The YA Book Prize Award (UK) goes to...

Fri, 07/10/2015 - 8:13pm by gulickb

Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neil won the YA Book Prize given in the UK for British and Irish writers of teen/YA fiction.

Only Ever Yours is O'Neil's first foray into teen fiction but don't let that make you think it's not excellent. The book follows 2 girls Freida and Isabel as they enter their final year "School" but of course this school is not the kind of school that we might go to, it is where all girls go to be trained to be perfect "companions" for powerful men. Frieda and Isabel have to stay in the top 10 most beautiful girls in their class to make sure that they are chosen by a powerful man and that they don't end up teaching more girls how to be "perfect" by being teachers in the school they grew up in.

This book really hits the subject of feminine beauty hard. It takes it apart, looks at it and puts it on display for all to see. It is a great book for anyone interested in dystopian stories that will keep you guessing where it's going. It has received much praise, and some criticism, for the subject of the book and it definitely deserves the praise it's been getting.