The Penultimate Peril and The Terrifying Theory

My personal thoughts on the series as a whole (besides the fact that this series is incredibly wretched and full of unfortunate events is posted in my post prior prior prior prior prior. If you want to see my opinions on all the books as a whole, please (please do not, though, as the post is as wretched and full of unfortunate events as the actual series) go the one prior by scrolling down, a phrase which here means, 'putting your finger on the little bumpy area between the left and right button and pushing in downward'.

THE PENULTIMATE PERIL

The Baudelaires meet Kit Snicket, a pregnant and distraught woman who gives them the important task of posing as concierges in the Hotel Denouement. She tells them that Quigley is finding his siblings, and to be wary of Frank and Ernest Denouement, as the former is a volunteer but the latter a villain. They are also to figure out the mysterious identity of J.S., and if anything goes wrong, send a signal in the sky to inform her that the meeting is canceled. Inside the hotel, they are greeted by the managers, but are unable to tell who is who. Three bells ring at the same time, and so Violet, Klaus, and Sunny set off to conduct their observation separately. Violet goes to the roof, where the sunbathing salon is. Esme and Carmelita are patrolling the skies, and request a harpoon gun. Violet overhears a conversation about a cocktail party on Thursday, that J.S. is planning to spoil. Klaus goes to the room for the members of the lumber mill industry, where he runs into Sir and Charles and also eavesdrops on their conversation about a party and J.S., and Frank or Ernest tells him to hang birdpaper outside the window, which he does. Meanwhile, Sunny is sent to the three teachers from Prufrock Prep, and she takes them to an Indian restaurant that is run by Hal. Sunny listens into a conversation between Hal and a manager, and the latter tells Sunny to put a lock on the laundry room door, making it a Vernacularly Fastened Door. After telling each other their stories, they wonder how two people could be in three places at once. They soon realise there is a third Denouement, Dewey, who reveals himself to the children after Klaus assumes that the sugar bowl, which is being delivered by crow, will be hit by Carmelita's gun, fall onto the birdpaper, and will fall into the laundry room. The, both Justice Strauss and Jerome Squalor, both thinking they are  each J.S., arrive at the hotel. they apologise to the children for being unable to help them, and inform the children of their efforts to be noble. Jerome has written a book and Justice Strauss has passed on their troubles to her fellow judges. When they enter the hotel, however, they encounter Count Olaf, who grumbles about how Fiona and Fernald stole the Carmelita, who is accompanied by Carmelita, Esme, Hugo, Kevin, and Colette. Count Olaf tells him the Baudelaire parents weren't as noble as they thought, as he mentions something about poison darts. Dewey tells him of his underwater catalogue, where Esme hints that he must know all about the sugar bowl. Hearing this, Count Olaf threatens to kill Dewey of he does not tell him the location. The Baudelaires attempt to shield him, but they are interrupted by Mr. Poe. Count Olaf shoves the gun into the Baudelaire's hands, where it accidentally goes off. As the entire hotel is waken, the Baudelaires are offered a taxi ride, but they refuse. Justice Strauss declares the only way to legally solve the matter was with a trial, and so the children and Count Olaf are taken to trial the next day. Following the term, Justice is blind, everyone except the judges are blindfolded. Count Olaf says he is innocent, but the Baudelaires, who question their own nobility now, simply state they are comparatively innocent. When Justice Strauss stops commenting in sentences, the Baudelaires become suspicious and take off their blindfolds, where they discover the two other judges are the man with a beard but no hair and the woman with hair but no beard. Realising that justice will never be served, they flee with Count Olaf and Justice Strauss after they tell everyone to take off their blindfolds. They go with Count Olaf to the laundry room, where Klaus helps Count Olaf  open the door, only to find the bowl is not inside. Enraged, Count Olaf threatens to unleash the Medusoid Mycelium an escape on a boat that his docked on the roof above. Violet offers to get it off the roof, and Sunny suggests setting the hotel on fire. Count Olaf take both their offers, but the three children press the button at every floor, giving them enough time to warn everyone about the fire. when they finally reach the top floor, Violet uses a chute to get the boat off safely, and guesses that Sunny set the hotel on fire to send a signal that the meeting was canceled. Justice Strauss eggs them not to go with Count Olaf, but the three children firmly reject her request, and boat makes it off safely, meaning they are in the same boat as Count Olaf.

THE PENULTIMATE PERIL NOTES
1) Posion darts. What is with this series and seeming random yet sinister objects that keep occurring? Count Olaf tells the Baudelaires that their parents had something to do with them, and yet it s also revealed t them later that poison darts left Count Olaf an orphan. Many fans,  including myself, believe that the Baudelaire parents killed Count Olaf's on an occasion. 
2) The taxi driver. It is hinted that Lemony is the taxi driver, and is also driving a woman, possibly the Duchess of Winnipeg. If this is true, I kind of wish, despite Lemony's saying that the Baudelaires would encounter even more unfortunate circumstances that would take 13 more books to describe, the children had gone with Lemony Snicket. I think it would have a lot of potential. Lemony could tell the siblings the answers to all the questions they had, and he could tell them about how much he loved their mother. WE could learn so much more! All those (wrong) questions we have after reading these series could be answered! Does anyone agree with me?
3) The sugar bowl. What is in it? Who really stole it? Why is it so important? Esme, when confronting the Baudelaires, Dewey, and their accomplices, states the difficulty of finding an object that could hide something small safely, securely, and attractively. She mentions it means a great deal to the Baudelaires and the Snickets, but doesn't say anything other than that. Dewey also says that Olaf wouldn't dare release the Medusoid Mycelium when he had the bowl, which may mean that it is something even Olaf would fear. Hmm, I wonder what that could be.......

