The Bad Beginning

Last updated

The Bad Beginning
BadBeginning.jpg
US Cover of The Bad Beginning
Author Lemony Snicket (pen name of Daniel Handler)
Illustrator Brett Helquist
Cover artistBrett Helquist
LanguageEnglish
Series A Series of Unfortunate Events
Genre Gothic fiction
Absurdist fiction
Mystery
Publisher HarperCollins
Publication date
September 30, 1999
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (hardback & paperback)
Pages162
ISBN 0-06-440766-7
OCLC 41070636
Fic 21
LC Class PZ7.S6795 Bad 1999
Followed by The Reptile Room  

Book the First: The Bad Beginning is the first novel of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The novel tells the story of three children, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, who become orphans following a fire and are sent to live with Count Olaf, who attempts to steal their inheritance.

Contents

The book was published on September 30, 1999, by Scholastic Inc. and illustrated by Brett Helquist. An audiobook was released in 2003 with narration by Tim Curry, several special editions of the book have been made and the book has been translated into many different languages. There is a film based on the series starring Jim Carrey and a Netflix TV mini-series starring Neil Patrick Harris.

Synopsis

Violet Baudelaire is fourteen years old and loves creating amazing inventions; Klaus Baudelaire is twelve and an obsessive reader; Sunny Baudelaire is a baby and has four surprisingly large and sharp buck teeth, with which she loves to bite. While they are at Briny Beach, the banker Mr. Poe tells them that their parents have died in a fire that destroyed their home. He places them in the care of Count Olaf, said to be a distant relative although the children have never heard of him before. Olaf's ramshackle house is filthy and covered in disconcerting eye images; it has a tower which the Baudelaires are forbidden from entering. Count Olaf is unpleasant, easily angered, and forces the children to perform odious chores. It becomes clear that Count Olaf is scheming to collect the Baudelaires' fortune. The only solace the children find is spending time with their neighbor, Justice Strauss.

For the next few days, Olaf keeps the Baudelaires busy by forcing them to clean his house. The Baudelaires disagree but do not dare to object. One day, the Baudelaires are set the task of making dinner for Olaf and his theatre troupe. The troupe contains two white faced women, a hook-handed man, a bald man with a long nose and a person of indeterminate gender. The siblings make puttanesca, but when Olaf arrives, he demands roast beef. The children remind him that he never asked them to make roast beef, and Olaf becomes angry, lifting Sunny into the air, and striking Klaus across the face after Klaus tells everyone Count Olaf has given them only one bed and a pile of rocks for the three of them to sleep on and to play with.

After a few days, Olaf forces the Baudelaires to participate in a play written by "Al Funcoot" called "The Marvelous Marriage.", forcing Violet to play the role of his bride. After smuggling a book from Strauss's library, Klaus realises that the marriage in the play will be legally binding, meaning Olaf will gain control of their fortune. He confronts Olaf, who has one of his associates put Sunny in a birdcage, dangling from outside the window of his tower. He threatens to kill her if Klaus and Violet do not follow his plan. Violet constructs a makeshift grappling hook and uses it to climb the tower. She finds the hook-handed man (a member of Olaf's theatre troupe) waiting to capture her. Klaus is brought up to the tower and they are locked together in the room until the play begins.

After Violet signs the marriage document, Olaf interrupts to tell the audience that their wedding was legally binding. Justice Strauss and Mr. Poe both object, but concede that the law requires them to hand over the Baudelaire fortune to Olaf. Violet interrupts to proclaim that the marriage was not legally binding, as she signed with her left hand despite being right-handed and the wording is 'own hand'. Justice Strauss agrees that this invalidates the marriage. Before Olaf can be arrested for locking up Sunny, one of his associates turns the lights in the theatre off and he is able to escape. Justice Strauss tells the Baudelaires that she is willing to adopt them; however, Mr. Poe says that this would go against their parents' will, as Justice Strauss is not their relative. He takes them back to his household until he can find another guardian for them.

Critical reception

In 2012, School Library Journal named The Bad Beginning the 48th best children's novel. [1] Kirkus Reviews noted the uncomfortably macabre tone of the novel, warning that because "the Baudelaire children are truly sympathetic characters", the novel is "not for the squeamish". [2] Catherine Pelosi of Kids' Book Review responded positively to The Bad Beginning, describing it as "exciting, humorous and appropriately dark". [3]

Special editions

The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition

The Bad Beginning: Rare Edition ( ISBN   0-06-051828-6) was published by HarperCollins on September 23, 2003. In addition to a box, new cover, and additional illustrations, this edition contains a fourteenth chapter filled with author's notes, many of which foreshadow later events in the series or provide excessively detailed information about the events in The Bad Beginning itself.

The Bad Beginning; or, Orphans!

