The Reptile Room (A Series of Unfortunate Events #2) by Lemony Snicket ~ Book Review ~ #UltimateReadingChallenge June

On By MischenkoIn Children's Books, Fiction, Reads, Series

The Reptile Room (A Series of Unfortunate Events #2)

by
Lemony Snicket &
Brett Helquist (Illustrator)
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From Goodreads:

Dear Reader,

If you have picked up this book with the hope of finding a simple and cheery tale, I’m afraid you have picked up the wrong book altogether. The story may seem cheery at first, when the Baudelaire children spend time in the company of some interesting reptiles and a giddy uncle, but don’t be fooled. If you know anything at all about the unlucky Baudelaire children, you already know that even pleasant events lead down the same road to misery.

In fact, within the pages you now hold in your hands, the three siblings endure a car accident, a terrible odor, a deadly serpent, a long knife, a large brass reading lamp, and the appearance of a person they’d hoped never to see again.

I am bound to record these tragic events, but you are free to put this book back on the shelf and seek something lighter.

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

My thoughts on this book:

In The Bad Beginning, the Baudelaire children lost their parents and everything they had before being shipped off to Count Olaf’s house. Count Olaf would be their caretaker until they were of age. Quickly the children realize that Count Olaf is evil and only wants to get his hands on their inherited fortune. After countless shenanigans, the children are finally whisked away from Count Olaf and Mr. Poe delivers them to Dr. Montgomery a.k.a. Uncle Monty. This begins The Reptile Room.

Mr. Poe stepped up to the door and rang the doorbell that was one of the loudest the children have ever heard. After a moment’s pause they could hear approaching footsteps, and Violet, Klaus, and Sunny all looked at one another. They had no way of knowing, of course, that very soon there would be more misfortune within their unlucky family, but they nevertheless felt uneasy. Would Dr. Montgomery be a kind person? they wondered. Would he at least be better than Count Olaf? Could he possibly be worse?

Uncle Monty seems like a kind and safe person. The children like him and it seems they are finally safe to enjoy some coconut cream cake and an occasional evening movie. They each get their own room and their own chores for the trip they’ll be taking. Uncle Monty explains his plan to visit Peru with the children to go reptile exploring. Klaus is instructed to read books on reptiles, Sunny bites rope, and Violet works on traps that they need for the expedition. They’re very excited to go on the adventure, until they meet Uncle Monty’s assistant Stephano who is really Count Olaf in disguise.

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Everything spins out of control again as the children try to convince the others that Count Olaf is up to his old schemes again. Once again, it’s going to be up to the children to solve the problem.

“Well, let’s try to hash this out,” Violet said, using an expression which here means “talk about something at length until we completely understand it.”

We really enjoyed this installment in the series, even more than the first book. I felt that there were positive aspects in this installment as well. For a time, the children feel safe and engage in normal everyday events, that is until Stephano shows up, but once again the strong children stand by each other and work to solve the problems they face.

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The writing is great and we thought it was really easy to follow just like the first book. We loved the illustrations and all the new vocabulary words/phrases that are introduced for children to learn. It was a nice surprise that multiple times throughout the book there were events that were not in the movie which kept us interested.

Overall, this is another winner for us and left completely open for the third book The Wide Window. 

5*****

Find this book on Amazon and Goodreads:

  • Age Range: 8 – 12 years
  • Grade Level: 5 – 6
  • Series: A Series of Unfortunate Events (Book 2)
  • Hardcover: 208 pages
  • Publisher: HarperCollins; Later Printing edition (August 25, 1999)
  • ISBN-10: 0064407675
  • ISBN-13: 978-0064407670

This is my June book for The Ultimate Reading Challenge – Movie Adaptation

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Thanks for reading my review. Have you read this series? Feel free to share your thoughts. 🙂

28 thoughts on “The Reptile Room (A Series of Unfortunate Events #2) by Lemony Snicket ~ Book Review ~ #UltimateReadingChallenge June”

  2. Pingback: Reading Challenges 2018 – Netgalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge #NGEW2018 and Ultimate Reading Challenge #UltimateReadingChallenge – ReadRantRock&Roll

  3. Ha ha! It’s funny that you liked this one more because the children felt safe for a time. I liked this book less for the same reason, to lul these poor children into a false sense of security only to rip it away from them? At least in the first book there wasn’t a lot of positive to give the poor kids hope! 😂🍻

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. Yeah, lol. I actually liked it more because of the plot and how everything came together in the end. Like in the first they had Justice Strauss, but now they have Uncle Monty for a time. I feel like there are a few positives in both books so far, but this ending was perfect in my opinion, even though it’s not positive lol. At least at this point, Mr. Poe seems to understand what’s happening, but I guess we’ll see how the next book goes! ❤

      Liked by 2 people

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        1. Haha! 😜 Awesome. I’m super excited to just get past the 3rd book because then we won’t have a clue about anything. The movie covers the first 3 books I believe? So, we’ll see. Thanks again ❤

          Liked by 1 person

  4. So glad that you are all enjoying this series. I always pointed out how it compared to their lives and that it was to make them appreciate it more. That seemed to work, especially with parents who were a little upset with the books. Nice review.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. I definitely agree with you. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the series at all and we all know life isn’t perfect. I love their strength as nothing seems to keep them down for too long. I think there are great lessons here too. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts. ❤

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  6. The Bad Beginning is my favorite of the books I’ve read in this series, but I DO love Uncle Monty. And I thought it was nice that in the midst of the Baudelaires finding Count Olaf everywhere, the author took the time to show that not everything that seems scary is actually dangerous.

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  7. I love that you’re blogging these books. I tried to get through the series, but I just couldn’t deal with all the unfortunate events that befell these kids. LOL! Took it a bit to heart, I guess. But I’m loving your posts and the fact that your kids are enjoying them, too!

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. I hear you! There are positive times as well which I appreciate, but there were some really sad parts in this one, including the end. The children always have each other though and I love that. I hope you get to finish the series! I’m excited to get through book 3 because then we won’t have a clue what’s going to happen anymore. This one did have some surprises because we’ve only seen the movie. My kids are anxious to get to the series.

      Glad you’re enjoying these posts, Vanessa! Thank you 💙❤🧡

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

    1. Thanks, Nina! That means a lot. I do hope you get to these eventually. My kids are really enjoying them too and it’s nice to have something to read together we all love. Take care! 🧡❤🧡

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      1. Yes, we do love them! My oldest son loved them the most. I get a bit nostalgic thinking of when my boys were young, these books will always take me back to those years. I think I liked the miserable mill the most. 😁

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

        1. That’s awesome! I know exactly what you mean. The kids grow up too fast, I swear. My oldest is 18 and it’s so weird! It’s nice to have these memories though. 😉

          I can’t wait for the 4th book now! It’ll be nice to not have an idea what’s going to happen. We’ve only seen the movie so far. ❤

          Liked by 1 person

  13. starjustin

    I love listening to you read this series to the kids. I feel like I have bonded with the characters already and can’t wait to hear more. I’m going to have to check out the series on Netflix. 📚

    Like

    Reply

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