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    The School for Good and Evil: The Ever Never Handbook
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    The School for Good and Evil: The Ever Never Handbook
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    The School for Good and Evil: The Ever Never Handbook
    Ebook276 pages2 minutes

    The School for Good and Evil: The Ever Never Handbook

    By Soman Chainani and Michael Blank

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD AND EVIL will soon be a major motion picture from Netflix—starring Academy Award winner Charlize Theron, Kerry Washington, Laurence Fishburne, Michelle Yeoh,  Sofia Wylie, Sophie Anne Caruso, Jamie Flatters, Earl Cave, Kit Young, and more! 

    Soman Chainani’s New York Times bestselling series The School for Good and Evil returns with The Ever Never Handbook! Gorgeous full-color illustrations bring your favorite characters like Sophie, Agatha, and Tedros back to school through maps, quizzes, alumni portraits, and more.

    Wish you could go to the School for Good and Evil? Join the ranks of heroes and villains who have walked these hallowed halls and mastered what it takes to succeed in their own fairy tales.

    Surviving the trials and tribulations of the school is no walk in the park. The Ever Never Handbook is here to help. This handbook equips new students with everything they’ll need to excel at the School for Good and Evil. Good luck!

    Don't miss the thrilling conclusion to the beloved series, The School for Good and Evil #6: One True King!

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateJul 12, 2016
    ISBN9780062423078
    Unavailable
    The School for Good and Evil: The Ever Never Handbook
    Author

    Soman Chainani

    Soman Chainani's six novels in the School for Good and Evil series each debuted on the New York Times bestseller list. The series has sold over 4.2 million copies, has been translated into 35 languages, and has been adapted into a film by Netflix that debuted at #1 in over 80 countries. His collection of retold fairy tales, Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales, was also an instant New York Times bestseller and is in development to be a television series from Sony 3000. Soman is a graduate of Harvard University and received his MFA in film from Columbia University. Every year, he visits schools around the world to speak to kids and share his secret: that reading is the path to a better life.

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    Reviews for The School for Good and Evil

    4/5

    73 ratings47 reviews

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    • 2/5
      I really wanted to like this. It did have a lot of potential. Lots of interesting platitudes about what is good and what is evil in this fairy tale universe, with the expectation that they would all somehow be overturned or disproven in the end, but the end was a super disappointing series of illogical random events, neither turning anything on its head, not even conclusively proving the universe’s internal logic. (Although more likely the latter, again, it wasn’t super clear.)

      My 7-year old loved it.
    • 3/5
      Two friends are kidnapped and dropped at the school for Good and Evil by a mysterious school master. The choices that Sophie and Agatha make reveal their characters, even if initially they feel they've been assigned to the wrong school based on appearances. Lost of action in the story but some of the major plot twists in the end didn't compel me. It was one of those titles that while I read the first, I'd probably read summaries to see what happens in the rest of the series because the volumes are tomes.
    • 2/5
      I really want to like this book. It certainly has creative vision and holds promise, but I have growing suspicions that the promise is all surface beauty with little story depth underneath.

    • 4/5
      Diese und weitere Rezensionen findet ihr auf meinem Blog Anima Libri - Buchseele

      Märchen! Oh, wie ich Märchen liebe :D Einer Gründe für die Existenz meines anderen Blogprojekts "Bee Fairytale". Und weil ich Märchen so toll finde, bin ich immer wieder total begeistert, wenn ich Bücher entdecke, die die alten, klassischen Märchen auf neue Art verarbeiten, so wie Soman Chainanis Trilogie "The School for Good and Evil", deren erster Teil "Es kann nur eine geben" heute erscheint.

      Alle vier Jahre werden zwei Kinder - ein gutes und ein böses - aus dem Dorf Gavaldon entführt, nur um dann kurz drauf in einem Märchen wieder aufzutauchen. In diesem Jahr möchte die hübsche Sophie mit ihrem blonden Haar, dem wunderschönen Lächeln und der Vorliebe für hübsche Kleider unbedingt vom Schulmeister entführt werden, damit sie auf der Schule für Gut und Böse zu einer echten Prinzessin ausgebildet werden kann. Und ihre Freundin Agatha ist für sie der perfekte Kandidat für die böse Seite, immerhin lebt sie auf dem Friedhof und sieht bereits aus wie eine Hexe. Doch es kommt anders als gedacht und plötzlich müssen sich die Mädchen auf anderen Seiten als erwartet herumschlagen.

