This issue focuses on the good, the bad, and the ugly ... minus the good and the ugly. Let's face it—a great villain makes a great story, and in this issue, we feature antagonists who make stories so good. We use the villains theme to explore literary tools such as archetypal characters and characterization through descriptive language.

Our Center Stage play, "Evil Genius," is a  READ adaptation of Catherine Jinks's popular novel. Cadel Piggott is a brilliant student who uses his smarts to cause trouble. When he is taken to a social worker, his true identity as the son of a powerful criminal mastermind is revealed. The "social worker" sets him on a course of becoming a villain. Cadel attends evil school, befriends villainous peers, and eventually outsmarts all his professors. But when Cadel realizes the ramifications of his actions, he finds himself alone and wondering who he is.

Next, check out our nonfiction article, which comes in the form of a top-5 list.  In "The Foulest of Fiends ,"students will read a character breakdown of some well-known literary villains. By exploring these villains, students will learn about archetypes and character development.

"Villainopedia.com"  is READ's original short story, written by MarkTyler Nobleman. Brett, the son of a police officer and grandson of a criminal, creates an online database of everyday heroes. When the idea doesn’t catch on, his mischievous grandmother suggests that he switch the project to focus on villains.

Turn to the Writing section to find "Casting Your Characters," and article that  gives your students a chance to use the skills they've learned from the other articles to write character descriptions of their own. Our examples and how-tos will have your students writing creatively.

This issue teaches many of the basics of story writing and character development. We are sure your students will be rooting for fictional villains all the way to the end. As always, we look forward to hearing your feedback. Please email us your thoughts at read@weeklyreader.com.