Ever wonder who was the first kid to keep a wallet on a big chunky chain, or wear way-too-big pants on purpose? What about the mythical first guy who wore his baseball cap backwards? These are the Innovators, the people on the very cusp of cool. Seventeen-year-old Hunter Braque's job is finding them for the retail market. But when a big-money client disappears, Hunter must use all his cool-hunting talents to find her. Along the way he's drawn into a web of brand-name intrigue- a missing cargo of the coolest shoes he's ever seen, ads for products that don't exist, and a shadowy group dedicated to the downfall of consumerism as we know it.
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- So Yesterday
So Yesterday
Author(s)
Publisher
Genre(s)
Age Range
14+
Release Date
September 01, 2004
ISBN
159514000X
User reviews
7 reviews
Overall rating
4.0
Plot
3.9(7)
Characters
4.0(1)
Writing Style
4.0(1)
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A(0)
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Great!
(Updated: July 12, 2026)
Overall rating
4.0
Plot
4.0
Characters
4.0
Writing Style
4.0
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
I remember reading this book my sophomore year of high school during an exam. I didn't get to finish it, so I rushed to the library and checked it out as soon as possible. So this book was how I began my summer; trendsetting with Hunter on the New York City streets. It was such an easy book to get involved in, and once I started I could not stop.
Telling Us Things We Don't Always Want To Hear.
(Updated: July 12, 2026)
Overall rating
5.0
Plot
5.0
Characters
N/A
Writing Style
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
Reader reviewed by Manda
After reading the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, I was excited to read something else he'd written. So Yesterday is about a Trendsetter named Hunter Braque. He lives his life finding the next big thing, the next thing that will make him "cool". He becomes friends with a Innovator named Jen and from then on they go on this wild ride to find Hunter's boss, whose gone missing and not get caught by the Anti-Client. All in all this was a thrill ride of a story. Like the Uglies series, So Yesterday was another
fictional look into consumerism and trends. I love that Westerfeld's writing is
geared towards someone with a mind and isn't just some brainless garbage. While being a great story, this book really makes you think about why you wear what you wear and why
fashion is the way that it is. I definitely recommend this book to current fans of Scott Westerfeld and those reading his works for the first time who like to look outside the box.
After reading the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld, I was excited to read something else he'd written. So Yesterday is about a Trendsetter named Hunter Braque. He lives his life finding the next big thing, the next thing that will make him "cool". He becomes friends with a Innovator named Jen and from then on they go on this wild ride to find Hunter's boss, whose gone missing and not get caught by the Anti-Client. All in all this was a thrill ride of a story. Like the Uglies series, So Yesterday was another
fictional look into consumerism and trends. I love that Westerfeld's writing is
geared towards someone with a mind and isn't just some brainless garbage. While being a great story, this book really makes you think about why you wear what you wear and why
fashion is the way that it is. I definitely recommend this book to current fans of Scott Westerfeld and those reading his works for the first time who like to look outside the box.
G
Guest
So long to get into
(Updated: July 12, 2026)
Overall rating
3.0
Plot
3.0
Characters
N/A
Writing Style
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
Reader reviewed by Jen
This book was interesting in the sense that it makes you think about who gets to decide what's 'in' or not but it really takes FOREVER to get moving. I kept thinking the main character was a girl when in fact he was a guy. Hunter's freelance job is to seek out cool things that 'innovators' invent and send the ideas to his connection, Mandy, so they can be marketed to the mainstream. Along the way, Mandy disappears and the mystery begins. Once that is all set up - which takes quite a while - the mystery is interesting enough and there is a love-type interest, Jen. There just seemed to be too many tangents to keep track of that interferred with the main plot.
This book was interesting in the sense that it makes you think about who gets to decide what's 'in' or not but it really takes FOREVER to get moving. I kept thinking the main character was a girl when in fact he was a guy. Hunter's freelance job is to seek out cool things that 'innovators' invent and send the ideas to his connection, Mandy, so they can be marketed to the mainstream. Along the way, Mandy disappears and the mystery begins. Once that is all set up - which takes quite a while - the mystery is interesting enough and there is a love-type interest, Jen. There just seemed to be too many tangents to keep track of that interferred with the main plot.