      Soman Chainani erzählt in diesem Kinder-/Jugendbuch eine ganz wundervolle Geschichte, in der er mit den verschiedensten Märchenstereotypen spielt und dabei relativ schonungslos auch immer mal den düsteren Unterton der Originalmärchen anklingen lässt, wenn den Schülern z.B. offenbart wird, dass ein Teil von ihnen als Tiere oder Gegenstände enden wird. Überhaupt fand ich die Art des Autors sehr erfrischend, sowohl sein Schreibstil als auch die gesamte Geschichte, die er erzählt, sind so herrlich anders, dass die Geschichte einfach Spaß macht.

      "The School for Good and Evil: Es kann nur eine geben" ist eine Geschichte nicht nur über Freundschaft, sondern viel mehr darüber, dass vieles oft nicht so ist, wie es scheint, dass innere Werte zählen und der äußere Anschein manchmal ausgesprochen trügerisch sein kann - immerhin ist es nicht die "hässliche" Agatha, die auf der Schule für Böse landet, sondern ihre dem Anschein nach durch und durch prinzessinnenhafte Freundin Sophie. Auch über den Sinn und Unsinn starrer Rollenverteilungen und Schwarz-Weiß-Denkens muss man sich beim Lesen gemeinsam mit den beiden Protagonistinnen Gedanken machen, denn nicht zu Unrecht fragt sich gerade Agatha immer wieder, warum sie als Prinzessin nicht lernt, sich selbst zu verteidigen sondern nur sich zu schminken und ähnlichen Unsinn.

      Alles in allem hat mir Soman Chainanis Serienauftakt "The School for Good and Evil: Es kann nur eine geben" ausgesprochen gut gefallen, die Idee ist klasse und auch die Umsetzung sehr gelungen, nur an einigen wenigen Stellen, waren mir einzelne Situationen dann doch zu überzeichnet oder zu sehr in die Länge gezogen. Trotzdem gibt es eine dicke Empfehlung für diesen humorvollen und intelligenten Kinder-/Jugendroman mit seinen großartigen Charakteren!
    • 3/5
      Hmmmm, I'm kind of torn about this one. Some people really love it, but I had kind of a love/hate relationship with it - with the hate part winning out. If I had liked the characters more it would have made a huge difference. It's hard to care about what happens to people when you don't like them anyway. I couldn't stand Sophie from page 1, and I had a hard time with Agatha because for a smart girl she acted very stupidly. The book was all about their amazing "friendship", but there really was no friendship. There was a mean girl and a groupie. The mean girl did all sorts of horrible things to the groupie, and yet the groupie still stayed loyal to the mean girl. I didn't buy it. And the concept of the book tried to say that what is on the outside doesn't matter, and yet several instances in the book proved that beauty made you "good", and ugly made you "bad". How wrong is it for me to say you could tell it was a story about girls that was written by a man? It is also way too long and took a long time to get going. However, the actual story was original and fun (with many shades of Harry Potter noticeable). There was a lot of action, it was very humorous at times, and it eventually got very exciting. I think it will make a pretty great movie, and thought of it as a movie in my head while I was reading it. I have many middle schoolers who love it. Areas of concern:A lot of violence. Children are kidnapped, tortured, turned into animals.... The list goes on and on. However, it is all presented in such a fairy tale fashion, that it doesn't seem very real.Several reviewers have mentioned that the book ends with a LGBT relationship, but I didn't pick up on that at all. I'm not sure what will happen in subsequent books.
    • 4/5
      There is a lot to like about this book. The characters and situations are interesting and the narrative moves along at a good pace, which kept me engaged through all of its 480+ pages, even though the middle of the book felt like it was going around and around on the same merry-go-round of plot. But the writing was not fabulous (a girl who "heaved with relief"?) and at the end I was still left wondering exactly what the author was trying to say about good and evil, and whether we should all be dying to be asked to a ball, or not. And PS -- budding middle-grade feminists are not going to appreciate the role stereotypes.
    • 5/5
      Sophie ad Agatha are best friends who are enrolled in the School of Good and Evil. In the School for Good and Evil ordinary boys and girls learn to be fairytale heroes and villains. Sophie knows that she will go to the School of Good and Agatha will go to the School for Evil. Agatha with her shapeless black flocks, wicked cat, and dislike of nearly everybody ends up going to the School for Good. Sophie with her pink dresses, glass slippers, and devotion to good deeds ends up going to the School for Evil. Sophie knows that it is a mistake. It turns out it wasn't because Sophie shows her evilest side of herself and Agatha shows the prettiest of herself. The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani is an awesome book to read. He tells the story like he was actually there. I recommend this book to 4th graders that have a high reading level, 5th, and 6th graders. This book is also who believe in fairytales. Chainani has brought out the sequel and the third book. I haven't read them but they are probably as good as the first one. I have never read a book this good.
    • 5/5
      This book is so good that, half-way through it, I am hoping this is the beginning of a trilogy or set of books. This is a very unusual viewpoint for me, as I've grown weary of authors taking three or more books to tell a story they could have told in one. The School for Good and Evil, however, is so delightfully fun to read that I really hope there will be more. I will update this review when I've finished the book (on page 193 of 488 now and it's a very quick read) with my thoughts on how it ends. First, I'm going to go see if there is indeed a sequel waiting for me. :) I certainly hope someone makes this into a movie. I, the lover of the Dollar Theater that I am, would actually pay full price and go right away to see it.
    • 3/5
      I wanted to enjoy this more than I did. The back and forth between characters was hard for me to follow and I found myself skimming a few parts due to Chainani's writing style. I'm sure it didn't help that I never really liked the character of Sophie, who is one of the two main characters!

