A Series of Unfortunate Events...opinions on this series??

[ProudGrandma]

My daughter picked up the first of this series at the library the other day...and since I simply do not have time to read the series can someone PLEASE give me their opinion on it. What is the content? Is it creepy or weird...or just plan funny and silly? We are a Christian family if that makes any difference at all.

 

thanks for saving me a TON of time.

[Lily_Grace]

A lot of vocabulary words but mostly just silly with an element of thrill. There are 13 books and at least the first 11 don't have happy endings. We found them depressing and tedious, to be honest, but even that soon became "Oh, the kids are in the clutches of their evil uncle AGAIN. Whoop-de-doo"

 

 

ETA: if you read the first book you'll see the series formula.

[2squared]

I read the first four out loud, and my 8yo is finishing the series by himself.

 

I think the covers sound much darker than they really are, and they are certainly formulaic. I love how the author purposefully uses tough vocabulary and then defines the words in the text. I love how resourceful the kids are, and how loyal and dedicated the sibs are to each other.

 

My 10yo liked listening to them, but she quickly lost interest reading them by herself. One of her good friends, also a 10yo girl, loves the series as much as my 8yo. My 10yo prefers historical fiction.

[NotSoObvious]

I've read one and found it pretty disturbing. Our children's librarian doesn't recommend them because of how dark they are.

But sometimes I feel the same way about Harry Potter and my girls love it.

[mumto2]

We are a Christian family too. I have only read the first one. While the topics seem depressing (to be polite about it) the book was very funny and very quirky. I quickly approved them. They were stealing from me as I read so am not sure how much choice I had! Dcs filled me in on what happened throughout the series and really loved it. Many friends with non reader boys had success with this series. I never found anything to object to.

[Clarkd]

I only read part way through the first book. I found it horrific. They are very dark and filled with abusive behaviors (dangling a baby out a high window, withholding food). My kids were adopted from foster care. I think this series is not a match for our family. However, they are very popular, I may just be hyper-sensitive. In any case, we don't read them. Minimally I suggest reading it when the child does and debrief/discussing it thoroughly.

[chepyl]

I thought they were fun and entertaining. They are dark, but not in the same way Harry Potter is. The situations are so far over the top that they don't seem real. I will let my kids read them.

[Zebra]

This is one of those books I think you should read, if you're concerned about it. To me they are more controversial than Harry Potter.

 

The author had this to say about his books,

 

"When children reach the ages that are appropriate for the Snicket books, they have the sense that the world is going in a way that's contrary to the rules you're told about," he said. "You're given this code of behavior by your parents and teachers and watch the world disobey those rules. You can behave well and not necessarily be rewarded. Or behave badly and not necessarily get punished. The books reflect that truth."

 

These horrible things keep happening to the children in these books and I just found them tedious, beyond anything else. I just feel that there is plenty of time to learn that the world can be an awful place, when you get older.

 

YMMV, obviously :coolgleamA: .

[TKDmom]

I read the first three and found them too depressing to continue. But I like happy endings. Dh disagrees with me. He read the whole series, and then read them all out loud to the kids. They loved them, even though my more sensitive kid would sometimes become distressed by something bad happening yet again.

 

Overall, I don't feel there's anything objectionable. The author's style is very fun and witty, and the Baudilaire children are smart, resourceful and loyal. If the constant stream if unfortunate events depress your dc, I think they will stop reading them on their own. Otherwise, there are a lot of good themes in the books.

[reign]

I really like them. I also really love Harry potter though. The audio is read by Tim Curry and is amazing.

[nmoira]

The series is great fun when read with the right spirit, and even educational in the sense of showing that tone can completely alter the experience of reading a text. The audiobooks are first rate and can be helpful in establishing tone; some are read by Tim Curry, the rest by "Lemony Snicket." If your child was traumatised by James and the Giant Peach, avoid Lemony Snicket. :tongue_smilie: Otherwise, they'll either get it and read the rest, or they won't read past the first few chapters. DD the Elder (who has seemingly read almost everything) didn't "get" it until last year; it was like a switch flipped. If your child enjoys the series, don't neglect the "Lemony Snicket" unauthorized biography, as it name drops some wonderful books.

[Chrysalis Academy]

I read the whoooooooooooooole series aloud to my girls. This, I do not recommend, I found it so tedious by the end! The stories are very formulaic. BUT they are smart, I love the vocab, I love the resourceful children, I love that the girl is the scientist/inventor and the boy is the reader, and my kids LOVED the stories and didn't want me to stop reading them. I tried. Believe me.

 

They are very dark. They are also very funny. Some people find that disturbing, I don't. My kids didn't. I didn't find anything morally objectionable - well, I mean, lots of morally objectionable things happened, but bad people did them, they weren't presented in an approving light or anything. But I agree with a pp, that maybe this series is one you should pre-read (not the whole thing! read the first book and you'll get the gist), and be available to debrief with your dc.

[nmoira]

I read the whoooooooooooooole series aloud to my girls. This, I do not recommend, I found it so tedious by then end!

 

No kidding. :scared: *cough*audiobooks*cough*

 

 

:tongue_smilie:

[Word Nerd]

I enjoyed the series and its dark, tongue-in-cheek humor, but sensitive, literal-minded kids won't appreciate that type of humor. The ending was lame and stupid, and it made me so mad I threw the book across the room.

[Durriyyah]

We liked them, especially as a read aloud. We read the first one aloud together and then DD1 continued through a number of the books but did not finish the series. She tends to get excited about a book, want the series, and towards the end get bored with it. :p

 

Yes, they are dark, but if you're at a point in your literature studies, it makes good study of the use of the antagonist in the story.

[Mrs Mungo]

I think they are melodramatic to the point of being humorous rather than truly dark. My kids enjoyed them when they were old enough to read them.

[JudoMom]

My ds12 is currently reading them. My mom gave us books 1-11. I asked him about them, and he says "Unfortunate things do happen to the kids, but the story is interesting. I don't like that he spends so much time explaining words I already know; that part is boring and tedious. But I guess they're good stories."

[SpecialClassical]

I only read part way through the first book. I found it horrific. They are very dark and filled with abusive behaviors (dangling a baby out a high window, withholding food). My kids were adopted from foster care. I think this series is not a match for our family. However, they are very popular, I may just be hyper-sensitive. In any case, we don't read them. Minimally I suggest reading it when the child does and debrief/discussing it thoroughly.

 

[SpecialClassical]

I agree. There are issues in that series that could upset young adoptive children.