Alex Dombrowski

Alex Dombrowski

A Series of Unfortunate Events #1:  The Bad Beginning

Lemony Snicket

Realistic fiction

Holiday

69

 

 

1.      I am currently reading A Series of Unfortunate Events #1:  The Bad Beginning, by Lemony Snicket. In the book, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire’s wealthy parents unfortunately died in a house fire. Violet will receive their fortune when she is of age, but until then the money is being taken care of by the bank. Mr. Poe takes the Baudelaire kids in for a little while until he is ready to bring them to their closest relative. The kids don’t like Mr. Poe’s house very much because of his obnoxious kids. They are eager to leave and go to their new home. When they finally get to what they think is their new home, they are pleased to see a nice clean house. A kind older woman, Justice Strauss, greets them, then explains to them that she is their next door neighbor and takes them to see the house they’ll actually be living in. Violet, Klaus and Sunny are shocked to see how dirty the house they’ll be staying in is. They reluctantly enter the disgusting house and meet their equally disgusting new “father” Count Olaf. Olaf works the kids very hard and beats them if they misspeak. Currently the Baudelaire’s are trying figure out why Olaf wants to find their fortunes and how he is going to do it.

2.      I really am enjoying reading this book so far. It is interesting to me that Snicket would want to write about three children with an awful life. The characters in this book are very intriguing like Count Olaf; he is a tall skinny man with a gross personality. The main thing that keeps me interested is the plot. I always want to know what is going to happen next to the kids and what they are going to do when something unfortunate happens to them. Also, Snicket includes definitions to words right after the sentence in which they are used. This really helps because you don’t have to stop and think about what the word means. Currently, the fast pace of The Bad Beginning is really enjoyable and I hope it will never get slow! 

3.      I think the theme in the book so far is the desire to escape. It is the theme because the Baudelaire kids are always trying to get away from the place where they are living. From the time they live with Mr. Poe to the time they live with Olaf, they always want to run away. They want to escape Mr. Poe’s house because it smells and his kids have terrible manners. Once they get to Olaf’s house they instantly want to leave because his house is disgusting. Also, Olaf beats them and makes them do lots of chores. The Count wants the Baudelaire fortune as well so he is scheming to take it. This makes the kids want to get out of there as fast as they can. The theme, desire to escape, is shown throughout the book.

4.      My favorite character in The Bad Beginning is Klaus. I like him because he always speaks his mind to his sisters and to Olaf (even if he beats him for it). He also is very smart; he is constantly looking for something to read. This makes him knowledgeable in all fields. I believe this will pay off for him in the long run because Klaus will know how to get out of a bad situation. Klaus knows a lot about animals too.  I like this trait in the character and predict it will help him get out of an unfortunate situation one day. Klaus is the only boy out of his siblings and is willing to protect himself and his sisters.  His bravery helps make him my favorite character in the book so far.  

5.      My least favorite character is Count Olaf. I don’t like him is because all he cares about is getting the Baudelaire’s fortune. He is jealous of them because he doesn’t have nice things or a nice house. This makes him a selfish, nasty man. Also, he provides bad conditions for the kids. Olaf only has one bed for three kids. The bed is in very poor shape, so the kids argue about whether the floor is more comfortable. Olaf works the children by making them do difficult chores like cooking dinner for him and his friends. This shows how lazy he really is. Also, he beats the kids when they misspeak. This makes it very hard to live with the Count. My least favorite character in The Bad Beginning is Count Olaf for his terrible personality.

6.      I predict that Count Olaf will steal the Baudelaire’s great fortune. He will do this by manipulating them into giving it to him; this will be very hard for him because the kids have caught on to his true goal and motive for taking care of them. I also think the kids will try to escape from the terrible living conditions and get away from Olaf and his schemes. I’m interested in finding out whether they will attempt an escape, how they will do it and if Klaus’s knowledge will come in handy!