The Fairy Tale Fun Continues at Ever After High with A Semi-Charming Kind of Life, by Suzanne Selfors

At Ever After High, parental expectations are taken to a fantastical extreme. The kids there don’t just follow in their parents’ footsteps, they are expected to live the same fairy tale stories that have been played out for generations, whether they want to or not! Darling Charming, the heroine of the newest addition to the series, A Semi-Charming Kind of Life, knows that one day she’ll be a damsel in distress rescued by a handsome prince, and she is not one bit happy about this. She wants to do things herself, and not passively wait around; and she wants to be more than just pretty and charming. When the chance comes to put on her brother’s armor and take a turn at jousting, she is thrilled to find she had a natural gift for it (unlike her brother, who doesn’t meet their parents’ expectations for a hero). But she’s not sure she’s ready to commit to the Rebels, the group of Ever After students who are actively rejecting their destinies…
This is the sort of series that really hooks its fans with its thought-provoking questioning of destiny vs. free will, and with the sheer crazy enchantment of the school setting and the magical kids who go there. As well as magical problems, there are more ordinary issues that middle grade kids will relate to, like how to get along with classmates who are very different from you, how to cope with impossible crushes, and how to please your parents while living your own life. These are books that can spark stories in the reader’s mind, and make them want more to read! Fortunately, companion books for the most recent titles let readers actively play with the stories, and there is a a whole line of character dolls (that I can imagine my ten year old self would have wanted to collect) that just cry out for adventures of their own.
The Ever After High series began in 2013, with four books written by Shannon Hale.

The Storybook of Legends introduces Ever After High, a boarding school where the children of famous fairy tale families go to be trained to fulfill their destinies. Raven Queen’s mother is the Evil Queen, so that’s what Raven is supposed to be too.  But Raven doesn’t feel like an evil person, and she can’t help but wonder if that’s what she has to be…and so she decides to rebel, refusing to sign the Storybook that will seal her destiny.

The Unfairest of Them All continues Raven’s story. Her refusal to commit has possibly placed Snow White’s daughter Apple’s happily ever after in jeopardy…after all, Raven is supposed to feed her a poisoned apple in order for the prince to come. Tensions mount between Rebels, who want to write their own stories and the Royals, who want to follow theirs, but the two factions must come together when Madeline Hatter, of Wonderland fame, lands in trouble.

In A Wonderlandiful World, strange magic from Wonderland creeps into Ever After High, with dangerous results. Lizzie Hearts, the future queen of Wonderland, Cedar Wood, daughter of Pinocchio, and Madeline Hatter, just as mad as her Hatter father, are the only ones immune to the insanity, and so it’s up to them to save their friends.

Once Upon a Time is a collection of introductions to the characters, some first published online, but with five new stories as well. The 12 short tales reveal what many favorite characters were doing before school started, and young readers who loved getting to know them at Ever After High will be enchanted by their backstories.
The magic of Ever After High continues with a second series written by Suzanne Selfors; A Semi-Charming Kind of Life is the third of these.

In the first book in this second series is Next Top Villain, which features Duchess Swan, who doesn’t have a happily-ever-after to her story (she has to live as a swan) and decides to use General Villainy class as a chance to rebel. Can she become Ever After High’s Next Top Villain, and will it change her destiny?

The second book, Kiss and Spell, focuses on Ginger Breadhouse, daughter of the witch who trapped Hansel and Gretel (not a legacy that makes it easy to have friends!). But Ginger decides to use her time at Ever After High to create her own identity as the host of the MirrorCast show Spells Kitchen. Unfortunately, a magical recipe goes wrong, and she turns Hopper Croakington II, son of the Frog Prince, into a frog, and has to figure out how to turn him back before his human side becomes lost in his new amphibian self.

A fourth book is planned for the fall, but in the meantime there are two “Destiny Do-Over Diaries”, for hero training and science and sorcery, complete with activities and “thronework”. In Science and Sorcery, you can enroll in Professor Rumpelstiltskin’s Science and Sorcery class with Ginger Breadhouse, work through the “hextbook” and rewrite Hopper Croakington II’s story. The Hero Training book helps you write your own destiny and learn rescuing skills. Genral Villiany is the “hextbook” that goes with Next Top Villain; readers can  take over the story while enjoying the villainous “thronework” along with  Raven Queen, Lizzie Hearts and Duchess Swan.

If you are looking for fun summer reading for your 10 year old, do try this series. And if your child is already a fan, A Semi-Charming Kind of Life will add a magical sparkle to her eyes!