When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales.

Essie and Ollie are both White while two of their mutual friends are Black and Latinx.Ĭhainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.Įvery four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. The romance and chemistry between Essie and Ollie are also enjoyable. Bigotry against Ollie is briefly addressed in one scene but is done so tactfully it is clear that a great deal of empathy has gone into this narrative. Ollie’s relationship with their mother is adorable and heartwarming, with their mother using the rather sweet and gender-neutral “kiddo” to refer to them. Gender identity forms a large part of the narrative, but Ollie’s nonbinary gender is portrayed as a natural part of them rather than a big issue or wow moment. The narrative is split into two halves, the first narrated by Essie and the second by Ollie, which cover the same time span, helpfully marked by a day count. Essie helps Ollie out with the school’s LGBTQ+ club while starting to question her own orientation because of her feelings for Ollie. She says a temporary goodbye to her old friends but soon meets nonbinary Ollie and develops a crush on them. Esther, who goes by Essie, moves to a new state and falls in love.Įssie relocates to North Carolina with her dad for a semester as part of his job as a professor.

Ami polonsky books