Most people remember Lemony Snicket (Daniel Handler) for his "A Series of Unfortunate Events" books, in which he taught young readers the realities of life, and constantly defined any words past a fifth-grade reading level. While kids got used to seeing "a phrase which here means..." pop up in his writing, they were constantly shocked and bewildered by the extremely unfortunate events that plagued the Baudelaire siblings throughout most of their childhoods. Lemony Snicket, like most contemporary young adult authors, could not miss an opportunity to kill off a favorite character or ruin a teenage romance. Without further adieu, here is death as told by Lemony Snicket.
"The Bad Beginning"
From the first words of the first installment came the first deaths of the series. Sunny, Klaus and Violet lose both of their parents at once in a tragic house fire and are then forced to live with a terrible man who treats the children as his slaves. Death is blind to age.
"The Reptile Room"
When the kids are whisked away from the cruel Olaf to live with another distant relative, Uncle Monty, the story seems to be taking a a more civil turn. Uncle Monty comforts the children over the loss of their parents and plans to bring them along on an expedition to South America. Just when the kids begin to get comfortable, Olaf ruins the day and murders Uncle Monty. Death will interrupt our most precious plans.
"The End"
At this point, the children are living on an island in the Bermuda Triangle where routine equals religion. After Olaf plots an awful scheme, he spreads a poisonous gas throughout the island and the children manage to cure themselves just in time. Just then, Kit, a woman who was instrumental in children's previous escapes from Olaf, washes ashore. She is pregnant and delivers her baby before dying of the poisonous gas. Sunny, Klaus and Violet name the infant Beatrice, after their own mother, and raise her as their own. Death is replaced by life.
In Horseradish, he writes:
“It is a curious thing, the death of a loved one. We all know that our time in this world is limited, and that eventually all of us will end up underneath some sheet, never to wake up. And yet it is always a surprise when it happens to someone we know. It is like walking up the stairs to your bedroom in the dark, and thinking there is one more stair than there is. Your foot falls down, through the air, and there is a sickly moment of dark surprise as you try and readjust the way you thought of things.”
Now, you are probably wondering what kind of man comes up with the idea to write novellas for elementary school kids about children who are constantly on the lam from a man who wants to steal millions of dollars of inheritance and is willing to murder anyone in his way. Not so coincidentally, Daniel Handler lost a Beatrice of his own at a very young age. He recognizes the importance of teaching our children that life is not always fair, but that does not mean that we should not try our hardest to make the best of it. While the Baudelaire's lives were riddled with instability and tragic events, they were also meshed in with friendship, sacrifice and love. Sure, maybe you do not want your kids exposed to the travesties of the world at such a young age, but you have to admit, Jim Carrey played a great Olaf.
