The Miserable Mill
A Series of Unfortunate Events #4
A Series of Unfortunate Events #4
by Lemony Snicket
194 pages
HarperCollins, 2000
young adult
Read in 2 days
Sometime during your life--in fact, very soon--you may find yourself reading a book, and you may notice that a book's first sentence can often tell you what sort of story your book contains...But this book begins with the sentence "The Baudelaire orphans looked out the grimy window of the train and gazed at the gloomy blackness of the Finite Forest, wondering if their lives would ever get any better."
Review: FINALLY the series is starting to pick up speed and interest me. For a second there I thought I was gonna have to stop reading it altogether since the last book but this one made up for it big time.
The orphans are put in a sticky situation yet again only this time they don't discover Count Olaf's dastardly plot to gain their fortune until the very end of the book. I think that helped the story move along faster that way. Of the four I've read so far, this book had some of the better characters outside of the siblings. "The Boss" for instance, who no one knows how to pronounce his name, and his partner, who doesn't exactly seem very much like a partner but like more of a servant, portray stupidity and compassion together. Then there is Phil, the VERY optimistic mill worker who manages to see the bright side of things even after his leg is smashed.
As usual this book does have a very tragic death that befalls a guilty party but does not make it any less final. I must say for a book that gradually grows from being for a child to young adult, even someone my age and my moms age (who is also reading the series) Mr. Snicket is quite ingenious. I look forward to The Austere Academy next.
The orphans are put in a sticky situation yet again only this time they don't discover Count Olaf's dastardly plot to gain their fortune until the very end of the book. I think that helped the story move along faster that way. Of the four I've read so far, this book had some of the better characters outside of the siblings. "The Boss" for instance, who no one knows how to pronounce his name, and his partner, who doesn't exactly seem very much like a partner but like more of a servant, portray stupidity and compassion together. Then there is Phil, the VERY optimistic mill worker who manages to see the bright side of things even after his leg is smashed.
As usual this book does have a very tragic death that befalls a guilty party but does not make it any less final. I must say for a book that gradually grows from being for a child to young adult, even someone my age and my moms age (who is also reading the series) Mr. Snicket is quite ingenious. I look forward to The Austere Academy next.
Summary: I hope, for your sake, that you have not chosen to read this book because you are in the mood for a pleasant experience. If this is the case, I advise you to put this book down instantaneously, because of all the books describing the unhappy lives of the Baudelaire orphans, The Miserable Mill might be the unhappiest yet. Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire are sent to Paltryville to work in a lumber mill, and they find disaster and misfortune lurking behind every log. The pages of this book, I'm sorry to inform you, contain such unpleasantries as a giant pincher machine, a bad casserole, a man with a cloud of smoke where his head should be, a hypnotist, a terrible accident resulting in injury, and coupons. I have promised to write down the entire history of these three poor children, but you haven't, so if you prefer stories that are more heartwarming, please feel free to make another selection.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket
Accidents, evil plots, and general misfortune abound when, in their continuing search for a home, the Beaudelaire orphans are sent to live and work in a sinister lumber mill.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket
Accidents, evil plots, and general misfortune abound when, in their continuing search for a home, the Beaudelaire orphans are sent to live and work in a sinister lumber mill.
To learn more about Lemony Snicket visit his site here.
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