Rating: 
Summary: Unfortunate indeed!
Review: In Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events" books, one minute you're laughing nonstop, and the next minute you're in suspense wondering how the Baudelaire orphans will escape from the greedy clutches of Count Olaf this time. In the first book, Violet, Sunny, and Klaus Baudelaire find out that their parents have died in a terrible fire that burned their entire house down. Mr. Poe, their gaurdian, sent them to live with Count Olaf, a relative of the Baudelaires. But after living with him for a short time, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny discover that Count Olaf is after the fortune they inherited from their parents and will do anything to get the fortune for himself. The Baudelaires finally escaped from him, but that's only the beginning. Mr. Poe keeps on sending the children to new gaurdians, but every time, Count Olaf is there, disguised as someone in hopes of getting his hands on the children and the fortune. However, Sunny, Violet and Klaus are clever and manage to think up of smart strategies for getting themselves out of dangerous situations. When you finish each book, you will be wondering "what will happen to the Baudeliers next?" After reading the first three books in the series, you will be hungry to read more and more.
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Summary: Sparked my reading life!
Review: Before I discovered this series, I felt numb about reading. I really didn't care much for anything in the form of words. As a gift for Christmas I recieved these, and I thought, "This had to cost a fortune. My uncle really wasted his money." On New Years Day, I got bored and I looked for something to do. I pulled out book 1 still in place in it's box. As I put it down, I looked at the cruel face of Count Olaf (one of the charecters), and it sparked questions like *Why does he look mean?* and *How do the kids feel?* so I started reading it. Since, I couldn't stop! I had to know what horrible event would happen next! I suggest this book for any person who is in my case. They are great! I can't wait to read book 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9! :)
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Summary: Books 1 & 2
Review: These two books were great! If you don't like happy endings like me then this is the book for you. Unfortunate event after unfortunate event makes these books so great. Each book just begins with bad things and ends with bad things. You think your life is bad, wait till you read these books. Lemony Snicket is a phenonemonal writer. He does an absolute awesome job in writing his books. The only annoying thing is that he defines words that I already know what they mean. His books are a very different way than any other book I've read. His style is unique! =)
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Summary: A Teacher's Review
Review: As a teacher, I am constantly looking for the newest and biggest book to read to my students. During my travels, I came across a book entitled "The Bad Beginning" by Lemony Snickett. I decided to take a chance and purchase the book. I sat down at home and read the entire book in about two and a half hours, and it was one of the most enjoyable stories that I had read in a long time! I tried the book out on the kids, and they just ate it up. The students couldn't get enough of Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire....and to be quite honest, neither could I!! Soon after reading the first book, I purchased books two and three, and not to my surprise they were just as good! I again read these books to the students, and they again ate them up!!! Unfortunately, by the time we had finished the third book, the school year was over. However, I went on to finish my collection by getting books four through nine. I love these stories! The black humor that they contain should be that of a Coen Brothers film. The kids got every joke, and they totally fell in love with Snickett's radically original storytelling - explaining things in detail, translating Sunny's baby talk, and giving hilarious backstory. My peers often make fun of me because I read so much children's literature, but I have recommended these books to all of my friends. I even believe that these books are more interesting and fun to read than the Harry Potter series...but thats just me! I would recommend this book to parents of third and fourth grade students (it might be a little unfullfilling to the fiercly loyal fifth grade Harry Potter crowd) and also to adults who are unfamiliar with the series. A truly remarkable find and the most entertaining children's novels since Roald Dahl. Summer's the perfect time to pick these up!
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Summary: The first three books = Set-up....
