The Bad Beginning

by Lemony Snicket

This is the first in the fantastically popular series about the exceptionally intelligent and exceedingly unlucky Baudelaire siblings--Violet, Klaus, and Sunny. Their story begins when their parents perish in a fire, throwing the hapless trio into a series of hilariously nightmarish scenarios comprised of well-meaning, ignorant adults, questionable motives, and serious danger. Miserably settled with Mr. Poe, the constantly coughing executor whose wife forces them into garish, itchy clothes, the children eventually find themselves at the mercy of the decidedly creepy Count Olaf. A money-grubbing distant relative with an ominous tattoo, the Count doesn't always seem to have the children's best interest in mind. In this darkly comic story, the Baudelaire children must rely on their wits, and each other, in order to survive. Illustrated with occasional Gothic-style B&W drawings.

Editions of The Bad Beginning

ISBN 9780807288474	Binding/Format Audio Cassette	Publisher Listening Library	Date 2001	Price None Available
ISBN 9780807261781	Binding/Format Audio Cassette	Publisher Listening Library	Date 2001	Price $1.99	Good
ISBN 9780754078128	Binding/Format Paperback	Publisher Chivers North Amer	Date 2002	Price None Available
ISBN 9780061365331	Binding/Format Compact Disc	Publisher Harpercollins Childrens	Date 2007	Price $4.63	REMAINDER
ISBN 9780060283124	Binding/Format Reinforced Hardcover	Publisher Harpercollins	Date 1999	Price $1.00	Used, Very Good
ISBN 9780807219904	Binding/Format Compact Disc	Publisher Listening Library	Date 2003	Price $8.98	NEW
ISBN 9780060518288	Binding/Format Hardcover	Publisher Harpercollins Childrens Books	Date 2003	Price $2.49	Very Good
ISBN 9780060755898	Binding/Format Hardcover	Publisher Harpercollins Childrens Books	Date 2004	Price $1.00	Used, Very Good
ISBN 9780786229741	Binding/Format Hardcover	Publisher Thorndike Pr	Date 2000	Price None Available

Publisher Notes

After the sudden death of their parents, the three Baudelaire children must depend on each other and their wits when it turns out that the distant relative who is appointed their guardian is determined to use any means necessary to get their fortune.

Media Reviews

"The author uses formal, Latinate language and intrusive commentary to hilarious effect, even for readers unfamiliar with the literary conventions he parodies...Exquisitely detailed drawings of Gothic gargoyles and mischievous eyes echo the contents of this elegantly designed hardcover."

Synopses

First Line

If you are interested in stories with happy endings, you would be better off reading some other book. In this book, not only is there no happy ending, there is no happy beginning and very few happy things in the middle. This is because not very many happy things happened in the lives of the three Baudelaire youngsters.

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