MY PERSONAL THEORY 
My personal theory is that the statue that could summon the Bombinating Beast, which is a major topic in All the Wrong Questions, is in the sugar bowl. It has been hinted in The Grim Grotto that the beast is something even Olaf is scared of, and it is revealed that there was an important figurine in the Caligari Carnival that was relatively small, and the statue is said to be about the size of a milk bottle, so that fits.
Fans also speculate that the thing hidden inside could be something to prove Count Olaf guilty or prove Lemony innocent or both. 

Well, that's it for today. I hope you come for more boom reviews, except not the reviews reviewing this series. 

With all due respect, Sooyoung Jo

The Slippery Slop and The Grim Grotto by Lemony Snicket

My personal thoughts on the series as a whole (besides the fact that this series is incredibly wretched and full of unfortunate events is posted in my post prior prior prior prior. If you want to see my opinions on all the books as a whole, please (please do not, though, as the post is as wretched and full of unfortunate events as the actual series) go the one prior by scrolling down, a phrase which here means, 'putting your finger on the little bumpy area between the left and right button and pushing in downward'.

THE SLIPPERY SLOPE

The two older Baudelaires manage to stop the falling caravan and decide to hike up the mountain to look for Sunny, who was taken by Olaf and his troupe to be their servant. On the way, however, they are attacked snow gnats, a group of well-organized, ill-tempered insects who live in cold mountain areas and enjoy stinging people for no reason whatsoever. The two run into a cave where the Snow Scouts are hiding, which includes, but is not limited to, Carmelita Spats, the nasty little girl the Baudelaires were forced to put up with at Prufrock Prep, and the boy in the sweater, who turns out to be none other than Quigley Quagmire, the triplet who had been believed to die in the Quagmire fire. He explains that he had hidden in a trapdoor which lead to Dr. Montgomery's house, where he met Jacques Snicket and learn about V.F.D. He and the two older  Baudelaires climb up the Vertical Flame Diversion and manage to make it to V.F.D. headquarters, only to find it in ruins. Here we are introduced to several more V.F.D.s, which, once again includes, but is not limited to, the aforementioned Vertical Flame Diversion, the Vernacularly Fastened Door, Verbal Fridge Dialogue, and Verdant Flammable Devices. The trio notice use the code for the Vernacularly Fastened door to get in, and while in Headquarters, notices a Verdant Flammable Device at the top of the mountain, which is used by none other than Sunny. Violet and Quigley climb up a waterfall to reach the peak,where Sunny is forced to do hard chores that are nearly impossible for even an adult to do at the summit of a freezing mountain, let alone a baby. Only, not even Sunny is a baby anymore, as she says when Violet expresses concern when Sunny wants to continue eavesdropping on Count Olaf and his troupe, which now include the man with a beard but no hair, and the woman with hair but no beard, who gives Count Olaf the Snicket file. The man with a beard but no hair and the woman with hair but no beard are described to have a aura of menace, and they claim to have burned the Headquarters, but failed to find the sugar bowl. Back on the ground, the two Baudelaires and Quigley later use Verbal Fridge Dialogue to find out that the volunteers will meet at the last safe place on Thursday and decide to dig a pit to capture Esme in exchange for Sunny. They cancel their choice at the last minute and go along with Esme up the waterfall, where the Snow Scouts also happen to reach at the same time, so Olaf can trap them along with the freaks and the hook-handed man. Violet claims to know the location of the sugar bowl to save Sunny, but when the three are forced to reveal themselves as to convince the scouts to run away, the plan backfires and Carmelita joins Olaf and Esme int their evil plans. Quickly, the three and Quigley sled down the waterfall, but are eventually separated from Quigley, and the Baudelaires are swept away, to, once again, the road less traveled. (But in this case, the stream less traveled)

THE SLIPPERY SLOPE NOTES

In this book, we are introduced to the sugar bowl, which Count Olaf seems to put above stealing fortunes. Lemony admits he stole the sugar bowl from Esme, and he mentions in a letter to his sister in the book that her assumption that a tea set would come in handy when hiding small things was correct which may refer to the sugar bowl. He also states that a brave volunteer threw the bowl out the window to keep it safe from villains hands. 

Now, I've read my fair share of A Series of Unfortunate Events fan fiction (FOR PURELY EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES), and noticed that most of them contained some romantic relationship between Quigley and Violet. Indeed, when the two take a short break up the mountain, they stand by and talk for a while. Lemony does not give the reader many details as to give them privacy, but it is mentioned that Quigley was looking at Violet when he says "Very lovely indeed".

