The School for Good and Evil is the first novel in a series of Young Adult fantasy fiction by Soman Chainani. The series commenced with its publication in 2013 followed by
2014: A World without Princes
2015: The Last Ever After
2017: Quests for Glory.
The School for Good and Evil was Chainani’s debut novel and instantly became a bestseller. In addition to enjoying great commercial interest, the novel and series have also receive mostly positive attention from critics. In the vein of the Harry Potter series, Chainani situates school as the defining social construct for children and teenagers and the novel explores the many ways in which such a system can create damaging preconceived notions in undeveloped minds about identity and expectations as well as offering a forum by which these notions can be challenged and altered.
This exploration of identity and expectation is primarily told through the friendship and rivalry of two opposites. Sophie is a pretty pink princess all wrapped up in appearance and damsel preparation. Agatha is loner longing for the witchy powers that seem to suit her name. Both have high hopes for attending the school, but both have those hopes upended with Sophie winds up being assigned to the School for Evil and while Agatha is forced to attend all sorts of pretty pink princess-y classes at the rival School for Good. Toss in a King Arthur’s son Tedros, the Most Popular Prince on Campus and you’ve got the recipe either disaster or some life lessons well worth learning.
Universal Pictures optioned the film rights to the novel with plans for the live action production still in development as of 2017.
