Summary:

Svetlana Chmakova's "Nightschool" takes place in a school, but not just any school...a school for vampires, werewolves, and witches. During the day, it is a regular school with human children but at nighttime, the school gets transformed into a school for all kinds of mystical creatures. The story centers on a young witch name Alex who is homeschooled. (It is unclear why she is homeschooled although this is only Volume 1). She lives with her older sister Sarah who is the new night keeper for the "Nightschool." Throughout the story, they show vampire hunters, witches casting spells, and this dark force called "The Rippers." One night when Sarah is at work at the school, Alex leaves the house to go practice a spell. (Keep in mind that Sarah told her sister to stay inside while she is not home but of course she doesn't which tells us something ominous will come of this..) Alex sets out and stops by a graveyard to practice magic when she hears people. These "people" turn out to be vampires and vampire hunters having a quarrel. In the middle of this quarrel, these Rippers come and terrorize them. Some of the people end up getting killed and others just injured. Alex is in shock seeing all of this and runs home in a panic. This same night, Sarah is at the school and a young girl, who looks almost menacing, tells her there are spells going on in a forbidden hallway. Sarah follows the girl into this dark hallways and the girl points to this open door leading underground that looks like it goes into some kind of vortex. Sarah goes ahead of the girl and heads down the stairs. The girl slams the doors down and says, "It's done." I definitely got the chills after reading that! While Alex is at home, she notices a picture frame that used to be of her and her sister but her sister has now disappeared from the picture. Worried and confused, Alex calls the school to talk to her sister. When Alex calls the school and asks for Sarah, they say that there is nobody there by that name nor was there ever anyone named Sarah that worked there. Alex knows that she needs to get to that school but upon her arrival, everything is dark and empty. She knows that at this hour, the magic school should still be going on yet nobody is around. Alex is walking down the hall saying, "hello?" when all of a sudden, there is some kind of dark figure that says, "Well, well, well, who have we here?" With that, the book ends! This is a series of books with numerous volumes, so having an ending like that makes you want to get the next one!

   
YA Lit Criteria:

1. YA authors write from the viewpoint of young people: This story is told by a young witch named Alex which makes it relatable for younger people. 
2. YA lit gets rid of parents so the young person is free to take credit for
his/her own accomplishments: Alex lives with her older sister Sarah, and it is unknown where their parents are. When Sarah disappears though, Alex is then on her own to try and figure out what is happening at the school.

3. YA lit is fast paced: This story is really fast paced. Aside the fact that there are not many words on each page, the story itself goes quick. There is a lot of action happening and with the mystery aspect, it definitely makes the book fly by.

5. The body of work includes stories about characters from many different
ethnic and cultural groups: This story does an excellent job of portraying people from all different backgrounds. All of the mystical creatures are of various ethnicities, along with the human children in the school.

6.YA books are optimistic w/ characters making worthy accomplishments: This book is not that optimistic; however, because it is only the 1st volume, I think that Alex will eventually find her older sister and things will turn out well. The book ends with Alex trying to find her sister, so it leaves off with a cliffhanger.

7. Successful YA novels deal w/ emotions that are important to young adults: In the story, there is a part on two people being in love. There is also Alex, the main character, who is an outcast which definitely relates to younger people. There is the battle between the two mystical groups which younger people can relate to because of the various conflicts they go through with friends/enemies. It is also important for young people to see Alex, a young girl, who has to fight by herself to find Sarah. I think that shows empowerment for younger generations.

Links in relation to the book:

http://www.svetlania.com/     -->  This link will bring you to the author's personal webpage.

http://www.yenpress.com/nightschool/     --> This link will bring you to the various volumes of this series, as well as summaries of each one.

Personal Response:

I really enjoyed this book. As a fan of mystery, this book held my interest throughout. I also was a fan of shows like "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer" and "Charmed" which this book reminds me of as well. This book takes you to this fantasy world that is not realistic yet very exciting because it puts you in that mystical realm. I think many students would find this book quite interesting; however, it may also depend on the types of books children like. This is a mystery that involves mystical creatures like vampires and witches, and there are students that do not find that kind of thing appealing. It definitely is age-appropriate with middle school and high school students. While it does get dark, it is nothing too inappropriate that would scare the mentioned age groups. I do think it may be startling for students that are younger than middle school. If you are someone that finds vampires, werewolves, and witches to be fascinating, then this is the book for you! :)