Product Description

Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire are intelligent children. They are charming, and resourceful, and have pleasant facial features. Unfortunately, they are exceptionally unlucky.

In the first two books alone, the three youngsters encounter a greedy and repulsive villain, itchy clothing, a disastrous fire, a plot to steal their fortune, a lumpy bed, a deadly serpent, a large brass reading lamp, a long knife, and a terrible odour.

In the tradition of great storytellers, from Dickens to Dahl, comes an exquisitely dark comedy that is both literary and irreverent, hilarious and deftly crafted. Never before has a tale of three likeable and unfortunate children been quite so enchanting, or quite so uproariously unhappy.

Ages 10+

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #329948 in Books
• Published on: 2007-04-25
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

From Amazon.com
The Reptile Room begins where Lemony Snicket's The Bad Beginning ends... on the road with the three orphaned Baudelaire children as they are whisked away from the evil Count Olaf to face "an unknown fate with some unknown relative." But who is this Dr. Montgomery, their late father's cousin's wife's brother? "Would Dr. Montgomery be a kind person? they wondered. Would he at least be better than Count Olaf? Could he possibly be worse?" He certainly is not worse, and in fact when the Baudelaire children discover that he makes coconut cream cakes, circles the globe looking for snakes to study, and even plans to take them with him on his scientific expedition to Peru, the kids can't believe their luck. And, if you have read the first book in this Series of Unfortunate Events, you won't believe their luck either. Despite the misadventures that befall these interesting, intelligent, resourceful orphans, you can trust that the engaging narrator will make their story--suspenseful and alarming as it is--a true delight. The Wide Window is next, and more are on their way. (Ages 9 and older) --Karin Snelson

From Publishers Weekly
"If you are interested in stories with happy endings, you would be better off reading some other book." So cautions Snicket, the exceedingly well-mannered narrator of these two witty mock-gothic novels featuring the misadventures of 14-year-old Violet, 12-year-old Klaus and infant Sunny Baudelaire. From the first, things look unfortunate indeed for the trio: a fire destroys their home, killing their parents along with it; the executor of their parents' estate, the obtuse Mr. Poe (with a son, Edgar), ignores whatever the children have to say; and their new guardian, Count Olaf, is determined to get his hands on the Baudelaire fortune. But by using their individual gifts (Violet's for inventing, Klaus's for reading and researching and baby Sunny's for biting) the three enterprising children thwart the Count's planAfor now. The author uses formal, Latinate language and intrusive commentary to hilarious effect, even for readers unfamiliar with the literary conventions he parodies. The peril in which he places the Baudelaires may be frightening (Count Olaf actually follows through on his threats of violence on several occasions), but the author paints the satire with such broad strokes that most readers will view it from a safe distance. Luckily for fans, the woes of the Baudelaires are far from over; readers eager for more misfortune can turn to The Reptile Room, for an even more suspenseful tale. Exquisitely detailed drawings of Gothic gargoyles and mischievous eyes echo the contents of this elegantly designed hardcover. Age 9-up. (Sept.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Grade 4-6-This series chronicles the unfortunate lives of the Baudelaire children: Violet, 14; Klaus, 12; and the infant, Sunny. In Bad Beginning, their parents and possessions perish in a fire, and the orphans must use their talents to survive as their lives move from one disastrous event to another. Surrounded by dim-witted though well-meaning adults, the Baudelaires find themselves in the care of their evil relative, Count Olaf, a disreputable actor whose main concern is getting his hands on the children's fortune. When Olaf holds Sunny hostage to force Violet to marry him, it takes all of the siblings' resourcefulness to outwit him. Violet's inventive genius, Klaus's forte for research, and Sunny's gift for biting the bad guys at opportune moments save the day. However, the evil Count escapes, only to return in The Reptile Room just as the children are settling into a far more pleasant life with their new guardian, Uncle Monty, who is promptly murdered by Olaf and his cohorts. Though the villain escapes again, and beloved Uncle Monty is dead, the children are safe...for now. While the misfortunes hover on the edge of being ridiculous, Snicket's energetic blend of humor, dramatic irony, and literary flair makes it all perfectly believable. The writing, peppered with fairly sophisticated vocabulary and phrases, may seem daunting, but the inclusion of Snicket's perceptive definitions of difficult words makes these books challenging to older readers and excellent for reading aloud.
Linda Bindner, formerly at Athens Clarke County Library, GA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Courtesy of Teens Read Too
As the Baudelaire children--Violet, Klaus, and Sunny--narrowly escape the marriage scheme of Count Olaf and his theatre troupe of THE BAD BEGINNING, we pick up with Mr. Poe once again leading the children to the home of another relative. Dr. Montgomery Montgomery, a revered member of the Herpetological Society, is a man who has spent his life studying snakes. As the children arrive at his home, via Lousy Lane, they are at first leery of "Uncle Monty" and his REPTILE ROOM. They soon learn, however, that their newfound Uncle is a kind man, providing them each with their own room and entertaining activities that they each enjoy--space and materials to invent for Violet, books and a reading nook for Klaus, and plenty of biting material for Sunny.

