The Hostile Hospital by Lemony Snicket

January 20, 2018 by Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Dear Reader,

Before you throw this awful book to the ground and run as far away from it as possible, you should probably know why. This book is the only one which describes every last detail of the Baudelaire children’s miserable stay at Heimlich Hospital, which makes it one of the most dreadful books in the world.

There are many pleasant things to read about, but this book contains none of them. Within its pages are such burdensome details as a suspicious shopkeeper, unnecessary surgery, an intercom system, anaesthesia, heart-shaped balloons, and some very startling news about a fire. Clearly you do not want to read about such things.

I have sworn to research this story, and to write it down as best I can, so I should know that this book is something best left on the ground, where you undoubtedly found it.

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

Book Overview:

Author: Lemony Snicket | Series: A Series of Unfortunate Events | Format: Audiobook | Narrated by: Tim Curry | Length: 4 hours, 16 minutes | Publish Date: January 1, 2001 | Genre: YA/Children’s Fantasy | Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ | Recommend: Yes

“E!” Klaus cried. “E as in Exit!” The Baudelaires ran down E as in Exit, but when they reached the last cabinet, the row was becoming F as in Falling File Cabinets, G as in Go the Other Way! and H as in How in the World Are We Going to Escape?”

Finally, the plot thickens!

Well, not really, since as much as they wanted to find out more about the fire that killed their parents, and the Quagmire Triplets, and VFD, they were sooooo close but too late. Once again, these series of unfortunate events continue to deliver lackluster outcomes on the fate of the Baudelaires and why their parents had to die in such a tragic way.

At least we know that there is a mysterious file about the Baudelaires, including a potential survivor of the fire, and two people that were friends with the Baudelaire parents, but who Violet, Klaus and Sunny have never met in their life! Wow, did that sentence even make sense?

The series is definitely getting better, and we are getting so close to figuring out everything! Like what the REAL VFD is, and where the Baudelaire file is, and why the heck is Count Olaf is such an evil creature!

Stay tuned.

Don’t forget to check out Lemony Snicket’s Author Spotlight here!

The Vile Village by Lemony Snicket

January 7, 2018 by Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Dear Reader,

You have undoubtedly picked up this book by mistake, so please put it down. Nobody in their right mind would read this particular book about the lives of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire on purpose, because each dismal moment of their stay in the village of V.F.D. has been faithfully and dreadfully recorded in these pages. I can think of no single reason why anyone would want to open a book containing such unpleasant matters as migrating crows, an angry mob, a newspaper headline, the arrest of innocent people, the Deluxe Cell, and some very strange hats. It is my solemn and sacred occupation to research each detail of the Baudelaire children’s lives and write them all down, but you may prefer to do some other solemn and sacred thing, such as reading another book instead.

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

Book Overview:

Author: Lemony Snicket | Series: A Series of Unfortunate Events | Format: Audiobook | Narrated by: Tim Curry | Length: 4 hours, 20 minutes | Publish Date: April 24, 2001 | Genre: YA/Children’s Fantasy | Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ | Recommend: Yes

“It was a curious feeling, that something could be so close and so distant at the same time.”

This is the farthest that I’ve ever gotten in this series, and I’m so proud of myself! Honestly, this series just keeps getting better and better, you know besides all the unfortunate events that keep happening to Violet, Klaus, and Sunny. But of course, that’s how you know what book you’re reading: there are rarely any happy events that happen and even though it looks like things are going to get better, they always end up getting worse.

The saying “it takes a village to raise a child” definitely comes into question in this book. Instead of being sent to a specific guardian like in the previous books, the Baudelaires are sent to a certain village, one that has signed up for a program where the entire village helps to raise orphans in need. So of course, they choose the village that they think will lead to some sort of clue as to what happened to the Quagmire Triplets, and the mysterious fire that killed their parents. At first, they feel like they came to a dead end, but that’s not always the case. We find out what one version of VFD means, but is it the one that we are looking for? Does Count Olaf end up finding them again this terrible and vile village? Spoiler alert: Doesn’t he always?

These books really just keep it interesting enough that I want to find out what the heck happens at the very ending. I want them to finally kick Count Olaf’s scrawny butt and not have to deal with terrible guardians that are crappy adults. I want that to happen so badly, but I feel like it’s not going to end that way. I just have to keep going to find out.

Stay tuned.

Don’t forget to check out Lemony Snicket’s Author Spotlight here.

The Ersatz Elevator by Lemony Snicket

January 4, 2018 by Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Dear Reader,

If you have just picked up this book, then it is not too late to put it back down. Like the previous books in A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS, there is nothing to be found in these pages but misery, despair, and discomfort, and you still have time to choose something else to read.

Within the chapters of this story, Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire encounter a darkened staircase, a red herring, some friends in a dire situation, three mysterious initials, a liar with an evil scheme, a secret passageway, and parsley soda.

I have sworn to write down these tales of the Baudelaire orphans so the general public will know each terrible thing that has happened to them, but if you decide to read something else instead, you will save yourself from a heapful of horror and woe.

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

Book Overview:

“If we wait until we’re ready, we’ll be waiting for the rest of our lives.”

I have to say that out of all the books in this series that I’ve read so far, I think this one is my favorite. Not only do we get to find out what happened to the Quagmire triplets (I’m not spoiling anything for you, sorry!), but we actually get to find out a little bit more about the Baudelaire parents. In this book, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny have the opportunity to have a guardian that lives only a few blocks away from their old mansion. Even better, one of their guardians – Jerome Squalor – actually used to be friends with their mother. This had to have been before the children were born, however, because, throughout the book, it didn’t seem like they recognized them at all. He knew about them, but they didn’t know anything about him.

Curious.

The adults are still pretty hopeless in these books, but at least the Baudelaires finally have one guardian that seems to genuinely care about them. Well, at least until the end, but I won’t get into that. It was nice to see them loved for once, and I’m glad that they got a break from such terrible conditions.

On the other hand, who really pays such close attention to what’s “in” and what’s “out”? It sounds exhausting. I can’t wait for the next one. I’m pretty sure I’m going to finally finish the series this year, and it’s been a long time coming.

Don’t forget to check out Lemony Snicket’s Author Spotlight here.