THE GRIM GROTTO

The Baudelaires enter the Queequeg and meet Captain Widdershins, Fiona, the captain's stepdaughter, and Phil, the optimist from The Miserable Mill. The crew's biggest purpose is to find the sugar bowl, and each are assigned a job to do according to their interests for that purpose. While Sunny uses her newly found cooking skills to make dinner, Violet discovers that it is likely Olaf is disrupting the telegram machines from their senders. Klaus manages to guess that the tide carried the bowl to the Gorgonian Grotto. On the way there, Captain Widdershins, mention the three Snicket siblings but is interrupted before he can mention Lemony. The three children and Fiona go there, but find no sugar bowl. They instead find the Medusoid Mycelium, which the children have read about, and so they know it is a very deadly mushroom that can kill within the hour. Unfortunately, a single spore manages to find it's way into Sunny's diving helmet, poisoning her. To make matters worse Queequeg has abandoned and Olaf's own ship, the Carmelita has captured it. The four are taken to the bring, where the hook-handed man is supposed to get information out of them, but the hook-handed man is none other than Fernald, Fiona's brother. Fernald agrees to help them, in exchange of taking him with them. The Baudelaires manage to make it to the Queequeg thanks to the two sibling's distraction. Sunny manages to tell them that wasabi, which the Baudelaires found in the grotto, is one cure to the Mycelium. While Sunny recovers, the two elder Baudelaires are stunned to find a telegram has reached them. Two poems with the words switched with the coded words. This is Verse Fluctuations Declaration, and so the two manage to fins the actual poems and find out they decode into a message to meet them at Briny Beach, the place where all their troubles began. The tables turn again, however, as it is revealed that Fiona has joined Count Olaf. He leaves her to guard the three orphans, but they manage to convince her to let them go. Together, the three steer away to Briny beach, leaving Klaus heartbroken. At the beach, the three run into Mr. Poe, who offers to take them, but they instead go in a taxi with a woman who introduces herself as Kit Snicket, and they leave to Hotel Denouement.

THE GRIM GROTTO

The last scene where the three chose Kit, a stranger, over Mr. Poe, a person they actually know. I think that this is symbolic as the Baudelaires would chose the life of fighting fire and risking their lives than living a mere mundane life. The three are not just people who want to have their friends and themselves safe anymore; they are volunteers, who would live and die to make the world a better place. And what's more is that there was no turning back. They could have lost everything that ever mattered to them in the city, and despite all that, they chose their own fate.

As I've said just two paragraphs ago, I have read some A Series of Unfortunate Events fan fiction (I APOLOGISE FOR NOTHING) and found that all writers divide into two groups: The ones who put Isadora and Klaus together, and the ones who put Fiona and Klaus together. While there isn't exactly a love triangle (THANK YOU LEMONY SNICKET), and Lemony has made no intention of writing a sequel to the series, it would be interesting to see what would happen between these two. Personally, I think Fiona would win, because Isadora made no intention of having a relationship with Klaus in the manner of eros, but Fiona clearly did.
The mysterious question mark figure in the sea is often told to be the Bombinating Beast, which is referenced in All the Wrong Questions. Jacques's the first to call it 'The Great Unknown'.

Well, that's it for today. I hope you come for more boom reviews, except not the reviews reviewing this series. 

With all due respect, Sooyoung Jo

The Hostile Hospital and The Carnivorous Carnival by Lemony Snicket

My personal thoughts on the series as a whole (besides the fact that this series is incredibly wretched and full of unfortunate events is posted in my post prior prior prior prior. If you want to see my opinions on all the books as a whole, please (please do not, though, as the post is as wretched and full of unfortunate events as the actual series) go the one prior by scrolling down, a phrase which here means, 'putting your finger on the little bumpy area between the left and right button and pushing in downward'.

THE HOSTILE HOSPITAL 
The Baudelaires arrive at the Last Chance General Store, where they try to send a telegramt o Mr. Poe for help, but they never get a message back. When the shopkeepers attempt to capture them for a crime the Baudelaires did not commit, they run to a van reading V.F.D. Thinking that this is the V.F.D. that they have told about, the children run aboard, where they are taken to the Heimlich Hospital, which is only half-finished. The Baudelaires volunteer to work at the Library of Records, where they think they could figure out more about V.F.D. They are unable to, however, as the volunteers themselves are not allowed to read the files. Therefore, the Baudelaires trick Hal, the keeper of the library, into thinking that Violet's ribbon tied to paper clips are his keys, while the actual keys are in the Baudelaire's hands. During the night, the children slip into the Library, where they learn the Snicket file has been taken for investigation, However, they discover the last page has been , where it reads that there may be a survivor of the fire, though the survivor's whereabouts are unknown. Before they could learn more, Esme Squalor comes in and sees them. She attempts to capture them by knocking over the file cabnets, and Violet is left behind. It is up to Klaus and Sunny is rescue her before Olaf's henchmen accidentally kill her in a operation. The two secure a list of patients, where they find Violet's name as an anagram. The children disguise themselves as Olaf's henchmen, and they are the ones to perform the operation on Violet. The two escape with her in just the nick of time, with the news that the hospital is on fire. Violet's mind manages to clear enough to invent a device that allows them to escape. Count Olaf and his henchmen escape in a car, with the orphans in the car.