As the orphans settle in to their new abode, Uncle Monty teaches them about snakes, most especially his new discovery, the Incredibly Deadly Viper. As we learn that said snake is a misnomer--the word "misnomer" here meaning "a wrong name"--the children become excited about the upcoming trip to Peru to study new snake life. Unfortunately, as most everything in the lives of the Baudelaire children is, Uncle Monty's new assistant, Stefano, is no other than Count Olaf in disguise.

Alas, just as with their previous adventures, no one listens to the children's concerns until it is too late. As Stefano aka Count Olaf threatens the children into silence, he begins to hatch his evil plan, which includes getting rid of the snake-loving doctor and absconding to Peru with the children, where he can wait for Violet to come of age, grab her fortune, and dispose of the children.

Saved in the nick of time--yet again--by a convoluted series of events, we find the children once again looking for a kind relative to care for them. As THE REPTILE ROOM ends, Mr. Poe drives off into the sunset with a miserable Violet, Klaus, and Sunny, and we wait to see which new series of unfortunate events will befall the children.

Another quick read, THE REPTILE ROOM is highly recommended depending on the maturity of your child. Another dark tale of misery and woe, this book is highly entertaining for those who understand that it's fiction.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

One of Snicket`s finests
The Reptile Room is the second book in the series of unfortunate events library,so it is one of the earliest of the 13 book serie,and i also consider it to be one of the best in the whole series.Lemony Snicket got this way of writting that keeps you reading,in the sense that you know what`s going to happen but you still read.Or his advisements to not read his books only seem to make them better...

Snicket has a simple formula:his books aren`t with happy endings unlike every(or nearly)other books,they are dark stories that keep getting darker in each book.The Reptile Room picks up exactly were the Beaudelaires,Violet,Klaus and Sunny(right spelling and all)left us.they have now been sent to their oncle Montgomery who has a house full of reptiles,and is probably the most attaching tutor they`ve ever gotten.You can really get who is oncle Monty and feel attached to him,it is one of Snicket`s most clever scenarios to date.

The Beaudelaire children tought they got rid of count Olaf once and for all,let me tell you that is not true.The count disguises as oncle Monty`s assistant.Monty won`t beleve it is count Olaf even if the chldrens say so.The count murders oncle Monty and disguise it as if one of his snakes bited him.The children have to be very clever to solve everithing.

Everithing is arranged in a way that makes the book a great read,it is one of the best unfortunate events....

Reptile Room
In this tragic adventure story, a death happens but who is the one that is harmed? It could be anyone. A mystery! The Reptile Room is the sequel to the Bad Beginning and I would say that Lemony Snicket has done an excellent job of creating a strategy. The strategy was making the quickest change of feelings at the end of each chapter to leave you on a cliff hanger.

In our categories of characters, we’ve got Count Olaf the nasty, ghastly and selfish guardian to the Buadelaire children. At first, thinking of him makes me feel like he is alive, spying on me right now with the eye on his ankle. He also has one assistant mentioned in this book. It’s the guy with the hooked hands pretending to be a doctor, so when the mystery person dies, Stephano (Count Olaf) can escape and bring the Baudelaires to somewhere. this way he will receive something. In the Baudelaire clan, there is Violet, the eldest sibling. She has the most mechanical brain you can ever find! She invents, when people need her inventions, even at times when her inventions are not necessary. The second sibling, Klaus is a bookworm, that is what people give as a nickname to people who read a lot. But Klaus reads any type of books, boring ones too. Now, Sunny Baudelaire, the youngest sibling has four super sharp teeth that are very handy when the siblings are trying to escape from Count’s Olaf clutches of doom.

This book starts out with a boring ride down Lousy Lane to find their second guardian. The car stops and there they are in front of this huge mansion. The new exciting guardian invites them in for tea, cake and raw carrots. It seems safe for the siblings, so why not enjoy the time? But the good time doesn’t last long when something happen to someone. So the dreadful, wicked and vile Stephano (Count Olaf) comes in for revenge. During the horrible appointment of the ankle eye murder, the Baudelaire find out that they are going to a place to find a new type of something. Disaster appears and what will happen? When the morning light slits through the windows, the Baudelaire siblings go to the Reptile Room and a scream for the pale faced down???

This book has a lot of feelings and themes. Violence is what Count Olaf contains. Maybe he was born with evil cells or some disease turns him super dreadful. He killed the mystery person with happiness and a wicked smile. Smart brains come well to figure out who killed the person. Actions, word sentences gave Klaus his brain whizzing with smart cells. Trickiness helped the Baudelaire escape with Sunny's friend, the Incredibly Deadly Viper. Violets has time making a key for the suitcase of answers.

Who will be the one to find out who the mystery person that dies? Will you find out or not? Reading it can be a good way to do so. It also is a good way to find out what is the thing with the words, “something and someone”. This book can be for children of all ages. But it may have paragraphs written with violence, and I hope it doesn’t give anyone ideas for killing people. So, I would give it four reptiles out of five reptiles. When Lemony Snicket was writing the book I think his mind was on Beatrice Baudelaire, his love. His love must cause the love for the children too. In the back cover his hope was on the dear kind editor. With each note he writes the clues grow in the book. Have a slithery, slime time reading it!!!!!!!!!!