Rating: 
Summary: Horrible
Review: I wouldn't even rate this book one star! It probally was an idea from Harry Potter. He made these books so depressing so dont read them they are horrible. They are so boring also, read the Harry Potter books first they are much better.
Rating: 
Summary: This book is NOT depressing
Review: Some people may say that this book is depressing. I, on the other hand, find this book to be a great read. The fact that the Baudelaire Children are in a terrible predicament doesn't stop them from cooking up ideas and inventing things, and that makes for a great story line.This book is well written and captivating. I couldn't put it down! So, if you're looking for a good book to read when you have some spare time on your hands, pick up this one!
Rating:
Summary: Take the author's advice on the back of the book.
Review: I can't imagine what other reviewers found in this book to grant it more than a single star. They must have severely low expectations for their children's literature. The only thing going for this book is the running gag from the author about how terrible the books are and how depressed he is at having to write them. (His web site is hilarious, by the way. This book, however, is not.) Some might argue that this book is morbidly funny, even slightly camp - and that they enjoy being in on the author's joke. However, I found the characters unrelentingly stupid or cruel, and the story unimaginative. Even the children are dunderheads (except Sunny, aptly named). And the "joke" of the author's morbidity wears thin all too quickly. Do yourself a favor and follow the author's advice (humorous as it is) and truly avoid this book. There are many imaginative, well written books for children that handle dark themes well, and are a joy to read. This isn't one of them.
Rating:
Summary: So dreadful I can hardly believe it was published
Review: When this novel was given to my son as a birthday present, the family proceeded to read it aloud, as is our custom. We're fiction lovers in this family; I'm a writer myself. My husband and I kept waiting for it to get better. No such luck. The ending was awful. If you're looking for a one-dimensional story, with no subplot, no character development, unbelievable sketches built around gimmicks rather than in-depth characters anyway, an ending we pretty much guessed long before the semi-melodramatic finale, loads of flaws in the plot, etc., you're really gonna enjoy this book. Others may wonder, as I do, what on earth is going on with HarperCollins these days. This is yet one more book from my earstwhile favorite publisher where the jacket copy is far more interesting than the book itself. Beneath the hype, a real stinker, sad to say.
Rating:
Summary: Great Read-Aloud!
Review: I am a 7th grade Language Arts teacher and am always looking for great books to read aloud to my students. I picked up the first, The Bad Beginning, because I liked the size and cover of the book. After I read the letter from Lemony Snicket warning the reader to put the book down immediately, I was instantly intrigued. I was drawn to the author's sense of humor and his unique way to explain vocabulary make me think this was a possibility for a read aloud. My students LOVED this book. We are now on the Wide Window and they beg me everyday to read some more. The kids are beginning to understand the humor. They boo whenever Count Olaf is in the scene, they groan with the stupidity of Mr. Poe, and they are stunned when Mr. Snicket actually reveals the fate of the characters before it happens. The best endorsement of a book is when my 13 year old boys, who keep telling me reading is boring, go buy these books on their own! Well done, Mr. Snicket. Fremont's 7th grade class cannot get enough of the Bauldelaire Orphans.
Rating:
Summary: Can't understand why...
Review: It amazes me, and I CAN'T UNDERSTAND WHY anyone could describe this book as a" delightful, funny, linguistically playful book". I am always on the lookout for books for my 7 year old grandson who is a gifted reader. Had I handed him this book without reading it first, I would have been horrified to find out the story line. It was an over-all depressing book. Even I had nightmares! Perhaps it would make a good reading / writing assignment at the high school level, but even then, I would hesitate to actually recommend it. If I could say something nice about this book, I would. However, I can't. It's back to Harry Potter, The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe, and Dealing With Dragons!
Rating:
Summary: A great book for realists with a sense of humor
Review: If you are the type of person who blames everyone but yourself for the evils of the world, by all means DON'T read these books. However, if you have a healthy sense of reality and humor (or want to raise children who will!) then read and enjoy these delightful tales. Lemony Snicket writes for all those kids who know that adults aren't always on their side. His stories are funny, a little creepy and always interesting. The Baudelaire children are the best of what boy and girl heros in books should be and the adults, well, the adults might just be portrayed a little too accurately for some grown-ups to handle. As most children know, adults don't always do what's right, aren't always to be trusted and don't always believe what a child tells them. Reading some of the negative reviews here, some adults would prefer that children not know this. Silly grown-ups, your children already know far more than you understand. My daughter and I have read book the first and are rapidly demolishing book the second. They are smart books the way Roald Dahl books are smart. The author explains a lot of words or phrases, but not, in my opinion, in a "dumbing down" way. Many of the explainations are useful even for adults who know what the words already mean... for example, the explaination of "literal" vs. "figurative" in book the first. Enjoy the books and read them along with your kids. You'll be amazed at how much this writing stikes a chord with them!
Rating:
Summary: The Bad Beginning-The Vile Village+6 more
Review: In the Bad Beginning,Violet,Klaus&Sunny are walking on the beach,having a great time.When Mr.Poe comes up and tells them that their parents have just died in a terrible fire.Boy,that starts a lot of trouble for them. Then they have to live with the terrible "Count Olaf" who in all the books is somebody different. for instance, In the Wide Window (#3) he plays the role of "Captain Sham" (sham means fake.) I think that if you read one of these books you should start the series.
Rating: 
Summary: A wonderfully miserable beginning to this miserable series.
Review: Sometimes you think life just can't get any worse then it already is. Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire have to get used to that knowledge from now on. After a terrible fire that killed their parents, they hoped they could recuperate and let life go on, even though their deaths disturbed them. They hoped for a better future. But when their uncle, Count Olaf, takes them into his home to 'care' for them, their miserable lives get even more unbearable. Count Olaf is no nice uncle, and he's all about discipline, greed, and cruelty. The poor orphans can't withstand the horror of living with their new caretaker. Because he's more then just horrible: he has a dark plan up his sleeve, and he'll do anything to reach his dreadful goal. This beginning is a very bad beginning indeed for the Baudelaire orphans, and tragedy is bound to pursue them everyehere they turn. However, compared to the other books in this miserable series by Lemony Snicket, it was a little dull and could have used a bit more plot. But readers will want to read even more when they're done with this dreadful first tale of the three Baudelaire orphans.
Rating:
Summary: A must read!
Review: I thought that The Bad Begining was a good book. It's about these kids whose parents die in a fire and they have to live with this stinky relative named Count Olaf. He's a very mean person. This is a must read book. I guarantee you'll like it!
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