THE HOSTILE HOSPITAL NOTES
It's no longer a simple running game for the Baudelaires; it's a official plunge into their past that they never knew. Now exploring V.F.D., the orphans must do everything they must to unravel the mystery to save themselves, the noble people in the world, and the people they care about that are still alive. However, this will not be easy, as villainous people will try to stop them from learning about V.F.D., and as they learn more and more about the organisation, they only have more and more questions. The world that seemed so certain is suddenly smoke and mirrors, and within the mist of all those, will the Baudelaires manage to come out victorious? My guess is yes, but not without losses, 

THE CARNIVOROUS CARNIVAL
The Baudelaires, who are still stuck in the trunk of Olaf's car, are taken to Carligari Carnival, wher they encounter Madame Lulu, who has apparently told Olaf about the Baudelaire's location each time they moved. Disguised as freaks with items they earned Olaf's trunk, they manage to get a job, with Violet and Klaus as a two-headed person, and Sunny as Chabo, the half-wolf child. They encounter Colette, Hugo, and Kevin, who are all freaks. The Baudelaires, after a humiliating night, discover that Madame Lulu uses her library under her table to give the people who come to her what they want. When the Baudelaires confront her with this, Madame Lulu reveals herself to be Olivia, a former member of V.F.D. Her motto is, 'Give people what they want', which is why she is helping Olaf. The Baudelaires convince her to take them to Mortmain Mountains, where V.F.D. headquarters is. They also make her promise not to tell Olaf their location, a promise she breaks, Meanwhile, Olaf's plan is to dig a large lion pit and fill it with hungry, vicious lions and throw one freak everyday to them. Esme, who is jealous of Olaf's attachment to Madame Lulu, offers to let the freaks join Count Olaf's troupe if they throw Madame Lulu to the lions. The next day, it is revealed that the two older Baudelaires are to be thrown into the pit, where they stall the crowd too long, hence evoking their anger that leads to chaos. Madame LuLu and the bald man are thrown to the lions, and the three children are forced to burn the carnival and escape with Count Olaf. On the way to Mortmain Mountains, Olaf tells them that he knows they are the Baudelaires and sends them plummeting to their near death.

THE CARNIVOROUS CARNIVAL
With the burning of Caligari Carnival, part of which the Baudelaires commited, leads to the question in which whether the Baudelaires are still noble. One can argue that they are, as they were forced to set the fire, so they are, but the Baudelaires do not think so, and indeed, they commit more crimes as time goes on. We are shown through this that the Baudelaires are not children anymore; they are, albeit unknowingly, volunteers, with blood on their previously innocent, clean hands. 

Well, that's it for today. I hope you come for more boom reviews, except not the reviews reviewing this series. 

With all due respect, Sooyoung Jo

The Ersatz Elevator and The Vile Village, and All the Wrong Questions about All the Wrong Questions by Lemony Snicket

My personal thoughts on the series as a whole (besides the fact that this series is incredibly wretched and full of unfortunate events is posted in my post prior prior prior. If you want to see my opinions on all the books as a whole, please (please do not, though, as the post is as wretched and full of unfortunate events as the actual series) go the one prior by scrolling down, a phrase which here means, 'putting your finger on the little bumpy area between the left and right button and pushing in downward'

THE ERSATZ ELEVATOR \

The Baudelaire orphans return to the city where they grew up in to their new guardians Esme and Jerome Squalor at 667 Dark Avenue. They soon discover that most residents are only interested in what is 'in' and what is 'out'. This includes, but not limited to, Esme, whereas Jerome truly cares for the children. The Baudelaires meet Gunther, who is an auctioneer, but is actually Count Olaf in disguise. Jerome takes the Baudelaires out to dinner, and when they return, they hear from the doorman that Gunther hadn't left the house, while Esme claims he left the penthouse a long time ago. The Baudelaires come up with the idea that Gunther may be living in one of the apartments, and so they attempt to find him by eavesdropping, only to find their efforts fruitless. At the bottom floor, they notice that the all floors except for the top one has only one elevator. Klaus believes that one of the elevators on the top floor is ersatz, and indeed, when they open on elevator, they find it is actually a dark tunnel all the way down. When the Baudelaires climb down, they discover the Quagmires in a cage. The Baudelaires climb back up to find a way to free them, only to find when they climb down, the Quagmires have been taken away already. The orphans tell Esme, who reveals that she is in cahoots with Count Olaf, and she pulls them down the tunnel. The Baudelaires, without choice, walk down the passageway to discover it leads to the ruins of their home. The orphans return to the auction , where they think item 50, called V.F.D is where the Quagmires are hidden, but they are wrong. We then see the familiar cycle, except, of course, not really. The children reveal Gunther's true identity it just the nick of time, but he manages to get away with the triplets. Jerome offers to take the Baudelaires to a safe place, but they refuse, and set off to a new life.

THE ERSATZ ELEVATOR NOTES

Remember how I was impressed by Lemony's whole page of ever's in The Reptile Room? Well, it turns out, that wasn't the only page trick Lemony was planning. 

I have, no words for this. Like, whoa. This is revolutionary. 

There is also the fact that the Baudelaires refused to go someplace away from Count Olaf. The Baudelaires refused to put their own safety over the Quagmires. In any other v=book until The Austere Academy they would have gladly taken the offer. As I have stated in my previous review, the orphans stopped running and started fighting. Refusing this offer to look for the Quagmires is the first steps to fighting Count Olaf, and the first steps to becoming a volunteer, which, by the way, happens very soon, a phrase which here means, in the next book.

