Rating: 
Summary: I'm a librarian and can't recommend this to anyone.
Review: I wanted to like this book, since I am a fan of Roald Dahl, J.K. Rowling, and other authors in that vein, however this book is VERY poorly written. Besides the forced humor and self-conscious attempt to be clever, the plot is cumbersome and trite, the characters generally unappealing, and the premise (while an interesting one)is not well developed. Also, the idea of a 14 year old girl marrying a much older man who is her legal guardian and her relation is disturbing PLUS the author felt the need to describe her thoughts of sleeping with this man after their married! Tacky, at best. If you e-mail any comments to the address on the dustjacket of this book, you will receive an auto-reply which does not address specific questions. Save your money and buy a Dahl or Rowling or another worthy author other than this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Spellbinding, terrific, wonderful, etc.
Review: After reading tremendous reviews of "A Series of Unfortunate Events", I purchased them from Amazon.com. Was I impressed? You bet! From the beginning chapters, when the parents of 14-year-old Violet, 12-year-old Klaus, and the newborn Sunny were killed in a monstrous fire, I was enthralled. The orphans were taken to live with the horrendous Count Olaf, who hit them, made them work, and tried to steal their fortune. Among the aspects that amused me was one of Sunny saying a nonsense word which the author described as meaning something relevant, such as "Gack" meaning "Look at that mysterious figure emerging from the fog." Some parts truly are sad, and some are morbidly funny. Unlike some of the reviewers on this website, I have an imagination and I thoroughly enjoyed this book and its sequels. I am eagerly anticipating the release of #5: The Austere Academy. Read these books and I guarantee that, if you have any sort of imagination, you'll love them!
Rating:
Summary: A wonderfully dark and clever book.
Review: An excellent beginning to this series. The trio of Violet (the one with the inventive mind), Klaus (the one who loves reading about animals) and baby Sunny (the one who loves anything related to chewing) are extremely sympathetic. You can't help but do so when their chance of a happy ending are constantly ruined by such vile characters as the evil Count Olaf (not a good sort at all) and his creepy henchmen (like the hook handed man).If you like happy endings or chipper tales, turn right away. But don't let the dark tone fool you. Lemony Snicket juxtaposes a light narrative over these dire circumstances making for a very enjoyable read.
Rating:
Summary: Derivative, smug, and dressed-up-to-sell
Review: The School Library Journal review for this book summed up most of what I might write. Will Amazon feature it here? These are slow-moving downers, self-consciously written and pretentious. The gimmick of using big words and then defining them got pretty stale, even for my fourth-grader. Couldn't a big publisher devote the same amount of energy finding and packaging an original book that will last? Ursula would not be amused. Adults can write for children. Will anyone publish them?
Rating: 
Summary: The Bad Beginning
Review: I really liked The Bad Beginning. It was really interesting because all these bad things keep happening to these kids. But I am seriously kinda confused as to why someone would actually write a book about all these bad things that happen to someone. Don't get me wrong, Im going to continue reading, and hopefully enjoying, this series, but i was just a little confused. I hope that in the end everything works out, but then what would be the point? What kind of story doesn't have a happy ending, perhaps this one could be a change?
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: I thought this book was great! I read it in one sitting. At the end, I was very satisfied, and I ordered the rest of the seies, also. Lemony Snicket is a very talented writer. A the very beginning he caught my attention with his use of definitions after unfamiliar vocabulary. As many reviewers said, "an enjoyable read"!
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful tale of woe and wimsy
Review: I really loved this book. Similar to Kenneth Graham and Lewis Carroll, but with a delightful twist of woe, Lemony Snicket combines humor with an exciting and most unclicheic plot. Although you have your typical villain, and your charming, intelligent, and lovely little children, the woeful twists add a lot of humor to a tired-out storyline, and freshing it up far more than most recent authors. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Lemony Snicket Tops Most Books With The 'Bad Beginning'!
Review: Lemony Snicket is just plain impressive in this creative and original story of three miserable lives. Well developed characters, advanced vocabulary, and humour will, and already has, attracted many readers--including me! So, read this book! I gaurantee a laugh and a pleasant experience while reading. Other recommended books are:A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L'Engle), The Giver (Lois Lowry)
Rating:
Summary: Yuck!
Review: The only reasons I can think of to read this book are that it might introduce some new vocabulary, it promotes mechanical engineering, and the curious author bio on the jacket. Dull characters, dull story.
Rating: 
Summary: A bad book
Review: My first impression of Mr. "Snicket's" book was pretentious-the word "pretentious" here means very, very proud. His gimmacks and tricks quickly became tiresome as I found myself bothered by his silly interuptions with definitions and all the insights he imparts. It's obvious his gimmacks were a smoke-screen to cover up the fact that he had little story. I did find the orphans sympathetic, but the other characters were one-dimensional at best. I suppose that the children collectively were the protagonist, but I never really felt connected to any of them. What disturbed me the most were some of the implications of a child bride and an infant being in danger. I understand Nickelodeon picked up the movie rights. I hope they are careful.
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