The Reptile Room
No. 2 in the A Series of Unfortunate Events series
by Lemony Snicket, Daniel Handler
illustrated by Brett Helquist
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HarperCollins (New York): 1999. Hardcover: 191 pages. ISBN-10: 0-06-440767-5 Suggested retail price: $9.95 (US) Tags: fortune; made into movie; marriage; murder; orphans; reptiles; Youth Tactical strength: [6/10] |
Compare prices on The Reptile Room by Lemony Snicket at Book Cost
Once again, the Baudelaire children -- Violet, Klaus, and Sunny -- get placed with a distant relative. This time with Dr. Montgomery, a herpetologist, who insists the children call him Uncle Monty. The children get on famously with their Uncle, and he plans on taking them with him to his reptile-hunting expedition to Peru. The children enjoy their Uncle's large collection of reptiles, which he keeps in his specially designed reptile room. But true to the series title, good times don't last long. Dr. Montgomery has hired an assistant, Stephano, whom the children immediately recognize as Count Olaf.
The Count still has plans to acquire the children's fortune, and quickly disposes of Uncle Monty. The children must prove Mr. Poe, the custodian of their fortune, that the Count has posed as Stephano and murdered their Uncle -- and all before the Count can sneak the children off to Peru.
The Reptile Room reads a little easier than The Bad Beginning. Snicket still uses the same stylistic playfulness that grows ever more tedious through repetition. I would have like to see the narrator use a more diverse repertoire of asides. Also, The Reptile Room takes place almost entirely in Dr. Montgomery's residence and lacks the diversity of locations and characters found in the first book. A nice continuation of a series that could quickly spoil if the narrative style remains so fixedly consistent.
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