      I love the overall idea and Agatha was a great character, but I think I'll leave this future trilogy here and just wait for the movies.
    • 4/5
      Every four years, two village children are kidnapped by a strange force and sent to The School for Good and Evil to learn how to be princes/princesses and villains, respectively. Stereotypical princess-type Sophie and stereotypical witch-type Agatha get whisked away but put in opposite houses: Sophie in Evil, and Agatha in Good. Retold fairy tales are far from new, and there are quite a few unsurprising bits, but overall it was a lot of fun. Fun enough for me to look up the next book in the series, if only to find out what happened to Sophie and Agatha.
    • 4/5
      I found this a well-written example of its type. The magical school and the good/evil thing aren't particularly novel - and the big twist, and its resolution, are obvious from the beginning if you've read this sort of thing before. However, execution is crucial. It was an enjoyable, fast-paced and lively read with some fun characters and many nice creative touches of the kind children's books can somehow get away with when adult literature hesitates.Following review includes spoilers.For example, Chainani can get away with playing heavily into the Good Beautiful, Evil Pantomime Ugly thing because her setting is explicitly built on fairy-tale reality, where those tropes hold true (as does their subversion). Similarly, I thought the portrayal of the characters struck a nice balance between plausible, entertaining and caught up in the force of the in-story Story. The descriptions of the school rang convincingly in the broad strokes as well as in little details, and the awkward tension of Sophie and Agatha's friendship felt true to life.Oddly enough, though the build-up was strong, the part I struggled with most was the end. Not the ending itself, but the last stage of the book. It felt to me as though there were simply too many layers of revelation, twist and counter-revelation going on, with the result that none of them really had enough breathing space to make a proper impact. There were multiple stages that felt like a climax about to break, and then something else happened instead.Also, to be honest, despite having just finished it, I couldn't tell you exactly what the plot was because it flips so many times. There are certain points where it started to feel as though whatever was happening wasn't actually down to anyone's machinations at all, but simply random events that the author tried to attribute to one character or another. For example, I've no idea what Sophie's actual plan was at the end, and which events were part of it. The ball, yes. I assume the plot to make the schools switch alignments? But was that transformation the sum of her plot, or was it towards some end which I never worked out? Was it a massive diversion for some reason? Did she intend to go to the tower after it all, in which case, why, and why did she need the big scene? If not, why did she go? What was her actual plan for the tower and how did she arrive at it? If the big scene was an opportunity for her to do something big and evil, how does that work when she was apparently metaphysically Good? And why didn't it manifest on the various occasions where individuals behaved in Good and Evil ways during the story? What did she need Agatha for anyway, since the whole thing works without her interfering?Similarly, the relationship between Agatha, Sophie, Teldros and some minor characters shifted so quickly in the last few chapters that it was a big hard to keep straight, especially since there was clearly metaphysical significance to all of it. Even by the lake they rearranged their relationship about three times in as many pages, and this was particularly odd because they all knew they were affecting the fate of the school.Basically it felt like the end was not only convoluted, but also a series of things happening because they were necessary to the story, even though the story didn't quite give them the buildup they needed. This was a bit of a shame.The actual finale was okay (and was, pleasingly, what I'd predicted from the beginning) so it did have a good finish, and I'll be getting the next one.BIG SPOILERS NEXTThe other slight quibble I had was that the story seems oddly inconsistent about what it means to be Good or Evil, and their degree (although this is a universal problem of such books). For example, right at the beginning, the moment where Sophie is accepted by her roommates as evil-worthy is where she points out that she's beautiful and they're ugly - which is actually her argument that she's in the wrong school because she must be good. Similarly, she achieves a top-ranked Evil score when she absently hopes that Agatha hasn't told Teldros they're friends. The story consistently treats these moments of shallowness and passing selfishness as appallingly evil, even though they're surrounded by actual torture, constant cruelty and attempted murder. Sophie abusively manipulating Hort, however, or even the *actual murder* she commits, just seem to be treated as moments of drama. The big transformation scene is similarly handwavy. Yet Agatha seems to get a pass on *her* constant low-level prejudice and temper, including her sporadic bad feelings towards Sophie, because she's the Actually Good one. It's just... odd.Also, a note: some reviewers have commented on a possible LGBT relationship. To me it was not remotely that clear cut; I think there's a faint possibility that may be explored in future, but it seemed far more likely in context that this was a platonic expression of love, of the kind so common in books with a deep theme of friendship. I also don't think the LGBT interpretation would be a *particularly* dramatic twist given the intense relationship between these characters throughout the book. Far less dramatic, frankly, than most of what's happened elsewhere. In fact, you could make an argument that the struggle to understand and express their feelings, and a possible changing relationship - especially in a setting where gender roles are incredibly explicit - would make a lot of sense of their tensions throughout the book, and be a good complement to the main thread.
    • 5/5
      You rarely can read a book by it's cover no matter how beautiful, and some of the most beautiful stories in the world are fairy tales. This book brings forth the question of what makes a real good princess or an evil villain? Who is really beautiful or really ugly?

