The Bad Beginning

A hilarious series - through I am not even third of the way through and so cannot be sure it will continue to be of the same quality and originality - with ridiculously inventive scenarios surrounding children in peril. Could you ask for more from a children's book? :) Approach with caution. :)

that was a pretty awesome book! it did have a lot of unfortunate events. Olaf is also wickedly mean!

Book one in the Series of Unfortunate Events. Things first go badly for the Baudelaire children when they get the news that their parents were killed in a fire. The three children are taken in by the evil Count Olaf who is out to steal the Baudelaire fortune.

no offence to the writer, but i would advise you NOT to read this book. I only read the first book and stopped there. I'm sorry, but the book is just dumb and nieve

Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com After already having seen the movie, I decided to invest in reading the books. Bk #1, THE BAD BEGINNING, only took me an hour to finish, and it was an enjoyable--if dark--read. The Baudelaire children--Violet, Klaus, and Sunny--are left orphaned after a mysterious fire destroys their home and kills their parents. Taken into...more

Reviewed by Me for TeensReadToo.com After already having seen the movie, I decided to invest in reading the books. Bk #1, THE BAD BEGINNING, only took me an hour to finish, and it was an enjoyable--if dark--read. The Baudelaire children--Violet, Klaus, and Sunny--are left orphaned after a mysterious fire destroys their home and kills their parents. Taken into custody by Mr. Poe, the executor of their parent's estate, they learn that their parent's will states that they must be cared for by a relative. The closest relative, unbeknownest to the children, is Count Olaf, an actor and leader of a theatre troupe who lives in a dilapitated house on the other side of town. Things, of course, only go from bad to worse after the children move into Count Olaf's home, which is strangely covered inside and out with drawings and representations of a strange-looking eye. Count Olaf even has a tattoo of the same image on his ankle. As the Count hatches a scheme to gain control of the Baudelaire fortune, which the children are not privy to until Violet comes of age, the children are alternately scared of their new "parent" and determined to find a way out of their dreadful situation. I enjoyed this walk on the dark side, and plan on reading Book #2 in the series later today. That said, however, I think it depends on your child and his or her maturity as to whether this would be a good read for them or not. Although the reading material is suitable for around 8 years old and up, the book IS dark-natured, and might scare some children. If they've already seen the movie, they might be prepared for its darkness--if the movie depiction scared them, then hold off on the book for awhile.   hide

I've seen the movie, and while reading the book, it seems it was written just for Jim Carrey. I'm reading it since my 10 year old son is reading them too. I enjoy the style of writing, and I'm glad I saw the movie first, because knowing it is Jim Carrey takes the sinister edge and makes it funny.

Jackson picked this series as the next collection he wants me to read to him. So far it is original and well-written and, more importantly, he digs it.

Daughter made her way through this series, and liked them. When my brother-in-law did as well - particularly the later ones - I thought I really ought to work through them too. The first has many of the characteristics of the later - a pleasant playfulness with the genre of children's fiction. Looking forward to the others.

Great book, I can already tell I'm going to love this series. Even though it's not exactly my age range....I think it's so very well written. This really was a treat, though at times the explanation of words was a tad much I realize that being designed for much younger readers than myself it was a clever way to explain words to a preteen.