The Bad Beginning; or, Orphans! is a paperback edition of The Bad Beginning designed to mimic a Victorian penny dreadful. [4] It was released on May 8, 2007. [4] The book features a new full-color cover, seven new illustrations, and the first part of a serial supplement entitled The Cornucopian Cavalcade, which in this edition includes the first of 13-part comic entitled The Spoily Brats along with a page of Victorian-era false advertisements, both produced by Michael Kupperman; an advice column written by Lemony Snicket along with a page listing every entry in A Series of Unfortunate Events (some of which are fictional); the first part of a story entitled Q: A Psychic pstory of the psupernatural by Stephen Leacock. [5]

Other special editions

Two more editions of The Bad Beginning were published by Egmont Publishing on October 1, 2003—The Bad Beginning: Special Edition ( ISBN   1-4052-0725-6) and The Bad Beginning: Limited Edition ( ISBN   1-4052-0726-4). They come in a larger format and contain three plates of color artwork that are redrawn from the original edition of the book and two plates of new color artwork. The Limited Edition is bound in leather and contained within a box, similar to the Rare Edition , and each copy was signed by Daniel Handler. There is also a new "Short-Lived Edition", released for general sale on June 14, 2012.

Audiobook

Two audiobook versions of this novel were released. The first version was released in September 2003. It was read by Tim Curry and featured Daniel Handler, under the pseudonym Lemony Snicket, who read a portion, A Conversation Between the Author and Leonard S. Marcus, which won an "Earphones Award" on AudioFile , which described the audiobook as "fabulously funny" and complimented the conversation involving Handler. [6]

The second version was released in October 2004, after the release of the film, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events . This multi-voice cast audio book was narrated by Tim Curry and featured Jim Carrey, Meryl Streep, and Jude Law. This version also included sound effects and a soundtrack. This edition of The Bad Beginning was an Audie Awards finalist for Children's Titles for Ages 8+ in 2005, [7] and a Grammy Award Nominee for Best Spoken Word Album for Children in 2005. [8] AudioFile gave the audiobook a positive review, although stated that "the cast of seven at first sound self-consciously formal until one realizes that the acting is supposed to be as mannered as the clever writing". [9]

Adaptations

Television

The book was adapted into the first two episodes of the first season of the television series adaptation produced by Netflix.[ citation needed ]

Film

Elements of The Bad Beginning were featured in the 2004 film adaptation of the first three books in the series, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events .[ citation needed ]

Translations

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lemony Snicket</span> Pen name and fictional character

Lemony Snicket is the pen name of American author Daniel Handler. Handler has published various children's books under the name, including A Series of Unfortunate Events, which has sold over 60 million copies and spawned a 2004 film and Netflix TV series from 2017 to 2019 of the same name. Lemony Snicket also serves as the in-universe author who investigates and re-tells the story of the Baudelaire orphans in A Series of Unfortunate Events.

<i>A Series of Unfortunate Events</i> Book series by Lemony Snicket

A Series of Unfortunate Events is a series of thirteen children's novels written by American author Daniel Handler under the pen name Lemony Snicket. The books follow the turbulent lives of orphaned siblings Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire. After their parents' death in a fire, the children are placed in the custody of a murderous villain, Count Olaf, who attempts to steal their inheritance and causes numerous disasters with the help of his accomplices as the children attempt to flee. As the plot progresses, the Baudelaires gradually confront further mysteries surrounding their family and deep conspiracies involving a secret society, which also involves Olaf and Snicket, the author's own fictional self-insert.

<i>The Reptile Room</i> 1999 childrens novel

Book the Second: The Reptile Room is the second book in the children's series A Series of Unfortunate Events, written by Daniel Handler under the pseudonym Lemony Snicket. The book tells the story of the Baudelaire orphans, as they are sent to live with a distant relative named Montgomery Montgomery.

<i>The Wide Window</i> 2000 childrens novel

Book the Third: The Wide Window is the third novel of the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. In this novel, the Baudelaire orphans live with their aunt Josephine, who is seemingly scared of everything. The book was published on February 25, 2000 by HarperCollins and illustrated by Brett Helquist.

<i>The Miserable Mill</i> 2000 childrens novel

Book the Fourth: The Miserable Mill is the fourth novel of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. In this novel, the Baudelaire orphans live with the owner of Lucky Smells Lumber Mill. The book was published on April 15, 2000, by HarperCollins and illustrated by Brett Helquist.

<i>The Austere Academy</i> 2000 childrens novel

Book the Fifth: The Austere Academy is the fifth novel in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The Baudelaire orphans are sent to a boarding school, overseen by monstrous employees. There, the orphans meet new friends, new enemies, and Count Olaf in disguises.

<i>The Ersatz Elevator</i> 2001 childrens novel

Book the Sixth: The Ersatz Elevator is the sixth novel of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The Baudelaires are sent to live with the wealthy Esmé and Jerome Squalor.

