Lefty's Lowdown: A Series of Unfortunate Events #1-3 by Lemony Snicket

Dear Reader,

I'm sorry to say that the book you are holding in your hands is extremely unpleasant. It tells an unhappy tale about three very unlucky children. Even though they are charming and clever, the Baudelaire siblings lead lives filled with misery and woe. From the very first page of this book when the children are at the beach and receive terrible news, continuing on through the entire story, disaster lurks at their heels. One might say they are magnets for misfortune.

In this short book alone, the three youngsters encounter a greedy and repulsive villain, itchy clothing, a disastrous fire, a plot to steal their fortune, and cold porridge for breakfast.

It is my sad duty to write down these unpleasant tales, but there is nothing stopping you from putting this book down at once and reading something happy, if you prefer that sort of thing.

With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket

 I started re-reading this series in preparation of the Netflix series releasing in this month! I read these books when I was a wee lil lassie, but I didn't actually remember anything about them, so I knew I needed to give them another go. Turns out. I don't regret that decision at all!

Middle grade is usually hard for me to read, but not this series! The first three books have been a delightful experience. The narrative style of these books is so fun. The very definition of unique and engaging. One thing I loved is that the narrative style didn't feel too childish. Like yes, there were obvious nods to the fact it's a children's book, but I didn't feel as if it were too simplistic or even dumbed down. It was just fun and quick and 100% entertaining.

But what really makes these books are the charming Baudelaire siblings. They've each got their distinctive personally traits--Violet loves to invent things, Klaus loves to read, and little Sunny loves to bite everything. They are intelligent children and they use their different passions to escape each horrible scrape with Count Olaf. I really just love them and of course I'm rooting for them throughout every book, and I feel horrible for them because nobody ever listens to them when THEY'RE SMARTER THAN ALL THE ADULTS. Ugh. That, I think, is the one thing that annoyed me in these books. The adults never ever listened to them. It got a bit old and repetitive and it was FRUSTRATING. I will also say that, while I tried to shut off the analytical part of my brain, I definitely spotted some plot holes. But, of course, this is a children's book, so it's not hard to overlook.

All in all, I've really enjoyed my re-read of this series so far, and I can't wait to get my hands on the remaining books, and I can't wait for the Netflix series to premiere. I do hope that the future books kind of mix up the pacing and what have you, or else this series ill get mighty redundant.