Review: Well, I'll admit its been a while since I've read the first three books of the series. They are are my least favorite in the series. Because in my opinion they get much better after those three. Especially after book 5. However, since this is a 1-3 box set, I MUST review these specific ones right now, so here goes. Book One: The Bad Beginning - Well in book one we our introduced to the Baudelaire's, they are quite happy children that live with their parents in a large house, and are very rich. These children include: Violet, a 14 year old whom is a genius inventor, and will tie her up when in the midst of inventing, Klaus, her 12 year old brother whom is a genius of books, hecan't get enough of them, and is quite often a well of imformation, and last but not least Sunny, a small baby whom is still crawling, can't really talk yet except with made up words, but she has for EXTREMELY long & sharp teeth. Now, so the story goes, the Baudelare children were playing on the beach, when they became orphans(wont tell you how), this is where there misfortunes began, because they must live with a gardian now, a relative or something. Well, they end up living with Count Olaf, and really I don't want to tell you more of that book. NOTICE: If you DON'T want ANYTHING in the books after book one spoiled DON'T the next to descriptions of the books, skip them and read my summary. Book Two: The Reptile Room - In this book the Baudelaire's have escaped Count Olaf and Mr. Poe has placed them in the care of Dr. Montgomery Montgomery, or their Uncle Monty. He is a man whom studies reptiles and has many interesting and dangerous reptiles. The Baudelaire's begin to feel that they will actually enjoy living there too. But is it safe for them to get comfortable? Book Three: The Wide Window - After they had to leave Uncle Monty's house(I wont say why), Mr. Poe has placed them in their care of their paranoid grammar obsessed Aunt Josephine. A woman who's husband died a couple years back and wont use stoves in fear that she set the house on fire or something like that. Her house "barely" sits on a ledge next to lake Lachreymose by Domocles Dock. The Baudelaire's don't enjoy living there very much, but how long will it last anyways? Well, I would say that "The Series of Unfortunate Events" is for those who are morbid at heart. These books have an extremely morbid sense of humor. But it is a great sense of humor, may take some time to get used to. And even though book 4 is the lowest rated on Amazon.com, I'd say that is where the books really hit their stride, in book for. That's where I really began to enjoy the books and their unique sense of humor. So whether you are young or old, though I think older people may enjoy these a little more cause they can understand them better(and most the people I know who've read them have been at least my age, 19yrs), you'll probably still enjoy them, they're fun books. And they have some things to teach, even though they don't seem like it. God Bless & *enjoy* ~Amy
Rating: 
Summary: Mad! (which in this instance means both crazy and very good)
Review: I absolutely had to write a reveiw of this book after reading some of the idiocy posted here. First of all, they are called UNFORTUNATE EVENTS. Not HAPPY ENDINGS. These are NOT "The Happy Golden Years." They are not about Children as victims. They are about two smart cookies and a baby who don't accept the world around them as inevitable or inherently right. They have the best quality any person can have above intelligence: resourcefulness. To those who dislike these books, I can only imagine what technicolor idealist rubbish you would have your children read. Children these days know better than to believe everything ends happily. I believe that they are relieved to finally find in Lemony an adult who understands and acknowledges *sometimes it's tough being a kid*. Children are smart enough to see what is pretend, and surely grow bored with books that have underlying psychological agendas, games where everyone wins, and protagonists who go through life with no negative events. Who can relate to that? As in the case of Cleary's Ramona books, life just isn't like that. I think that children who read these books (aside from those who have lost a parent or a have a fear of losing parents) will see right through the farce and root for these small heros. Sure, there are some shockers in plot, but the children solve their problems ingeniously. This story has great lessons, and smacks of epic poetry (If you can keep your head about you when everyone else is losing theirs and blaming it on you...) It is no more terrible than Hansel and Gretel. In fact, these children lost their parents to an accident, and I would fear that a child reading Hansel and Gretel would believe that a parent could be convinced to abandon his children. These books are cautiously dangerous, creating the terrible in a careful way. In the case of this book, it may prompt your children to ask, "Where will I go if you die?" and you, hopefully, will be able to allay their fears with a relative much more pleasant than Count Olaf. These are wonderful books about children who try very hard, love each other, who keep their brave faces and wits about them even when all alone, no matter what this brutal but loving author throws at them. Violet and Klaus make reading, research, creativity, and cunning wit very very cool. This is so important to our flawed culture that promotes winning through physical force alone. These books are written in an entertaining hand, with wit and sarcasm and a worthy nod to Nabokov. I can't wait to read the rest. I give it four stars because they are not quite the best of their genre, and are definately not long enough. Otherwise, they are excellent tomes I will treasure, and enjoy sharing with the pint sized protagonists in my life.