<i>The Vile Village</i> 2001 childrens novel

Book the Seventh: The Vile Village is the seventh novel in the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.

<i>The Hostile Hospital</i> 2001 childrens novel

Book the Eighth: The Hostile Hospital is the eighth novel in the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, the pseudonym of Daniel Handler. It takes place shortly after The Vile Village and is followed by a sequel, The Carnivorous Carnival.

<i>The Carnivorous Carnival</i> 2002 childrens novel

Book the Ninth: The Carnivorous Carnival is the ninth novel in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.

<i>The Slippery Slope</i> 2003 childrens novel

Book the Tenth: The Slippery Slope is the tenth novel in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. It was illustrated by Brett Helquist and published on September 23, 2003. In the novel, Violet and Klaus Baudelaire make their way up the Mortmain Mountains to rescue their sister Sunny from Count Olaf and his troupe. They meet Quigley Quagmire, a character who they thought to be dead, and visit the headquarters of a mysterious organization called "V.F.D." They are reunited with Sunny and manage to escape from Olaf. The book has received positive reviews and been translated into several different languages.

<i>The Grim Grotto</i> 2004 childrens novel by Lemony Snicket

Book the Eleventh: The Grim Grotto is the eleventh novel in the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The book was released on Tuesday, September 21, 2004.

<i>Lemony Snickets A Series of Unfortunate Events</i> 2004 film by Brad Silberling

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a 2004 American black comedy adventure film directed by Brad Silberling from a screenplay by Robert Gordon, based on the first three novels of the book series A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning (1999), The Reptile Room (1999), and The Wide Window (2000), by Lemony Snicket. It stars Jim Carrey, Liam Aiken, Emily Browning, Timothy Spall, Catherine O'Hara, Billy Connolly, Cedric the Entertainer, Luis Guzmán, Jennifer Coolidge, and Meryl Streep, and Jude Law as the voice of Lemony Snicket.

<i>The End</i> (novel) 2006 childrens novel

Book the Thirteenth: The End is the thirteenth and final novel in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The book was released on Friday, October 13, 2006.

<i>Lemony Snickets A Series of Unfortunate Events</i> (video game) 2004 video game

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a 2004 action-adventure game based on the film of the same name. Players take the roles of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, solving puzzles, fighting villains and finding objects. Players encounter characters such as Mr. Poe, Uncle Monty, and Aunt Josephine, along with villains such as Count Olaf, the Hook-Handed Man, the White-Faced Women, and the Bald Man with the Long Nose.

<i>The Penultimate Peril</i> 2005 childrens novel

Book the Twelfth: The Penultimate Peril is the twelfth novel in the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.

<i>The Beatrice Letters</i> 2006 book by Lemony Snicket

The Beatrice Letters is a book by Lemony Snicket. It is a tangential prequel to the children's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events, and was published shortly before the thirteenth and final installment. According to its cover, the book is "suspiciously linked to Book the Thirteenth", although the British edition merely states that it "contains a clue to Book the Thirteenth".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lemony Snicket bibliography</span>

This is a list of books by Lemony Snicket, the pen name of American author Daniel Handler. Works published under the name Daniel Handler are not included. Handler, as Snicket, has published 26 fiction novels, thirteen in the main A Series of Unfortunate Events franchise. His works have been translated into more than 40 languages, and have sold more than 65 million copies.

<i>A Series of Unfortunate Events</i> (TV series) American streaming television series

A Series of Unfortunate Events is an American black comedy drama television series based on the book series of the same name by Lemony Snicket for Netflix. It stars Neil Patrick Harris, Patrick Warburton, Malina Weissman, Louis Hynes, K. Todd Freeman, and Presley Smith. Dylan Kingwell, Avi Lake, Sara Rue and Lucy Punch join the cast in the second season.

References

  1. Bird, Elizabeth (May 28, 2012). "Top 100 Children's Novels #48: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket". School Library Journal . Retrieved July 27, 2012.
  2. "Review from Kirkus Reviews". Kirkus Reviews. July 15, 1999. Retrieved November 7, 2009.
  3. Pelosi, Catherine (August 9, 2011). "Review: A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning". Kids' Book Review. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  4. 1 2 A Series of Unfortunate Events #1: The Bad Beginning, By Lemony Snicket, Illustrated by Brett Helquist: Harper-Collins Children's Books
  5. Mitchell-Marell, Gabrielle. "Now for the Unfortunate Paperbacks..." Publishers Weekly . Archived from the original on November 11, 2007.
  6. "A Series of Unfortunate Events #1". AudioFile . Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  7. "Audies Gala 2005 Winners and Nominees". www.audiopub.org. Retrieved April 28, 2010.
  8. "Complete list of Grammy Award nominations". usatoday.com. February 8, 2006. Retrieved April 28, 2010.
  9. "A Series of Unfortunate Events #1". AudioFile . December 2004. Retrieved July 18, 2015.