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The Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning

by Lemony Snicket, illustrated by Brett Helquist

Interest age: 9+
Reading age: 9+

Published by Farshore, 2012

  • Classics
  • Funny

About this book

The Bad Beginning is the first of 13 volumes in the appropriately named collection, A Series of Unfortunate Events.

The comically dark tale centres around three children, Violet, Klaus and baby Sunny, whose parents are killed in a fire which also destroys their home - a tragic event which sets the tone for the rest of the book. Sent to live with Count Olaf, a distant relative, their unsettled lives take a turn for the worse. Count Olaf treats the children like slaves, ordering them to cook, clean, fetch and carry for him and forcing them to share a single, filthy bedroom, with only one bed.

When Violet turns 18, she is set to inherit the family fortune and it soon becomes clear that Count Olaf is determined to get his hands on the inheritance, by whatever dastardly means necessary. It is up to the three plucky children to outwit the Count, but as all other adults seem to have been taken in by the evil man, this proves to be an extremely difficult task.

Attractively presented, this gothic series is sure to appeal to readers with a taste for the macabre. Those anticipating a pleasant, happy read should avoid this series, for as Lemony Snicket states in the opening sentence, 'If you are interested in stories with happy endings, you would be better off reading some other book.'

About the author

Lemony Snicket is the pseudonym novelist Daniel Handler used while writing his sequence of darkly comic children's books known as A Series of Unfortunate Events. The 13 novels in the series relate the hard-luck history of the Baudelaire orphans, Violet, Klaus and Sunny. Snicket narrates their piteous adventures and misfortunes at the hands of evil Count Olaf, a master of disguises and truly bad actor.

Handler is a longtime resident of San Francisco, and his style has been compared to Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. He also has published novels for older teens and adults, including The Basic Eight (1999) and Watch Your Mouth (2000). Handler has said that the name 'Lemony Snicket' is not intended to be a tribute to the cartoon character Jiminy Crickett; Handler claims the pseudonym was made up on the spur of the moment while researching material for one of his other books, and that the name predates A Series of Unfortunate Events.

What to read next

We know that children can get hooked on a favourite book series or author and struggle to find something they love as much, but we’re here to help.

  • A Series of Unfortunate Events: what to read next

    The story of the Baudelaire orphans – 13 dark, funny books – is unique, even after more than two decades. If the children you know have read all of the series (and watched the Netflix show), and read Lemony Snicket’s other series All the Wrong Questions, then what else might they enjoy?

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