      I reached half of the book and the one consistent thought in my mind is that I don't believe a person is all evil or all good, and I feel sorry for Sophie and happy for Agatha. Let's see how it all ends.

      In my head Sophie was played by Sasha Pieterse and Agatha was played by Sarah Hyland; great book and amazing character and story development, I can't say more without revealing too much. But this story has some of Hogwarts spirit in it.
    • 3/5
      This book is so close to being excellent but it misses the mark. First, as other readers have noted, it's overly long and the author could easily edit out several sections in which no plot or character development occurs. Second, the action is not well described at times, leaving a general (but not a clear) idea of what has happened. On the other hand, the characters are wonderfully depicted. Given the middle school age for which the story is written, they are suitably complex. Yes, "beauty" is often equated with "good" but that notion is also challenged by several characters and events. The audiobook reader truly enhances the work, especially with the dry humor of Agatha and the sweet, lilting voices of the princess instructors.
    • 3/5
      Started out tedious, like a bad Disney movie starring somebody being mean to Selena Gomez, but the middle was very entertaining. Then he tried for a heartwarming ending. Ugh.
    • 3/5
      Even now, several days after finishing it, I'm not quite sure how I feel about this book. As a fantasy novel for children and teens, it hits all the usual sweet spots with interesting twists. It's both a school story and a contest story -- imagine if Harry Potter had suffered the Triwizard Tournament in his first year, and you might get a sense of the combination here. It centers on a school that teaches both potential heroes and future villains -- hence, the title -- and so we get to revel in the fun of classes on poisonings alongside how to be a proper princess. It also, refreshingly, features not one but two female protagonists and a number of strong, or at least intriguing, characters of each gender. The relationship between these two girls, one in each school -- and neither exactly where she expected to be -- is the core of the book. And that core is fascinating, emotional, and likely relatable for a great many young readers. As an adult reading this, though, I felt the constraints perhaps a little more than the target audience would. The pacing and the whiplash reversals of characters and loyalties happen at too breakneck a speed for me, much of the time. This was, I think, the first kids book I've ever read where I had to flip back and reread portions just to remember who was on who's side now. Or even who was talking. As I recall -- however distantly -- adolescence is like that sometimes, so I suppose those hurtling plot points and flip-flopping friendships make a kind of sense. There are moments where the tumbling plot slops out of its bounds. There are also moments where, it seems, even the author loses track of the details. That said, however, I found myself turning pages and eager to see what would become of all this switching and swerving. Flaws and all, this book compelled me all the way through to the end, which winds up being pretty perfect for its story. Though there is much familiarity crammed in here, there is also a great deal that feels fresh and clever. And, really, what more can one ask? While it isn't perfect, I think it is worth the time, especially for those young readers who are already fans of its genre.
    • 1/5
      This hurts me so much to say. Like really. I wanted to enjoy this one so much because the cover is gorgeous and the trailer was good too, but I just didn't. Maybe it would be better in Hardcover, or even a physical copy of the ARC, but most of the problem I had dealt with this book being confusing. At first I really was liking it. But then it got a little boring. Then when the POVs started changing without warning I got confused. I had to keep going back and realizing that they did switch names. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more had it been a real ARC. One thing I did like was the illustrations. As they came up on my Nook, I really thought they looked cool as digital drawings. I would love to see the finished copies. But over time, I kept reading and it got a little boring. It wasn't that there wasn't anything happening, it just felt like the SAME THING kept happening. It felt a little redundant Agatha wanted to get Sophie out of there but Sophie wanted to stay. Every time they went somewhere it happened over and over. So I thought I just wasn't in the mood for that type of story, so I put it down for a little and started on something else. And then I ended up finishing two books before picking this up again. So I just said forget it. I ended up skimming the rest of it and looking to see the big plot twist. All in all, maybe this version just wasn't for me. I'll give it another try when the final version comes out
    • 4/5