THE VILE VILLAGE

The Baudelaires are taken to the village of V.F.D., which stands for the Village of Fowl Devotees. They meet the Council of Elders, a group of rather haughty and strict people and Hector, who is a kind person that is their guardians. They discover that V.F.D. has many rules, which include rules that forbid all mechanical devices, forbid almost all books, and forbids biting. Hector lives beside the Nevermore tree, and when the Baudelaires mention the Quagmires and Isadora's couplet skills, he gives them a couplet he found by the tree. The Baudelaires become convinced Olaf has hidden the triplets in the tree, but their search turns out to be fruitless. The next day, the Baudelaires do the chores for the residents of the village, and they receive news that Count Olaf has been captured, onyl they realize that he is not Count Olaf. He does have one eyebrow and a tattoo of an eye on his ankle, but he is not Count Olaf. He is in fact, Jacques Snicket, Lemony's brother, I assumed. He is charged with bring burned at the stake the next day, only to be murdered, and Detective Dupin, who is Count Olaf, frames them for murder. The Baudelaires are unfairly jailed, but manage to escape by dissolving brick mortar using water. They manage to crack the code in the couplets and find the Quagmires in a fountain. Unfortunately, this joy is short-lived as the Baudelaires are unable to escape with the Quagmires in a self-sustaining home,  and are forced to live as fugitives in a cold, dark world. 

THE  VILE VILLAGE NOTES

This book is where we get a real, real TWIST, and I meant to use all caps. Until now, the Baudelaires have been tossed from place to place, trying to find someplace that can be called home. Now, the Baudelaires CANNOT have a home. They are accused of crime now, and so they must wander from place to place, trying to find answers to the questions that surround their lives. Perhaps it is best for them to ask these questions, or perhaps it is not, for the questions could be....

ALL THE WRONG QUESTIONS

I have not read this series yet. In fact, the only book series I've read by Lemony Snicket is A Series of Unfortunate Events. However, I am very interested in reading this series. I have been very careful to be only lightly spoiled on what happens, and as far as I can tell, it features Lemony as a 13 year old on a investigation case. While I am rather disappointed that it does not feature all the Snicket siblings on a case together, which is what I have wanted to see ever since I have finished the series, I WANT. THIS. Please. What unearthly being who likes ASOUE would not want a backstory to the witty, melancholy Lemony Snicket, who drops so many vague and intriguing details in all his other books that one cannot resist wanting them . Albeit, that is probably the wrong question, but nontheless, I cannot wait to get them. Unfortunately, I live in South Korea, where these books are not likely to be in the library. Heck, my local library doesn't even have The Beatrice Letters, so I can't read them for a while, I guess.

Well, that's it for today. I hope you come for more boom reviews, except not the reviews reviewing this series. 

With all due respect, Sooyoung Jo

The Miserable Mill and The Austere Academy by Lemony Snicket

My personal thoughts on the series as a whole (besides the fact that this series is incredibly wretched and full of unfortunate events is posted in my post prior prior. If you want to see my opinions on all the books as a whole, please (please do not, though, as the post is as wretched and full of unfortunate events as the actual series) go the one prior by scrolling down, a phrase which here means, 'putting your finger on the little bumpy area between the left and right button and pushing in downward'.

THE MISERABLE MILL

The Baudelaires are taken to the Lucky Smells Lumbermill in Paltryville, where they are forced to work there. They soon realizethe incredible injustice that goes on there, along with 2 people that are  unpleasant. Flacutono, who is the foreman and is actually the bald man with the long nose in disguise, and Sir, who heads the Lumbermill and is a nasty man who cares for no one but himself. We also meet Charles, a kind but often indecisive man, and Phil, an optimist, both who become more important characters later in the series. When Flacutono purposefully trips over Klaus and breaks his glasses, so he is taken to Dr. Orwell's house, where he is hypnotized. The next day, Laus causes an accident, but wakes up suddenly after it. Soon after, though, he is tripped again, and taken to Dr. Orwell's, his siblings along with him. They soon discover that the receptionist, Shirley, is actually Count Olaf in disguise, but no one believes them, just like every single other time he has followed them. When they arrive, a message from Sir tells them that if Klaus caused one more accident at the mill, they wold be placed into the care of Shirley, hence Count Olaf get his hands on the Baudelaires, Determined to break Klaus out of his hypnosis, Violet researches it to discover that a single word can break him out of it. When Violet discovers that Dr. Orwell, Flacutono, and Shirley and manipulating Klaus to make an accident, Violet stops them just in time by figuring out the word to break Klaus out of his hypnosis, which is inordinate. Klaus manages to stop the accident, and the adults soon discover, too late, of course- that Shirley is indeed Count Olaf, and Flacutono is his henchperson, and hey flee together, with the news that the children are to be sent to boarding school, with the thought, that perhaps, they may be lucky after all.

THE MISERABLE MILL NOTES

While I have not mentioned this detail in the summary, the two older Baudelaire siblings find themselves in positions that are not up their alley, a phrase which here means, 'not their major', but they manage to succeed. Therefore, Lemony Snicket manages to portray the switched positions plot line IN A NON CRINGEY WAY. YES! LEMONY SNICKET HAS DONE WHAT THE LOGIC OF TV SHOWS, BOOKS AND MOVIES CHARACTERS HAVE FAILED TO DO!

