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