      This is one of those times where I am super glad that I went for the audiobook rather than the print, because, though I bet this is fun in print too, I don't think I could have loved it quite so much. Just saying.Why Did I Read This Book?First off, there are those two magic words: fairy tale. Put that on a book, and I will probably try to read it at some point. On top of that, the book trailer is astounding, and I don't say that lightly, because most of them make me much less interested in the books.What's the Story Here?Sophie and Agatha live in a town beyond the woods. Every four years, two children are taken, one good and one evil. Sophie believes in the rumors and wants desperately to go off and be a princess at the School for Good and Evil, where it is rumored that the two kids go. To prove her goodness, she has befriended Agatha, the witchiest, most evil-looking girl in town. Agatha, however, does not want to go. Of course, you can't stop a fairy tale, and both girls are swept off to the school, as Sophie predicted. What Sophie did NOT predict was that Agatha would be put with the princesses, and that she would go to the school for evil. How are the Characters?OMG, Sophie is the worst. Seriously, I wanted to punch her in the face. She's such a snob, and so convinced that prettiness is what makes someone a good person. Chainani has created one of the most selfish characters in fiction. The voice Lee uses for Sophie even sounds exactly like the blonde girl in Stardust, all snooty and self-involved and perfect for the character. For reasons I'll explain later, I do think Sophie was probably the best-drawn character, though, because she has the most realistic character ARC.Agatha I loved from the beginning, with her cynicism and snark and hatred of cocky princes. She's my kind of heroine. Plus, she's not gorgeous, and that was super satisfying, because heroines don't need to be gorgeous all the time.The rest of the cast is well-suited to the tale too, falling into their stereotypes of good and evil initially, but most developing depth as the tale continues. Actually, in the end, evil comes off much better in terms of personality, where the princesses remain pretty shallow and appearance-focused.And the Romance? So, the romance is pretty much all centered around this guy, Tedros, son of King Arthur. If that's not how you spell his name, don't criticize me, because it was an audiobook and it's not written out ANYWHERE. Anyway, Tedros is a snobby princeling to start, but I was actually shipping him with Agatha pretty hard, though mostly just because I wanted Sophie's nose rubbed in it because she's the worst. Plus, you know my feelings for hate turning to love romance arcs. However, once that ship started coming about, I was less of a fan.Throughout, I was also nurturing a hope this might go LGBT, with Sophie and Agatha being like "forget Tedros" and falling in love with each other. Alas and alack, there was one moment where I thought that was happening, but no.What Are My Reservations with this Book?Much as I loved listening to The School for Good and Evil, and thought much of it was hilarious and clever, I have some serious concerns. No, they're not the similarities to Harry Potter, which do exist but that I didn't find to be overpowering. What upsets me is the overall commentary on beauty and princesses. Agatha starts out as this incredibly talented, intelligent girl, where Sophie simpers and doesn't study. The moment Agatha discovers that she is pretty if she's confident and smiles, she becomes weak, blushing over Tedros constantly and suddenly unable to fight battles, fainting left and right. NO NO NO. Love should make you stronger, not weaker. Meanwhile, Sophie goes from an airhead to monstrously powerful villain in no time. I expected the final message to be more clearly that beauty does not equal good, but by the end apparently Agatha is gorgeous and princess-like, which also means she has to be less of a badass, I guess.Am I Going to Continue with the Series?Most definitely, and I will be sticking with the audiobooks. Though I'm not entirely comfortable with all of the moral messages, I really did love this. The fairy tale references, the humor, the action and the awesome narration made this a must listen for me, despite those issues.How was the Narration?Freaking AMAZING. Polly Lee is one of my favorite narrators hands down, and I will now make it my mission to listen to anything she's narrated, even the romance novels, because her voice is so pretty. She's British, and her accent is awesome. Plus, she does a ton of great voices, and handled the whole cast incredibly deftly. *bows to Polly Lee's awesomeness*
    • 3/5
      Go ahead -- judge The School for Good and Evil by its cover, because this is a book that really wanted to be a manga series. Not that there's anything wrong with wanting to be a manga series -- but I'll get into the issues I had with this book after a quick summary:Every four years, two children are stolen from the isolated little town of Gavaldon by a mysterious Schoolmaster. One is taken to the School for Good, the other to the School for Evil . . . and there they become the stuff that fairy tales are made of. Parents lock their children away -- the unusually bad children do surprising, uncharacteristic good works, the preternaturally good ones go around making messes and pinching their siblings. None of them want to be taken away . . . except for Sophie. Sophie can hardly wait. She's always known that, deep inside, she was a princess. Surely the Schoolmaster will see that as well, and take Sophie to the School for Good where she can meet her perfect Prince Charming. But has she been good enough? In an attempt to up her standing on the Nice List, Sophie befriends outsider Agatha, who wears a lot of black and lives next to a graveyard. Agatha doesn't