THE AUSTERE ACADEMY
The Baudelaires are taken to Prufrock Prep, where they meet Vice Principal Nero, an arrogant, impatient person with absolutely no heart whatsoever. They also meet Carmeltia Spats, a nasty, rude girl whom the Baudelaires have to put up with and have to meet again later in the series. Finally, they meet allies, the Isadora and Duncan Quagmire, who are supposed to be triplets but their other sibling, Quigley, died in a fire (except not really), that took their home and parents, just like the Baudelaires. The Baudelaires tell the Quagmires of Count Olaf and their troubles, and they offer to help. The two older siblings attend boring, pointless lessons, while Sunny works as a secretary for Nero, and for a while it seemed like perhaps life would be okay after all. However, Count Olaf, who is disguised as a gym teacher named Coach Genghis. Coach Genghis makes the orphans to laps all night, making them too tired to study, hence making them flunk. Nero notices this and threatens to expel the orphans to Coach Genghis if they do not get a perfect store on a exam taken the next night. The Quagmires take the place of the Baudelaires in the laps, along with a sack of flour as a substitue for Sunny, which ultimately gets them revealed. On one hand, the Baudelaires manage to expose Coach Genghis' true identity, On the other hand, he manages to kidnapp the Quagmires, and the orphans are expelled, with nothing but the three letters V.F.D, that the triplets had managed to shout to them. 

THE AUSTERE ACADEMY NOTES

This book is where things get a) desperate b) very interesting. Until now, the books follow a similar cycle: the Baudelaires find themselves in place to live (and end up not liking it, most of the time), Count Olaf follows them, the Baudelaires try to convince the adults that whoever the person he is disguied as is Count Olaf, they fail, and have to prove it to the adults themselves, who only prove that they are useless. Up until this book, the Baudelaires instinct has been to flee, not fight. However, with the kidnapping of the Quagmires, the Baudelaires are determined to bring Count Olaf to his knees no matter what. We are also introduced to V.F.D., three mysterious letters that are not what you expect. 

Well, that's it for today. I hope you come for more boom reviews, except not the reviews reviewing this series. 

With all due respect, Sooyoung Jo

The Reptile Room, The Wide Window, and The Fine Film by Lemony Snicket

My personal thoughts on the series as a whole (besides the fact that this series is incredibly wretched and full of unfortunate events is posted in my post prior. If you want to see my opinions on all the books as a whole, please (please do not, though, as the post is as wretched and full of unfortunate events as the actual series) go the one prior by scrolling down, a phrase which here means, 'putting your finger on the little bumpy area between the left and right button and pushing in downward'.

THE REPTILE ROOM

The Baudelaire orphans are taken to another relative, Doctor Montgomery Montgomery, who asks to be called Uncle Monty. Uncle Monty proves to be a wonderful man with a great interest in reptiles, particularly snakes, which is why he is a herpetologist, a word which here means, 'a person who studies snakes'. Here we also meet the Incredibly Deadly Viper, which is not deadly at all and it's name is a misnomer. For a short, happy while, the children go to the reptile room, where Uncle Monty keeps all his precious reptiles, work there and prepare for their trip to Peru. However, when Uncle Monty'd new assistant, who goes by the name Stephano, but is actually Count Olaf. The children try, again and again, to warn Uncle Monty of his Stephano's true identity, but fails to. On the day of the trip, they find Uncle Monty dead in the reptile room. It is revealed that Stephano's (Count Olaf's) plan is to take the children away to Peru and try to steal their fortune there. Luckily, the children manage the prove to Mr. Poe the truth, and escape their deaths, which, unfortunately, was not the only thing that escaped. Count Olaf and the hook-handed- man, (who also turns out to be a more prominent character than we though), who helped him in this scheme get away as well. The story end with the children saying good bye to all the reptiles including the Incredibly Deadly Viper.

NOTES ON THE REPTILE ROOM
There isn't really much to talk about in this book, except for the first appearance of the Incredibly Deadly Viper, which turns out to be a more important animal later on, and Bruce whom we will meet again later. There is also this:

No comment. 

THE WIDE WINDOW

The Baudelaire children are taken to their new guardian, Aunt Josephine, who is absolutely terrified of almost everything and loves grammar. For several days, the orphans go through, mediocre at best lives, certainly not satisfying ones, but safe ones. That is until Count Olaf comes yet again with another evil plan. He disguises himself as a sailor called Captain Sham (an accurate name, because Sham means fraud or hoax) and charms Aunt Josephine and tricks her into believing that he was only the best intentions for them. When Captain Sham reveals his true colors, he makes Aunt Josephine go into hiding after leaving a will that puts the children in Captain Sham's hands. While the children temporarily believe this is a forgery, they quickly realize, after a quick handwriting comparison, that this is not the case. When it seems like Captain Sham has the orphans in his clutches, Violet comes up with the idea to have for her and her siblings to have a peppermint, which they are allergic to, and buys them some time. Klaus deciphers the incorrect grammar mistakes to discover that they decode to 'Curdled Cave'. The three youngsters attempt to get to the cave, and they succeed by stealing a boat from Captain Sham. The person who looked like neither a man or a woman attempts to stop them, but the three manage to get away to Curdled Cave. They take Aunt Josephine from her hiding spot and attempt to return to the mainland, only to have the famous Lachryrmose leeches attack them. Violet uses to inventing skills to light a flare, which gets the attention of none other than Captain Sham. Captain Sham pushes Aunt Josephine into the lake to be devoured by the leeches and takes the Baudelaires to shore, only to have quick thinking Sunny bite off his peg leg to reveal the tattoo on his left ankle. Unfortunately, Count Olaf gets away yet again, leaving the Baudelaires to another undecided fate. 