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Summary: Reality Skewed (which in these parts means "slightly off")
Review: I too, like many other readers was a MASSIVE Harry Potter fan before picking up the Lemony Snicket books. Although not as engaging or engrossing (or nearly as long!) as the Potter books, the Snicket series is quite enjoyable. I love how the sentences are manipulated throughout these books. Mr. Snicket uses Nabokovian wordplay and ideas that children may miss, but adults will love. The name of the playwright of "The Marvelous Marriage" in "The Bad Beginning" is an anagram of Count Olaf (and I am guessing Lemony Snicket is an anagram of the author's true name), the whole setup of the play as skewed reality (much like Clare Quilty's "Enchanted Hunters") and the hilarious juxtapositions to describe the "bigger " words and ideas are wonderful. My favorite is: "The Baudelaires thought of grammar-the way the thought of banana bread: fine, but nothing to make a fuss about." The gothic almost Dickensian feeling from the first few pages of the first book-a misty beach and bad news-really intrigued me. I love the dark aspects of these books - the archetypal villain that follows the children throughout the series, good vs. evil, Mr. Poe, the weak, but well-meaning adult, probably slowly dying of consumption. All three orphans are relatable to different children - Violet, the eldest girl, reminds me of a Charles Addams character - wonderful, intelligent and slightly spooky. Klaus is the bookworm, who looks a little like Mr. Potter in the wonderful drawings that pepper the book and Sunny is the comic relief younger sister, who bites anything that she pleases. Mr. Snicket's "translations" of her baby talk are quite charming as well. The small thing that bothered me is that it seems Mr. Snicket is unsure as to whether to set these books in Victorian times (as I feel they are), or put them modern. Up until the 3rd book, I thought they were set in an earlier period until Violet suddenly mentions that they can "Fax" Mr. Poe. Bothersome, but not horrid. All in all, an enjoyable read. Most adult readers will get through one book per 2 hour sitting. There are a lot of "adult" jokes sprinkled in with the story so both parent and child alike can enjoy them.
Rating:
Summary: Only a beginning
Review: Lemony Snicket has come a long way as an author of children's stories since "The Bad Beginning" - the first of thirteen novels in the planned A Series of Unfortunate Events. The premise of these books, if you don't already know, is to detail the most unpleasant experiences three young children might have while remaining within the boundaries of acceptability to the parents of American children, who are after all enormously protective of their offspring and their mental health. Often this is done by exaggerating particular elements of situation or character personality to a level of absurdity not to be taken seriously. At other times, the author simply begs his readers to skip passages over and over, exaggerating the tragedy of his tale. True, some of these things may seem repetitive and dull after a time, particularly the ignorance of certain adults and the bemoaning of Snicket's own character, but these are problems readers will have to - and should - endure to move on to further novels. As a first-time author, Snicket begins the series with an uncomplicated plot that leaves most puzzles tied up in under 200 pages. In comparison to his newest installment, "The Slippery Slope," this book may read slower and leave readers a little unenthusiastic, but without such an opener better novels would never have emerged. Second in this box set is "The Reptile Room," and this novel provides a prototype for the following five novels in basic plot layout. In this pattern, the three protagonists are sent from one guardian to another where they encounter various misfortunes related to the appearance of the cruel opposition, Count Olaf and his theater troupe, and must eventually be passed on. This book also contains one of the longest non-unfortunate spells of any book in the series. There is little to say about book three which sets it apart from its precursor in terms of development of the overall series, but it is nonetheless an amusing and entertaining read. If you enjoy these books, you have much more to look forward to.
Rating:
Summary: The Bad Beginning
Review: To me these books have been some of the greatest books I've ever read. These characters, Violet,Klaus and Sunny are always on adventures. Some people think these books are too violent for children, but in my mind I think these are perfect books for children. Plus it teaches lessons from time to time in each book. I hope the author makes more of these same books. I can't wait to read the other 8 books that have been written. For some reason once I started reading these books I couldn't stop reading these books. That's why I think these books are ok for kids under 9 years old and that's why so many people gave these books five stars. If I could give these books more than 5 stars,I would.
Rating:
Summary: A Box of Unfortunate Events: The Trouble Begins (Books 1-3:
Review: Dear Reader,
This series is about three children: Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Bauldiare. The books are filled with misery and woe, the children are always followed by misfortune and a crook by the name of Count Olaf. He is always after the Bauldiares enormous fortune, and somehow never seems to get a firm grip, just like you couldn't grab a stick of melting butter with your bare hand. The children (orphans, which we are bound to call them) always find a way to escape the scraggly grip of Count Olaf... The first book started as the three soon to be orphans were walking along the beach examining strange specimens that got washed up on the shoreline. When a strange figure came up to them, it turns out that it was Mr. Poe, the Bauldiares bank manager. This started all of the childrens' misery: the fact that an enormous fire had destroyed their home, and their parents... This has been just the beginning of the first book. There are currently 13 books, where misfortune and Count Olaf follow the poor Bauldiares, trying to get control over the fortune and the their lives.The books are very negative, so I personally don't recommend them for smaller children, but they are good, if your heart doesn't melt in the midst of them. Do the orphans escape Olaf, or do they lose their fortune, and their lives. To find out, read the Series of Unfortunate Events.
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