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A review by idahobekah
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
4.0
Prior Experience:
I’ve always been a huge fan of the movie, as well as a casual 1-time viewer of the first season of the Netflix series. I had a desire to reignite my love for these characters by finally reading the first three books.
What I loved:
- I loved the foreshadowing in this and the simplicity of the plot. It’s refreshing.
- The writing ensures that there is no age limit to enjoy this type of book, and those are the books that make the best juvenile fiction books.
- Pacing felt great! I flew through even though I knew where the story was heading.
- This only ENHANCED my appreciation of Jim Carrey’s portrayal of Count Olaf— as well as Neil Patrick Harris’. It could have undermined their performances which was my biggest hesitation when heading into this series.
Where it falls short:
- Omniscient narrators are just not my favorite form of book. This form was very well done regardless of repetitive moments. (Example: “Claus wondered what to do next,” followed by Claus asking “what do we do next?”) This shortcoming had me desiring a shifting point of view story. Maybe even diving into the brain of Count Olaf for a short while within the final chapters.
- This story among many other children’s stories suffers from the “adults are either stupid or evil” trope. It works well when you’re an angsty kid or pre-teen hoping for others to relate to. It can be compelling, but when you’ve seen the trope enough it just becomes played out.
Overall Rating: 4.5 ⭐️
I’ve always been a huge fan of the movie, as well as a casual 1-time viewer of the first season of the Netflix series. I had a desire to reignite my love for these characters by finally reading the first three books.
What I loved:
- I loved the foreshadowing in this and the simplicity of the plot. It’s refreshing.
- The writing ensures that there is no age limit to enjoy this type of book, and those are the books that make the best juvenile fiction books.
- Pacing felt great! I flew through even though I knew where the story was heading.
- This only ENHANCED my appreciation of Jim Carrey’s portrayal of Count Olaf— as well as Neil Patrick Harris’. It could have undermined their performances which was my biggest hesitation when heading into this series.
Where it falls short:
- Omniscient narrators are just not my favorite form of book. This form was very well done regardless of repetitive moments. (Example: “Claus wondered what to do next,” followed by Claus asking “what do we do next?”) This shortcoming had me desiring a shifting point of view story. Maybe even diving into the brain of Count Olaf for a short while within the final chapters.
- This story among many other children’s stories suffers from the “adults are either stupid or evil” trope. It works well when you’re an angsty kid or pre-teen hoping for others to relate to. It can be compelling, but when you’ve seen the trope enough it just becomes played out.
Overall Rating: 4.5 ⭐️