Ugly Shy Girl

by Laura Dockrill

Roald Dahl and Quention Blake meets Tim Burton in sassy poet Laura Dockrill’s edgy and hilarious tale You might have known somebody like Ugly Shy Girl once …
You might have seen her bumping into lamp-posts and tripping over her bag.
She wears a denim skirt down to her ankles and a second-hand Naf Naf jacket.
Her hair hangs down in front of her face and her nails are bitten and sore.
She is always doing or saying completely the wrong thing. This itwisted tale is about the struggle of growing up in a place where you don’t belong, surrounded by people you hate …and how delicious getting your own back can be.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Childrens

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ugly Shy Girl is such a cute book. It's imaginative and, despite being about a teenage girl being bullied, it's funny as well. The main part of the story is told by a narrator and it's less structured than most books so it seems very much like a teen writing it for say an English class or something - which really works for this story. The book follows seventeen-year-old Abigail Rodgers - aka Ugly Shy Girl - through a week at college. At first it's a normal week for Abigail, being made fun of and having to endure her 'buddy' Matt, an adult assigned to her supposedly to prevent the bullying but his presence is just another thing for the other kids to tease her about. Part way through the week though, Abigail actually makes a friend in Jade, a goth girl, and things start to change.

The narrated sections are separated by Abigail's diary entries which retell the events from her point of view as well as including other random thoughts, so we really gets to know her character despite the book being really short.Parts of the book are sad but generally it really is funny. This is not done in a bad way in which you're laughing at Abigail along with the bullies. Instead it's the just the tone of the narrator and Abigail's own thoughts that provide the humour.

Despite the shortness of the book, the style and the fact it's illustrated, this book is most definitely aimed at older teens. It's a fun quick read but has a serious underlying message as well. It's quirky and a little bit 'out there' though so it may not be every one's thing.

[Danielle Lovesey · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars just for that ending love it

[Wendelle]

" He survives on the happiness in his gut that reminds him his cup is always half full. " That's a promising bout of brilliance early on in the book. Unfortunately the rest is not so inspired, it's about a girl in some small cruel college that seems more like an ordinary secondary school. I was sadly reminded of the writing quality of fanfiction, that just tells and tells. The lead girl meets a college handler, some cruel classmates, some goths, and the novella records their daily goings-on and talks.
Then there's a twist in the end that would have been brilliant if the consequences were better explained. The author is a best friend of Adele's and you can sort of tell, they have the same sort of humor, and ability to switch between humor and solemnity.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really interesting book, although short. Abigail has been bullied her whole life. She ends up meeting Jade who is a goth and with her help she is able to break out of her shell and even enter her designs in a fashion show. A lot of funny moments but also a little sad too.

[Lyndsey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thought it was a quirky, quick read. Not sure what happened with that ending though. Bizarre.

[Zii · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its short and ok book to read. Did I find this book funny at times? Yes, yes I did. Although, it was abrupt ending, It definitely caught me off guard by the end.

[Michelle Price · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love laura dockrill, really i do. Her first book, Mistakes in the Background, helped me decide what i want to do with my life, and i have huge respect for her. I just didn't fall in love with this book the way i fell in love with her others. Mainly because of how it ended.
The illustrations are great, the story is fun too. Yes it's short, but it's a short story.

It's centered around a 17 year old girl called Abigail in college. She is shy, she has no friends, she is a bit of a target and is mercilessly picked on. Nearly getting set on fire at one point.
She doesn't connect with anyone in her family, home life is a struggle, as well as school life.
Could things get any better? Well, could they get any worse.
The story progresses well, it's really easy to read and follow...until the last few pages. I don't know what happened, but i found myself frowning from confusion and thinking 'did that really just happen'. I even tried to google the plot to see if i could make it any clearer.

I would still recommend this book, definitely. If you feel a little weird yourself, you can probably relate to Abigail. If you like quirky, illustrated, twisted tales, indulge yourself. Then let me know what you thought about the ending because really, it felt odd to me.

[Stephanie (Stepping Out Of The Page) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hadn't heard of this book before I saw it in my local library and as they had a lot of copies and it looked different, I thought I'd give it a go. It seems that Ugly Shy Girl was 'Book of the Month' - I can see why as it's very short and the ending is something that can be discussed as it's certainly not what's expected. Unfortunately for me, I thought that the whole thing was a bit pretentious. Not because of the writing which is very simple and from the view of a seventeen year old, but the thing as a whole made me feel as though an artistic statement was trying to be made but it just didn't work. The illustrations were fun, but spoiled by the collage which there was no real need for as it didn't seem to add to the effect. It was as though the book was written for a child or young adult but, as it's infect an adult-directed book, it hasnsome slightly uncomfortable phrases and a somewhat brutal ending. Of course, this is just my opinion and it didn't work for me - others may connect with this 'quirky' style, but for me it felt like a poor attempt.

[Laura Armstrong · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was attracted to the quirky look of this book but I have to say this first impression did not back up the content... I thought it was pretty formulaic story tied up in a confused format that just didn't work. Not all good writing comes in small packages. Not for me.

[Maria Cristina · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was attracted by the cover and the title but I guess I should have taken my cue from the old adage, "Never judge a book by its cover." I found it gimmicky and a waste of time. There was no point to it. The only good thing about it was that it was mercifully short.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a book about a girl that is 16/17 years old and bullied at school. I thought the book was very weird and depressing. I would not recommend it.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This little book is a little twisted.

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was expecting more from this book, I found it quite disappointing.

[Geethma Aponsu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhat peculiar and interesting short story.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a brilliant book! It may be short and snappy but that is exactly why I like it! The author's personality really shines through and I swallowed up this book in one sit in - just fabulous!

[Alexiselija · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot twist is like the biggest twist ever I've read so it's pretty good. I didn't expect the end of it would be like that (Truth to be told, I didn't really understand the ending)

[Tara Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

That ENDING!!

[Shelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute

[Clare · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favourite of hers but still cute.

[Leigh-Ann Borella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting

this was an interesting read. Wasn't sure what direction of was.going to go until the very end. Ending was not what I expected either.

[Ashleigh Butler · Rating 1 out of 5]

'Ugly Shy Girl' started with some promise for me. I enjoyed the descriptions of 'a normal place.' However, I became increasingly uncomfortable with the writing and structure of the book, as well as the description and content. To add to this, then ending was sudden and incomplete. It is a teastament to good writing when your audience has to 'work' for it at the end. The ending I had to work for here was nonsensical and redundant. Please read this in your twenties before you have processed the bitterness and resentment left over from high school.