necessarily believe in the schools, and she certainly doesn't want to go there -- but even her mother believes that Agatha, if she were chosen, would land squarely in the School for Evil. So, imagine the two girls' surprise when Agatha finds herself chosen for the School for Good, and Sophie ends up in the School for Evil. Agatha's main goal is to get herself and Sophie out of their schools and back to Gavaldon before something dreadful befalls them -- you see, she quickly learns what happens to students who are not successful. Sophie, on the other hand, is determined to make her way to the School for Good (she even has her Prince Charming picked out) and nothing, not friendship or magic or a host of fakey-nice Mean Girls at the School for Good, will stand in her way. To top it off, what Sophie and Agatha don't know is that there are forces at work at the Schools that neither of them understand . . . and they are about to get swept into something much larger than just two girls spirited off to school. . . .So, that sounds promising, right? Well, the first bit of the book is good enough . . . but once the girls get to the school, it goes downhill. One of the main problems is the length, or to be precise, the amount of wasted space in the main portion of the book, where Agatha tries to convince Sophie to go home, and Sophie hatches another scheme to get into the School for Good. Over and over again. There's an entire school year to fill, and while some of the girls' adventures are exciting, they also felt repetitive to me. To top it off, the ending of the book is massively confusing. Then, the writing is not as great as one might expect from the impressive author bio and the number of big-name book blurbers this title attracted. The story has definite visual/cinematic elements, but there were times when I could almost feel the author's frustration at not being able to just express visually what was going through his mind. And this led to action sequences (particularly at the end of the book) that were extremely jumpy and confusing. As manga, it would almost definitely have been more successful; as a film (I hear it has already been optioned) I think it will be spectacular. As a book, it just didn't do it for me. Much as it pains me to say such a thing, my recommendation on this one is to skip the book and just wait for the movie.
    • 4/5
      While this one is filed under Middle-Grade, I don't see why it can't be enjoyed by all ages. I'm a strong believer in that fairy tales are not just for children, that the stories and characters in folkloric fantasy can appeal to a much wider audience -- and it's especially entertaining when familiar concepts like "fairy tale romance" or "happily ever after" are being parodied or turned on their heads.That's the idea behind this book; in a village called Gavaldon, two children are kidnapped every four years, never to be seen again. One was always beautiful and good, the other an outcast and strange. It didn't take long for the village children to speculate where these missing boys and girls go. They say a mysterious schoolmaster takes them to the fabled School for Good and Evil, where storybook heroes and villains are made.For as long as she can remember, Sophie has dreamed of being whisked away to the School of Good, imagining a magical world of pretty dresses and handsome princes. On the other hand, she figures her friend Agatha with her homely face and frumpy black clothes would be a perfect fit for the School of Evil. So it's no surprise then when the two were the ones taken way this year. However, when they arrive at the Endless Woods, Sophie is dumped into the school for Evil, while Agatha ends up in the School for Good! This has to be just a terrible mix-up, right? Or is it?How cool is this idea? Let's face it, traditional fairy tales aren't about character development; off the top of my head, Prince Charming and others like him are good examples of characters that don't go beyond being a mere caricature. We don't tend to think beyond what is presented, and that's what makes this book so great. You know the kind of satire we see in Shrek? It's similar here, poking fun at how shallow princesses must be for obsessing only about their beauty and who will take them to the formal ball. It also makes you wonder about the villains, like, do any of them have hopes and ambitions other than cooking up nefarious schemes? Who gets to determine what is good and evil, anyway?Obviously, there also some good messages here. "Beauty is only skin deep" and "believe in yourself" are only a couple amongst many, but it's presented very well in this original and magical tale, all wrapped up in a whimsical package. There are lovely illustrations scattered throughout the book as well, and I can't help but feel grumpy now about the lack of pretty drawings in my adult fantasy novels. Is there a rule or something that pictures can only belong in children's books?! Regardless, this book is so much fun. At once ridiculous and full of heart, I couldn't help but melt for this story and its characters. Oh so cute at times, but sinister and dark at others, this book will enchant you and make you smile.
    • 3/5
      This book has some really great parts, and the overall plot is actually quite good. However, the execution just falls flat. This book is at least 100 pages too long which makes the plot meander around to the point that I lost track of who wanted what.