NOTES ON THE WIDE WINDOW

I first want to talk about the scenes where they light a flare. This symbolizes all the extreme measures the Baudelaires will go through later on in their lives, where they will do even more impossible things and beyond. I also want to talk about how insensible Mr. Poe is. Not only is he incredibly ignorant, underestimates children that are ten times smarter than him, he is incredibly illogical, proven by the fact that he doesn't allow the orphans to be taken by a kind, just woman who has proven herself fit for the Baudelaire children and the Baudelaire like, but lets some random stranger who could VERY WELL BE Count Olaf he has just met that the orphans hate take them, no questions asked. *slow clap* Good job, Mr. Poe, good job. 

MOVIE COMPARISONS

I do this in this blog post because the movie consists of 4 parts: The beginning of the first book, the second book, the third book, and the ending of the first book. If it were any other movie, I would rant about the disloyalty this movie has to the books to no end, but here, for some reason, it wasn't really bothering me. In fact, I was actually enjoying myself, Albeit, the second part and the third part was actually pretty book loyal, aside from the entire spyglass mysterious subplot. The first and the last sections? Not so much. However, I think the reason I was not screaming out the details of the book while watching this is because there were only two pieces that were not following the book. Despite the fact that they were MAJOR that drove the plot, I will give credit to the director that it was an interesting way to drive the story and I liked it despite not being in the book. (Don't abandon the books because I said that, this will be the last time I will ever say that). But honestly, how much will it pay you to make Emily Browning write two words with her left hand? Probably less than the CGI solar beam you used, 

I think the biggest reason I liked this is because the atmosphere of the series was portrayed wonderfully in this movie. With the melancholy voice over of Jude Law, the cunning music, and the brilliant warning at the beginning, this movie had me enjoying it despite every single detail I could nitpick. 

Well, that's it for today. I hope you come for more boom reviews, except not the reviews reviewing this series. 

With all due respect, Sooyoung Jo

Opinion of the series and The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket (Part 1 of my A Series of Unfortunate Events review)

When it comes to A Series of Unfortunate Events, the world can be divided into three parts: The people who enjoyed this wretched novel for some reason, the people who hated it, and the people who were wise and fortunate enough to not read this book at all. I happen to fall into the first category. When I first saw this book, I didn't fell too attracted to it. Back then I was in the middle of rereading The Hunger Games ( I have a book review on the franchise), so I didn't want to read it.  That changed the second I started reading. One of the most prominent differences between this series and many others is the melancholy yet humorous way Lemony Snicket narrates the story. While writing the story of the Baudelaires, he also adds small details of his life, though we never get a full concept of that until The Austere Academy, which makes the books prior to that mysterious and makes the reader go, 'What is this author? Why does he add so many vague details unrelated to the story?'  Of course, if you seen the series in, unfortunately, the library or, even more unfortunately, the bookstore, you will notice that the books that are before The Austere Academy are very thin, and indeed, I blew over that part in 2 days. The shortness of the novels combined with the fact that this type of writing is a rather rare one pulls the reader into the story, and that is one reason is series is so interesting. When we read a book that is not from one of the character's point of view, we do not get a exact connection between the narrator and the characters, but this series is an exception that is halfway in, halfway out, which intrigues the reader. Lemony Snicket acts like he knows the Baudelaires, and the truth is, he does, but he also doesn't. I am sorry to tell you this, but that is the best way I can describe it. Most of the humor comes from (for me, at least) the way Lemony Snicket breaks the wall fourth wall, a term which here means having a character become aware of their fictional nature. I generally enjoy authors who break the fourth wall, and I somehow never get tired of it. I also enjoy pedantry, which also supplies my enjoyment while reading this.

THE BAD BEGINNING
The book begins one day at Briny Beach, where we are introduced to our main characters, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire. After hearing about the terrible fire that took their home and parents from Mr. Poe, the orphans are taken to Count Olaf's house, where they meet a friendly neighbor called Justice Strauss. Count Olaf, however, is not as nice, as it is revealed that Count Olaf is indeed a terrible man who will do anything to get his hands on the Baudelaire fortune, an enormous sum of money the Baudelaire parents left behind. After one night where Count Olaf demands that the orphans make a dinner for 13 people, and strikes Klaus for no just reason whatsoever, the children try to get Mr. Poe to help them, only to discover that he is not going to be helpful now or anytime else in the series. All alone, the Baudelaires learn that Count Olaf plans to legally marry Violet in a play, hence getting access to the Baudelaire fortune. When Klaus confronts him with this information, Count Olaf reveals that he has taken Sunny and is hanging her from top of the tower. He threatens to drop her if Violet doesn't marry him. Violet of course, accepts, but later attempts to rescue Sunny using a grappling hook of her own, only to have it fail, At the play, Olaf believes that he has the Baudelaire fortune in his hands, only to have a quick-thinking Violet sign the marriage document with her left hand so the document is not legal. Count Olaf and his comrades escape, and the Baudelaires are taken away to an unknown fate, Count Olaf's threat hanging over their heads. 

One of the things I would like to point out is that the female character in a children's book IS NOT A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS. YES! As a girl myself, I am highly against females being shown as weak and unable to help themselves. While Klaus is the one to figure out what Olaf is out to, Violet is the one doing the action, switching the roles of what commonly men and women do it children's books. Speaking of that, I like the fact that the boy is the book worm and the girl is the inventor. This is a breakthrough in literature, if you ask me! 

Well, that's it for today. I hope you come for more boom reviews, except not the reviews reviewing this series. 

