Review
Good news!
This book is a whole other level of amazingly epic greatness.
The reason I love this series so much is how it handles tough issues that are hard to explain, let alone to a middle school aged child. And it does so in an entertaining way. Which is great for people of all ages!
After finishing the first book, you think everything is all good times. Last book ended on a happy ending, and I couldn't figure out a reason for them to come back. Except one of the girls isn't happy with their ending, and so they're transported back to the school.
But it's not the same.
Instead of the separation of good and evil, like the previous story, the schools are split by princes and princess. This is because both Sophie and Agatha had a happy ending without boys in the last book, and now that's what everyone else in their school is striving for - especially the new headmaster. The lessons are now about how girls are better than boys, boys ruin everything, and masculinity.
And the girls are, again, trying to convince everyone their views are all wrong while saying alive and dealing with their own conflicts with each other.
“No one likes boys! Even girls who like boys can’t stand boys! They smell, they talk too much, they mess up everything, and they always have their hands in their pants, but that doesn’t mean we can go to school without them! It’s like stymphs without bones! It’s like witches without warts! Without boys, LIFE HAS NO POINT!”
Then there's the changes that occurred with the characters, holy character development batman.
“It's the problem with fairy tales. From far away, they seem so perfect. But up close, they're just as complicated as real life.”
Whatever I choose, this series has very much become a favorite of mine. I'm going to keep poking my son until he's old enough to read it and discuss it with me.