      Sophie wants to be in the School for Good. Now she wants to go home. Now she wants Tedros. Now she wants to go home again. Now she wants to stay. Now she's a villain. Now she's not a villain. I couldn't keep up with her mood swings.

      Anyway. It seems like there were more professors in this than in Harry Potter, to the point I couldn't keep track of who was who, and ultimately none of them really mattered so why were there so many to begin with?

      I read an ARC of this. It will be interesting to see how it goes over when it's officially published.
    • 5/5
      It is the common belief that all little girls want to be a princess when they are under the age of 5. Most parents read at least one fairy tale to their daughters at night and with the dominant presence of Disney, it is hard not to get away from this concept. It has always been played that good overcomes evil and the prince saves the princess. The princess has been taught to be a docile lady that cannot defend for herself or nearly think for herself. In the last decade or so the country has made progress in burying this misconception. More and more movies are being created to show both princesses and princes to be independent characters that work together as teams rather than for selfish gain. Often the villains are not always evil, but misunderstood souls that have not had an opportunity to show their true colors. This story is about two such girls named Sophie and Agatha. Sophie has grown up to believe that she is the embodiment of good, while poor Agatha has been told that she is pure evil. Neither girl wants to conform to societies rules nor beliefs and only Sophie truly wishes to believe in fairytales. The book has the characters live in a town that has its children occasionally disappear to reappear in a fairytale the following year. It is Sophie's greatest desire to be the next to vanish and Agatha's greatest annoyance at having to protect her friend. As fate might have it the girls do vanish only to reemerge at a school for villains and heroes. It is a place where only the most evil go and the princes' go to find their princesses. Much to Sophie's horror she finds herself in the school of evil and Agatha in the school for good. How did these girls wind up in the wrong houses? How can they escape and go back home? Is Sophie truly evil and will she perish trying to prove she is not? Is Agatha really an ugly duckling or is she a black hearted villain?I had a lot of fun with this book and truly enjoyed the author's take on good and evil. I don't think I have ever seen a book quite like this before. The author played very well against the common prejudices that most people have built into them from childhood. One phrase that comes to mind easily is the old saying that you, "can never judge a book by its cover". This saying is very true and often people make fools of themselves by unfairly judging others. Time and time again the author demonstrated that this saying was accurate. I have to recommend this book hands down and honestly believe that it would be a great read for any age group. Great job author!
    • 5/5
      Still suffering Harry Potter withdrawal? Reading lots of books that are good and entertaining, etc., but not quite fulfilling that Harry Potter-sized hole? Me too! Enter "The School for Good and Evil." A true heir to the world of fantasy and humor created by masters like Dianna Wynne Jones and J.K, Rowling, this book was fantastic! Funny and scary and interesting and unputdownable. Read it! Share with your family ! Prepare yourself for the inevitable movie!
    • 3/5
      I am still on the fence on how much I liked this story. It felt like it was trying real hard to reject a binary, but by playing way too much within the rules and structure of the binary. Also maybe queer? Maybe? If the second book falls in my hands, I'll likely read it. But it's not something demanding my attention.
    • 4/5
      I have been seeing this book pop up on multiple Booktube channels and I thought the premise, two girls from the same village sorted into the wrong schools, an interesting and different one. I ended up loving it. It got 4 stars because there were a few parts that dragged even though I was listening to the audio book and it usually helps me get through those parts The book is about two different schools one for princesses, one for witches and the best of the best will be memorialized by getting their own fairytale. It looks to be a series with the 4th book being recently announced. I cannot wait for the second book to be available at my library so I can listen to it as well.
    • 5/5
      This book is so awesome! It had me hooked from the very first sentence: "Sophie had waited all her life to be kidnapped." Absolutely amazing story. Couldn't get enough of it.

      A beautiful girl and an ugly goth type girl are somehow best friends. They are whisked away to a fairy tale land, The School for Good and Evil. In a strange twist of fate, the pretty one lands in the evil school and the ugly girl finds herself in the pretty school for good. Hilarity ensues.