G
Guest
An okay book by an excellent author
(Updated: July 12, 2026)
Overall rating
3.0
Plot
3.0
Characters
N/A
Writing Style
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
Reader reviewed by Allire
"So yesterday" was written by Scott Westerfeld, the same author of The Uglies, The Pretties, etc. The genre of the story is fiction for young adults.
The main character's name is Hunter. Hunter has a special certain job that he does. He is a trendsetter. He finds cool new shoes, that could possibly set a trend. He even gets payed in shoes. Soon, after finding her cool shoe laces, he meets Jen, an innovator. Jen is a breath of fresh air to Hunter, and when Hunter's boss Mandy, disappears, Jen and Hunter become closer while going on a little adventure of finding her.
I thought that this book was okay. I thought that the beginning was kind of hard to get into. I didn't understand the roles of trendsetters, innovators, etc. right away. It all just seemed a bit confusing to me at first. However, towards the middle of the book it really picked up and became interesting. Around the middle of the book, the action really just picked up and it no longer seemed slow paced. Hunter and Jen were also unique and different characters. I think that Westerfeld did an excellent job of making both of them relatable to the reader. Even though the beginning was a bit boring to me, I kept on reading because I was interest in Hunter and Jen.
[Reprinted at: http://www.randombuzzers.com/review/detail/?id=1180
I am the author of that review].
"So yesterday" was written by Scott Westerfeld, the same author of The Uglies, The Pretties, etc. The genre of the story is fiction for young adults.
The main character's name is Hunter. Hunter has a special certain job that he does. He is a trendsetter. He finds cool new shoes, that could possibly set a trend. He even gets payed in shoes. Soon, after finding her cool shoe laces, he meets Jen, an innovator. Jen is a breath of fresh air to Hunter, and when Hunter's boss Mandy, disappears, Jen and Hunter become closer while going on a little adventure of finding her.
I thought that this book was okay. I thought that the beginning was kind of hard to get into. I didn't understand the roles of trendsetters, innovators, etc. right away. It all just seemed a bit confusing to me at first. However, towards the middle of the book it really picked up and became interesting. Around the middle of the book, the action really just picked up and it no longer seemed slow paced. Hunter and Jen were also unique and different characters. I think that Westerfeld did an excellent job of making both of them relatable to the reader. Even though the beginning was a bit boring to me, I kept on reading because I was interest in Hunter and Jen.
[Reprinted at: http://www.randombuzzers.com/review/detail/?id=1180
I am the author of that review].
G
Guest
So Yesterday was unique book that turned out to be okay.
(Updated: July 12, 2026)
Overall rating
3.0
Plot
3.0
Characters
N/A
Writing Style
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
Reader reviewed by TheBookworm
So Yesterday was unique book that turned out to be okay.
So Yesterday by Scott Westerfeld
3 out of 5 stars
Hunter is a Trendsetter. The second rung on the cool pyramid. Second only to the Innovators, who peak the coolness pyramid. Not only is Hunter a Trendsetter, but he also works for many different clients. His job: spot cool created by Innovators and sell the cool to the retail market. And because of his job he has just coming in contact with the coolest thing ever, Jen. Because of Jen, Hunter is noticed even more by Mandy at a cool tasting.
When Hunter and Jen only find a phone at where they were suppose to meet Mandy, unexpected events occur. They run into the coolest shoes ever, a scary bald man, a shampoo scam, fake ads, a woman on roller skates, funky type styles, flashing lights that cause seizures, and a bowtie or two. But some questions still arent answered, who are the anti-client and what do they want?
Hunters worry for Mandys safety and Jens adventurous nature inadvertently thrust them into a world of cool and brand-name intrigue.
So Yesterday was really unrealistic, weird, different, not my usual book choose, unique, clever, one-of-a-kind, and truthfully an okay book.
I found myself really liking Hunter and his personality. I didnt like the way Jen treated him. He was totally head over heels for her and really trying his best to act cool, but Jen would throw it back in his face& and then all of a sudden kiss him. She went back and forth and that really annoyed me. Her hyper behavior and how she treated Hunter just plain irked me sometimes.
The little, brief history lessons on a few cool things spread throughout the pages were very interesting and added to the uniqueness of this novel.
The description of their environment and scenery was a little confusing at times, and even lacking in detail. So Yesterday would have benefited if Scott Westerfeld would have explained the occurrences with a little more descriptive detail.
So Yesterday was unique book that turned out to be okay.