With all due respect, Sooyoung Jo

When my name as Keoko by Linda Sue Park

In my view, one of the best parts of fiction, (not including realistic fiction, of course) is all the world building and getting new information about the setting we are in. What makes Hogwarts, Camp Half Blood, Idris, etc, so real is all the rules, laws, and traditions that support whatever beliefs in their world, so much like our own. One part that makes the world building so interesting is because of the desire to learn about whatever fascinating universe the main character has been dropped into (or is in). So what about historical fiction? While everything broad and important is briefly illustrated in our commonplace textbooks, all the small details of people's daily lives are very vague, so authors able to form a simple family and fill in their lives in a certain era like a coloring book. Even historians are not able to recount about every single family. There is reason why Anne Frank is remembered but all the millions of other Jews who were slain in the Holocaust aren't. What Anne did left a mark in history, like An Chang Goon, so they are remembered and have books and museums about them. But not regular families, which is why historical fiction is both relatable and new all the same. One certain historical fiction is When my name as Keoko by Linda Sue Park. I have read Linda Su's work only once prior, A Single Shard, where I had marveled at the accuracy of the events and culture of the Kora dynasty. Linda Su did not fail me with this book, as I think it also just as detailed and accurate, illustrating the small habits and desires and interlacing them so they form direct clashes with the outside force. The outside force in this novel is the Japanese, who invaded and took over Korea in 1905. 

This is a warning for all Japanese who may be offended by what I am going to write. If you feel uncomfortable reading about cruel acts, you may skip to another book review.

This book begins in 1940, where the first narrator, Sun-Hee, overhears a conversation between the three men in the house. What she hears is later revealed as an order to all Koreans to change their names to Japanese ones. This brings a certain event to mind, during the Olympics some time prior, where Sohn-Kee-Chung, a Korean, was declared winner under the country Japan and the name Kitei Son. The next day, Uncle was taken by the Japanese, cruelly punished, and sent back for publishing his victory in the newspaper under Korean circumstances. This is where we get the idea the Uncle is the most rebellious of the family. We are soon introduced to the two main character's interests: Sun-Hee's bring studies and Tae-Yul's being mechanics. That interest is why he often works at Uncle's worlshop. When the two siblings think that Uncle may be chin-il-pa, they make a promise to each other to reveal whatever information they ound out, one both don't really keep. That is, until Sun-Hee mistakes Tomo's warning to hide their metal. Uncle runs from the town, leaving the Japanese wanting to hunt him down. Meanwhile, things are changing at school, with practice drill after practice drill. Sun-Hee and Tae-Yul both begin to expand their interests, as Sun-Hee starts a diary and Tae-Yul volunteers on an airstrip. When Tae-Yul is taken from school to be forced to help track down Uncle, he instead foils the Japanese plan by volunteering in the military. When he tells this news to his family, they break and weep, but Tae-Yul tells Sun-Hee later the real purpose why he is leaving and asks her to try and interpret his real messages. When a letter does arrive, Sun-Hee deduces that things aren't going well for the Japanese, and later, that Tae-Yul is going to be kamikze, both of which are correct. When the war ends, the family is left to believe that Tae-Yul has died, only he has not, The weather was too bad on the day of the mission, and so the suicide was canceled. The story ends with Tae-Yul deciding to be a printer and Sun-Hee teaching him the Korean alphabet.

One of the things I want to point out is the writing style that changes as the characters mature. At first, Tae-Yul, the brother, complains about how his sister, Sun-Hee, asks too many questions, but later, he says that she is a nice kid, and actually answers her questions  about the war. The same goes for Sun-Hee. When the two siblings first make the deal to try and figure out what is going on with Uncle, both are unwilling to tell their suspicions and thoughts to each other. However, when Tae-Yul asks Sun-Hee to try and decode the true meaning behind his words, she goes to full effort to try and do just that. The way they narrate the story reflects how they trust each other perfectly.

When there is talk of an invasion take ends with a country's defeat, the people whose country has surrendered always has at least some bitter thoughts about the invader, and at least one person tied to the main character works for him somehow, while most others profoundly oppose it. In this story, the person working for the Japanese is Jung-Shin, a daughter of a chin-il-pa, who works for the Japanese. While Jung-Shin may not be directly affiliated with the Japanese, it works as a very vibrant symbol that even people working on opposite ends of war can be cordial to each other. The same goes with Tomo, who takes one step further and tries to warn Sun-Hee about the Japanese taking away their metal.

All of the characters in this story somehow make a difference and oppose the Japanese in some way. The most obvious being the three men, Uncle, Abuji, and Tae-Yul. Uncle runs a illegal newspaper, alerting the Korean people of Japan's cruel deeds. Abjui writes article about education for the mentioned newspaper. Tae-Yul joins the military and plans on taking out a Japanese aircraft, himself along with it. I have to marvel at these people's bravery to do such outright things. 

The females in this book don't back down either, and maybe that's what I like about this book. There is no Cinderella complex where the men go and save the day while the women do the housework and whatever. Each person helps the resistance in her own small way. Omoni keeps the little rose of Sharon tree despite all orders to burn them down. Sun-Hee writes down her own thoughts in her diary. Mrs Ahn helped Uncle in the resistance and rebelled her own small way by not letting the Japanese have her thoughts. It is not the most directive, but equally brave, and in some ways, more effective. 

Well, that's it for now. I hope you come for more book reviews!

-Sooyoung Jo, age 12-