      From the very beginning, I thought, these girls are totally going to end up in bed together. I won't tell you if they do in fact end up banging, because that would probably spoil the fun. But I can tell you one thing: goth girls are almost always lesbians. There, I said it.
    • 4/5
      Enjoyed the book. However parts were very confusing. Not sure if it was poor writing or a head cold. However, I enjoyed my time at the School for Good and Evil.
    • 5/5
      A really good bewitching tale about two girls that go to different schools, but everything is not what it seems as they apparently switch places.This is a must read.
    • 3/5
      a decent book with a terrible ending
    • 2/5
      I enjoyed premise, and the plot was okay (until the end, when there was every kind of battle you could possibly imagine, plus all the plot twists- did the editor stop reading it?), but the writing is terrible. There are no rules to the magic here. Ultimately, there are just a lot of stereotypes and nothing really holds it all together.
    • 2/5
      I had been looking forward to reading this book since it came out. And unfortunately, my wait wasn't worth it.I'm just going to get down to it since you can read the synopsis at the top of the page.We have princes and princesses, witches and all sorts of other disturbing creatures. That's my kind of book. But as I started really getting into it, I was appalled at what I was seeing.I thought I was going to get either a redemption book or a book that teaches real beauty lies within, and physical beauty is only skin deep. What I got was - ugly is evil, beauty is good. That was really the theme except for one really throw away line where Aggie smiles a real smile and people see her differently because she is happy. But, later on, that is even taken away because she grew more beautiful as the story goes on. She changes and looks more like the princess she was supposed to be.Princesses in the story are all awful, shallow, mean twits. There is really only one or two redeeming people in the entire castle. They totally ignore Aggie because she isn't pretty, and they are terribly mean to her when they are confronted with the fact they have to talk to her. THIS NEVER CHANGES UNTIL SHE BECOMES PRETTY. I'm just in awe. Let's teach that beauty is everything. Because the little throwaway scenes where they tried to show "beauty doesn't matter" is eaten up by the scenes where the princesses love Sophie (the actual evil witch) when Sophie shows them how to be PRETTIER.This isn't a book about good and evil, it's a book about a freaking beauty pageant. Aggie was the only character you can give a crap about. No kind, empathetic teachers, no real evil to contend with - unless you count Hester's neck demon. It's like they were afraid to deal with real issues and instead used killing off people and animals in order to create the vile feel. Newsflash - death and destruction aren't the only source of evil. The characters are all so flat and shallow that I could slip the entire bunch of them under my door.We have a PRINCE - yes, seriously - A PRINCE who KICKS A BUNNY! And he's supposed to be swoon-worthy for these princesses? YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. He has all this fake internal monologue "when will someone see past my looks and see the real me?" Never, because you're a jerk who gets mad and kicks bunnies and could never believe that someone who doesn't look the way you want her to could be worth your time. BUT - after she starts shining herself up a bit... that's when you make your move. You are starting to feel like there could be more, but you are too ashamed of yourself to admit it. Only when the outside is a nicer package will you do anything about it.Sophie, we had your number from the first page. You never once fooled anyone with your "goodness." I thought maybe a real redemption would happen for her - but nope. And I love at the end of the story, you only want your friend, yet again, because you have nothing else. That's not friendship. That's using whatever "tools" you have at your disposal.And the part at the end that got me?? When the "Nevers" - the evil ones - and the "Evers" - the good ones - get in a fight, their looks changed. The Evers had done something against their rules and imagine this in this story THEY TURNED UGLY. The Nevers followed the Evers rules (defending themselves) and turned beautiful. I have such a major issue with this book. Let's forget the shallow characters, let's forget that friendships in this book (except for Aggie's love of Sophie) are all based on what you can get from the people around you, let's forget that relationships in this book can make or break a princess because a prince can live fine on his own, but the princess HAS TO HAVE a prince - because without one, she is WORTHLESS...Let's forget that beauty is apparently all that matters in life. If we forget about all of that, we have nothing left to the story. At all.Even the way the book ended - total cliffhanger. Way to really kill it. You don't wrap up a darn thing AT ALL. You drag us through a book by the beauty pageant sash through every shallow comment and character only to realize there is NO ENDING. NO ENDING AT ALL. I'm tired of the authors who feel like they don't have to give the readers what they came for. A COMPLETE STORY. You gave us a beginning and a really long middle. No ending, no wrapping anything up. We wanted to finish the book so we can at least say we did, but you never delivered. We held up our part of the bargain. We read it cover to cover, but you decided that you wanted to take us all on a ride and then trick us. Don't give us an ending so we "have" to buy the next book. Well, it's not happening. You tricked me once. It's not going to happen again.and PS... the em dash is a tool. Not the only punctuation available. If I never see another em dash again it will be too soon. Don't overuse punctuation to a point it becomes a distraction. Just sayin'.