAKES A 5TH ONE, AND THE R3ASON 4 THAT IZ BCUZ THERE ARE SO MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS.
    OH, AND I THINK THIS IZ GONNA B AN AWESOME MOVIE, BCUZ IMDB SAD SOMETHING ABOUT UGLIES BEING MADE INTO A MOVIE SOMETIME THIS YEAR!!!!!…..I HAS TO BE DIRECTED BY SCOTT THOUGH…..I REALLY HOPE THIS MOVIE IS GONNA B AWESOME, IF THEY MAKE 1.

  36. alright… if all the rusties died… how exactly did this new world begin?

    i would LOOOOOVVVE a movie of all 3 books (if done correctly by scott)

    what acctual city is the rusty ruins? i have kind of been picturing new york.

    how old do you have to be to not be considered a new pretty?

    what happens to Dr. Cable?

    i havn’t read extras but i have heard its not the same characters. i was wondering about new books with the same main characters? please?

    what exactly happened to the rusties?

    i acctually kinda like the “naturals” idea. props to risa-la!

  37. What do those nano things that eat everything up look like in specials? i’d like a to know about the sly girls like each indivual. i can’t really think of any more! and when does this book come out!?cant wait!

  38. I’m wondering:
    ~Can people grow taller or get gray hair and stuff on their own, or does everyone have to get a surgery for that sorta stuff?
    ~Can you only have kids when you’re a middle pretty?
    ~Are there such things as middle specials and crumbly specials, or do specials basically live forever?

    I NEED SOME ANSWERS!!!!!

    Naturals is a good idea for a new book! 🙂 😉 *-*

  40. DITTO!!!!!!! I totally agree with u, Bethany!

    🙂

    P.S. Does anyone know how much longer this blog will be up? I hope enough time for more questions! I’m almost done with the series and I’m sure more questions will come up…

  41. Hello!
    I love the Uglies series! I am currently on Specials. So far, so good. Your (Scott Westerfeld) ability to create such amazing stories fascinates me. I hope you read these, Mr. Westerfeld, because I have some advice for you. Extras is really well… exta. It didn’t belong with the rest of the books. I know I haven’t read it yet, but I’m going by the summary and my friend’s opinion. I know Extras is about some random girl that has never been mentioned before. The past three books have all been about Tally and her friends, so where did this Naya girl come from? I don’t believe it is appropriate to have a whole series based on a certain person/persons, than make a concluding book with whole new characters. It’s like starting a new series. I wish you would’ve written more about Tally and her friends, but I’m a little late when it comes to this wish. I am so upset the series is over, but I wouldn’t be happy even if it ended at book one-hundred! If you could’ve come up with more about Tally, even if it took five-thousand books, I would read them all. Your stories are so wonderful, the way you come up with these made-up things like the recycle floors in Uglies. It must be fun, coming up with all these imaginary items and a whole new world. One last thing, I TOTALLY think your books should be made into movies! They would be great! A little sci-fi, some romance, a pinch of drama, and a whole lot of action! You should ask someone about making your books into movies, see what you can imagine in the theater! 🙂
    Thanks! (If you read this)
    Taylor-wa
    PS If anyone likes my article, post something on this blog saying so. I would love to hear your comments and would most certainly write back.
    I HEART UGLIES!!! <3

  45. Rex-la
    I would like to talk to you if you are still online, I want to ask you some stuuf about Extras. This is UAIM! Uglies AOL Instant Messenger! Haha LOL!!! So Rex-la write back ASAP!

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