Date Reviewed: September 10th, 2008
So Yesterday was unique book that turned out to be okay.
So Yesterday by Scott Westerfeld
3 out of 5 stars
Hunter is a Trendsetter. The second rung on the cool pyramid. Second only to the Innovators, who peak the coolness pyramid. Not only is Hunter a Trendsetter, but he also works for many different clients. His job: spot cool created by Innovators and sell the cool to the retail market. And because of his job he has just coming in contact with the coolest thing ever, Jen. Because of Jen, Hunter is noticed even more by Mandy at a cool tasting.
When Hunter and Jen only find a phone at where they were suppose to meet Mandy, unexpected events occur. They run into the coolest shoes ever, a scary bald man, a shampoo scam, fake ads, a woman on roller skates, funky type styles, flashing lights that cause seizures, and a bowtie or two. But some questions still arent answered, who are the anti-client and what do they want?
Hunters worry for Mandys safety and Jens adventurous nature inadvertently thrust them into a world of cool and brand-name intrigue.
So Yesterday was really unrealistic, weird, different, not my usual book choose, unique, clever, one-of-a-kind, and truthfully an okay book.
I found myself really liking Hunter and his personality. I didnt like the way Jen treated him. He was totally head over heels for her and really trying his best to act cool, but Jen would throw it back in his face& and then all of a sudden kiss him. She went back and forth and that really annoyed me. Her hyper behavior and how she treated Hunter just plain irked me sometimes.
The little, brief history lessons on a few cool things spread throughout the pages were very interesting and added to the uniqueness of this novel.
The description of their environment and scenery was a little confusing at times, and even lacking in detail. So Yesterday would have benefited if Scott Westerfeld would have explained the occurrences with a little more descriptive detail.
So Yesterday was unique book that turned out to be okay.
Date Reviewed: September 10th, 2008
G
Guest
Outrageously funny, exceptionally deep
(Updated: July 12, 2026)
Overall rating
5.0
Plot
5.0
Characters
N/A
Writing Style
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
Reader reviewed by two sided freek
So, I read the inside flap and I was like, oh so basically this is about shallow people who think they're cool. But once I started reading this book, I realized that it's surprisingly deep. So once I found out that this book is signed for a movie deal, it didn't come as a surprise. What I love about this book is that it can take the simplest thing as a new way to ties shoelaces and twist it into something so much more. The whole idea of this huge pyramid of cool seriously fascinates me. And the whole corporation is no less entrancing. Scott Westerfeld has pulled of something as shallow as how you dress, even if it does show your individuality, into a semi-sci-fi that grabs your attention and keeps you hooked on.
So, I read the inside flap and I was like, oh so basically this is about shallow people who think they're cool. But once I started reading this book, I realized that it's surprisingly deep. So once I found out that this book is signed for a movie deal, it didn't come as a surprise. What I love about this book is that it can take the simplest thing as a new way to ties shoelaces and twist it into something so much more. The whole idea of this huge pyramid of cool seriously fascinates me. And the whole corporation is no less entrancing. Scott Westerfeld has pulled of something as shallow as how you dress, even if it does show your individuality, into a semi-sci-fi that grabs your attention and keeps you hooked on.
G
Guest
Awesome
(Updated: July 12, 2026)
Overall rating
4.0
Plot
4.0
Characters
N/A
Writing Style
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
Reader reviewed by Diana
So Yesterday is all about the social pyrmiad, and the 'cool factor'.
In So Yesterday, Hunter, a cool finder and Jen, an Inovater, stumble onto a campaign by the anti-client created to confuse and overwhelem the kids who usually consume the products.
This whole book challenges you to think about why you really need to buy a new pair of Nike's or a new pair of Lucky Jeans. It makes you look at the whole cool pyramid concept and where you stand.
Check it out Its an awesome book. Really not your everday read.
So Yesterday is all about the social pyrmiad, and the 'cool factor'.
In So Yesterday, Hunter, a cool finder and Jen, an Inovater, stumble onto a campaign by the anti-client created to confuse and overwhelem the kids who usually consume the products.
This whole book challenges you to think about why you really need to buy a new pair of Nike's or a new pair of Lucky Jeans. It makes you look at the whole cool pyramid concept and where you stand.
Check it out Its an awesome book. Really not your everday read.
G
Guest



