Any Series of Unfortunate Events readers?

[Catwoman99]

Here's the thing....this Friday the final book in the series comes out and we're doing a special event at work that night with games, giveaways, and activities. (I run the children's dept. at a Barnes & Noble.) Anyhoo, I have not read any of the books. Many people have told me I should read them, but I just haven't had the chance, plus there are so many other books I have to read besides those.

So, can any of you who have read the books tell me anything about what goes on in them? Just so I have a little bit of knowledge for this thing. I'm asking for spoilers, basically. :-)

TO ANYONE ELSE READING THIS THREAD. IF YOU DON'T WANT TO READ SPOILERS ABOUT THE SERIES, DO NOT GO FURTHER.


Thanks,
April :-)

[childminerva]

I haven't read them, but I have read the dedication page in all of them-they are all dedicated to Beatrice with a really morbid poem in each one. Last year I worked in my school library and the kids (it was a k-12 school) had those out all the time so I flipped through one and found the poem. Then I read all the poems and read them to my fellow aide and the librarian; they both thought I was crazy.

[gmshed]

I've read them! They're basically the story of the Baudeville orphans. Violet is the oldest. She is fourteen/fifteen and likes mechanics and inventing things. Klaus is the boy and he is twelve. He loves to read and research. Sunny is the baby, talks with nonsense words that her siblings understand and loves to bite things with her four very sharp teeth.
In book 1, Mr Poe, a friend of their parents finds them on Briny Beach and tells them that Baudelaire Manor has burned to the ground. Their parents have been killed. They are sent to live with a distant relative, Count Olaf. Count Olaf is always identifed by the tattoo of an eye on his ankle. Count Olaf is a horrible man and makes them do all the work around the house. He is the leader of a theatrical troupe, all just as nasty. There is a bald man with a very long nose, two women with white powdered faces, a man with two hooks instead of hands, someone extremely fat and someone who looks like neither a man nor a woman. At the end of the book, he stages a play that he has written himself 'The Marvelous Marriage' in which he tries to force Violet to marry him so he can get his hands on the Baudelaire fortune. She signs the document with her left hand rather than her right, he declares that his plot has worked and it is discovered it hasn't. Mr Poe attempts to arrest Count Olaf but he escapes. The children are refused permission to stay with the neighbour, Justice Strauss and are taken away by Mr Poe so he can find a new guardian for them.
In book 2, the Baudelaires are taken to live with Dr Montgomery Montgomery (Uncle Monty) and look forward to a happier future. Uncle Monty is a herpetologist, a studier of snakes. He has a very large collection of snakes. He is about to go on a trip to Peru and the children are to accompany him. Violet checks the traps, Klaus researches and Sunny bites long lengths of rope into small workable pieces. However, this happiness is destroyed when Count Olaf turns up, disguised as Stephano, Uncle Monty's new assistant as Gustav unexpectedly resigned (murdered by Olaf). Uncle Monty is killed by Stephano, using the venom of the Mamba du Mal, a snake Uncle Monty has but keeps locked up. In this book, the man with hooks for hands assists him. They are uncovered and escape. The Baudelaires are taken away to a new guardian.
In book 3, they are taken to their Aunt Josephine on the shores of Lake Lachrymose. She is scared of everything, such as radiators, and obsessed by correct grammar. Count Olaf is disguised as Captain Sham, starting a business renting out sailboats. He kidnaps Aunt Josephine but she leaves a coded note. The Baudelaires follow them to Curdled Cave and attempt to rescue Aunt Josephine. The lake is infested with very vicious leeches and they attack anyone who has anything to eat within the last hour. Aunt Josephine has recently eaten a banana and they attack and sink the boat. However Captain Sham rescues them bringing the happy news that he is going to adopt the orphans. He throws Aunt Josephine overboard to be eaten by the leeches. Count Olaf is then uncovered along with his associate, the one who looks like neither a man nor a woman and they escape. Then the children are taken away to be sent to a new guardian.
In book four, the children are sent to Lucky Smells Lumbermill and have to work in the Lumbermill. The workers are paid in coupons and lunch is a stick of gum. The foreman, who is Olaf's henchman with the long nose is very unpleasant and trips Klaus up, breaking his glasses. The optician's building is shaped like an eye and when Klaus returns he acts very strangely, having been hypnotised. The idea is for Klaus to cause so many accidents the Lumbermill's boss throws them out so that Olaf, disguised as the optican's secretary, Shirley, can adopt them. Count Olaf and the man with the long nose escape but the Lumbermill's boss still throws them out as there was an accident, the optican got killed. Mr Poe says he will have to send them to boarding school.
In book five, the Baudelaires are sent to Prufrock Preparatory School. They are sent to live in the Orphans Shack with crabs and dripping fungus on the ceiling. Violet is in Mr Remora's class and has to learn every detail of his stories. Klaus is in Mrs Bass' class and has to memorise the dimensions of lots of objects. Sunny is too young for school and is sent to work as Principal Nero's secretary. However they make friends with the triplets Isadora and Duncan Quagmire. They were the previous occupants of the Orphans Shack as their parents and their brother Quigley perished in a dreadful fire that destroyed their house. Count Olaf is disguised as the PE teacher, Coach Genghis and makes them run laps every single night as part of S.O.R.E., Special Orphan Running Exercises. This is so that they will be incredibly tired, they will fail their tests and get expelled so he can get at them. However, the Quagmires and a bag of flour take over S.O.R.E so Violet, Klaus and Sunny pass their tests with flying tests. Unfortunately, Genghis discovers the deception and Nero declares that skipping gym class to study is cheating and that they are all expelled. Mr Poe turns up, and Olaf is discovered. He and his associates, the two women with white faces who have been working as cafeteria workers, their faces hidden by masks, escape having kidnapped the Quagmires who have a fortune too. Klaus is left with their notebooks and the triplets shout to look in the notebooks for notes about V.F.D. But Count Olaf's associate takes the notebooks from Klaus. The Baudelaires vow to find their friends and solve the mystery of V.F.D.
I'll post more if you want but it's dinnertime now.

[Catwoman99]

Thank you very much. I know that was a lot to type, so only post more if you want to. The books do sound very interesting. The book covers now make more sense to me. Thank you again!

I might draw an eye on my ankle on Friday, just to see if anyone notices. ;-)

- April :-)

[nemi]

I started book 11 last year and then stopped halfway through because I got preoccupied. But
what I did read of the books was brilliant, and written in a fabulously sardonic and quirky way.

I've too many books (and fanfics) since and have forgotten a lot of the little details thus I can't provide much insight on the books, but I can provide a little note on the infamous love interest 'Beatrice'.

'For Beatrice - Our love broke my heart, and stopped yours.'

A new book-type thing was released at the start of September called 'The Beatrice Letters'. It's sold in a folder, and consists of a double-sided poster, and a collection of letters exchanged between 'Lemony Snicket' and (according to a review on amazon.co.uk) two people called 'Beatrice Baudelaire'. One of these, apparently, is the sister of the Baudelaire orphans Violet, Klaus & Sunny.

I haven't read this as I only had time to stop and glance at it when I noticed it on my way out of Borders, but it looks extremely intriguing. If you're reading up on the Series of Unforunate Events, check it out for what appears to be some v interesting backstory!

Btw- you should definitely draw an eye on your ankle, it's a great idea!