From AudioFile
From THE BAD BEGINNING to The End, Lemony Snicket has consistently suggested that we avoid the saga of the unbelievably unhappy and unfortunate lives of the Baudelaire children. His deliciously downbeat introduction is full of dire warnings that ensure that children, attracted to things they are warned against, will tune in. The incomparable Tim Curry resumes his role as narrator of this gothic serial. His matter-of-fact delivery lends credibility to the unbelievable assortment of disasters that befall the Baudelaires. His transition from narrator to character is seamless, breathing life into each person. Musical interludes, provided by the Gothic Archies, enhance the atmosphere. But don't expect answers to all your questions, for The End of the Baudelaires' story is simply the beginning of another's! N.E.M. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine--
Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
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From Booklist
After a singularly bad beginning, the Baudelaire orphans, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny, have finally reached the end.
The question is, will Book the Thirteenth in A Series of Unfortunate Events meet the expectations of the series' myriad fans? Snicket might put it a somewhat different way: if
end simply means
to cease, the answer is yes. If, however,
end means
to complete, the answer is most assuredly no--because though Snicket neatly clips numerous threads in the tragic saga, he leaves others literally fluttering in the breeze. As with the previous books, this one begins where its predecessor left off, with the orphans and the villainous Count Olaf afloat on dangerous open seas. When a storm blows their craft ashore, kindly islanders welcome the orphans, but Olaf is an outcast. Have the children finally found the longed-for "last safe place on earth?" Not so fast . . . before long, they are once again scrambling to avert disaster and death ("Kikbucit," as Sunny puts it when a couple of characters are terminated). If possible, this title is even more preposterous than others in the series (the children help an old friend give birth), as well as considerably longer than some. But frequent references to the other adventures will send Snicket fans back to previous books to delight once again in the idiosyncratic characters, the wry humor, and the wordplay, which has surely increased their vocabulary tenfold.
Stephanie ZvirinCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
This text refers to an alternate
Hardcover
edition.