Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat funny, but mostly a disappointment
Review: I bought this book because the jacket sounded hilarious. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Written for a younger audience, even youngsters with a good vocabulary would probably find this book dull and condescending, with its vocabulary lessons every page or two (if you haven't read the book, trust me, every other page there is a word that is given, along with is definition...this gets really old after the second chapter).While I thought that the unfortunate events that kept happening throughout the book were funny, the book couldn't hold my interest. I kept waiting for something more to happen. Also, the whole notion of one's legal guardian trying to marry them really turned me off. I thought that was quite repulsive. For Dahl fans who liked the book Matilda, maybe this one will be sufficient. However, I cannot give this book more than two stars.
Rating: 
Summary: Things are certainly bad for the Baudlaire children
Review: "The Bad Beginning", by Lemony Snicket, is a great book on three very unlucky children. Violet, Krause, and Sunny are horrified to find that their parents have died and that they are left orphans. They inherit the Baudlaire fortune, however, and, as their parents wished, they are sent to live with a distant cousin. Once at Count Olaf's grimy home, they are even more in despair, especially when he is terribly cruel and plots to steal their fortune. What can these clever children do to save themselves? This was an entertaining, humorous book that grabs you as soon as you read the title! Be sure to read the others in the series ("The Reptile Room", etc.) and I'm sure you'd also enjoy the popular "Harry Potter" books, about another unlucky boy, filled with more British humor.
Rating:
Summary: The entertaining tale of three very unlucky children
Review: Violet, Sunny, and Klause are three very unlucky children. They are clever, have "pleasent facial features," and are all very talented in there own thing (inventing, reading, chewing) but there life is struck by disaster when there parents die. Sent to live with the evil Cout Olaf, they find that all he really wants out of them is the forture Violet has inherited for when she comes of age. He cooks up a devious plan and will do anything to get it out of them, anything. I think that this was a very clevery written book. Though it is impossible to figure out what time period it is of what country it takes place I found it to be very entertaining. It's not the happiest book in the world (filled with dark humor) but it's something I would reccomend to all fans (past and present) of Roald Dahl. I hope you enjoy it!
Rating:
Summary: Clever Children Only!
Review: This Series is nothing short of brilliant. However, not for every child. Clever kids, smart children, quiet 'outsider' types and those who like to defie thier parents should definitely read this one. It's one of the few books that is better for boys than for gilrs! Average kids and simple adults just won't get it. What we have here is Gothic for children (I refer to "Gothic revival" as outlined by Richard Davenport-Hines in his book "Gothic- -Four hundred years of excess, horror, evil, and ruin") The literary merit of these books is beyond question. There are hundreds of linguistic jokes ("to snick" means to wound; Mr Poe works for "Mulcturary Money Management" --- go head, look up 'mulct') The author includes himself as a charater. In each book we find out a little more about what happened to him and his Beatrice ("Dearest, darling, dead.") As for the concern about the 'incest' mentioned in the review below, I understand this to be a lack of knowlage concerning classic lit. - the evil uncle coniving to marry his pretty niece is stock story line from Plautus, the Mid-evil stage, all the way to Molaire and 19th C. melodrama. Finally, the books are handsome to hold a wonderfully illustrated- -making them fun to own. Make no mistake; horrible, awful and very sad things happen to the Baudelaire children but that is all the more reason they are perfect heroes for the 10-14 year old set.
Rating:
Summary: Moms Beware
Review: I don't have a problem with the book being about unfortunate events - in fact it was the very reason why I picked up the book in the first place, because the premise seemed interesting. However, the book has some very dark undertones which I consider inappropriate for a very young audience. Firstly, the marriage between Violet and her Uncle smacked of incest, though he was a cousin several time removed. Did no one else find it repulsive? And then all his greasy friends touching her and saying overtly sexual things like you're a pretty one ... creepy. Secondly, the degree of violence in the book is very high. The part where Klaus is hit right across the face, till his face is marked, is a bit strong. Someone else I spoke to said that they felt that the author actually enjoyed showing the violent parts, including hanging a baby out from a tower. I can't say with regards to that, but I do admit finding it disturbing that this is a "children's book". "Unfortunate events" are one thing, everyone knows that the premise of a good story is unfortunate events happening to the hero and heroine, but events bordering on the sadistic are another. Perhaps the children of today can take it (I have seen a couple of kids' reviews that have liked it) but I think mothers might like to read through the book first, and decide whether they want their kids to read it. I gave it 2 stars because I was entertained by the story to some extent.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST BOOK EVER!
Review: This is one of the best books I have ever read! What happens to the Baudelairs isn't great but Snicket is aware of that and makes a joke about it, and it'd HILARIUOS! I get really scared about scary books, so I was uneasy about reading it when my dad bought it for me, but when i read it I wasn't scared, I was excited. Somebody sad they would give this book 10 stars if they could, i would give it 100 stars! THIS IS A GREAT BOOK!
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books that I've read
Review: This book is sad but exciting.The reason I gave this book five stars is because it is a great book,but if you don't like sad stories you should not read this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointment
Review: I saw this series in a local bookstore and purchased the whole set for our daughters to read on vacation. The book descriptions on the jacket were hysterical and I couldn't wait to give them to our girls. Fortunately, I was too curious to wait and read the first book myself. What a disappointment! While the jacket cover suggested great humor and funny books, it was anything but. I kept waiting and waiting for the funny parts to come, but they never did. Obviously I missed the humor that other reviewers enjoyed. All I felt after reading book one was depressed. I hate to be a party pooper, and usually, I'm the first one to enjoy silly kids books, but I returned this series of books the next day. The first book wasn't silly, even in an over-the-top way. It just missed the mark for me. I'd recommend parents read some of the books themselves before offering to their kids (especially younger kids).
Rating:
Summary: More Gashlycrumb Tinies than Harry Potter
Review: Follows more along the dark, ironic, satirical path of Edward Gorey than that of Rowling. Reminds me of Gashlycrumb Tinies. Very enjoyable in the cathartic and sardonic sense. My $.02...
Rating:
Summary: Disturbing, intense, and far too sad for children.
Review: BLUGH! Has there ever been a worse book? If you like really sad, disturbing, and intense books that give you nightmeres, then this book is for you. Where's the 0 star?
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