The School for Good and Evil #1 by Soman Chainani

My name is Sophie, and I was mistakenly placed in the School for Evil. My friend Agatha should be here, but she’s stuck in the School for Good. How am I going to marry King Arthur’s son if everybody thinks I’m evil? Agatha and I have tried to escape and return home, but all I want is to find my prince. We finally met the School Master, but he said our story is being written right now. Why can't Evil have a happy ending? Why does everyone say Good and Evil can't be friends? My teachers say Evil's nemesis will grow stronger as Evil weakens. I don't understand why Prince Tedros doesn't like me and why he keeps messing up my happiness. Is he my nemesis? I won't stop until I get my happiness, and I pity anyone who stands in my way.

The premise of the book is that good and evil fairy tale characters must be trained in school. However, Sophie and Agatha are Readers, so they’re looked down upon by their classmates. They have unusual abilities, and someone is secretly manipulating their lives. The girls offer a contrast in characters. While Sophie professes to be a good character, the school continues to place her back in the evil school. She seems to have good intentions, but she's conceited, vain, and callous. She easily touts her virtues of beauty and performance of good deeds, but her motives are selfish. She reminds Agatha of her ugliness on several occasions. Agatha is willing to sacrifice and help others, and she only wants to return home with her friend. She lacks self-confidence and believes what others say about her. She feels she's unattractive and wonders if she shouldn't be in the school for Evil. The whole idea about what it means to be Good becomes a theme for the book. Actually, there are very few Good characters other than Agatha. Many of the kids in the school for Good behave poorly and have shallow minds. The evil kids predictably do evil things. Overall, the book is entertaining and thought-provoking.