The Reptile Room by Lemony Snicket (Audiobook Review)

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Title: The Reptile Room
Series: A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book the Second
Author: Lemony Snicket
Narrator: Tim Curry
Publisher: Listening Library
Duration: 3 hours, 11 minutes
Copyright: 2001
Genres: adventure, fantasy, juvenile
Filed in: Audiobook reviews
Review copy provided by Kearney Public Library.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY:
Dear Customer,
This story may seem cheery at first, when the Baudelaire orphans spend time in the company of some interesting reptiles and a giddy uncle. But don't be fooled.
The three siblings endure a car accident, a terrible odour, a deadly serpent, a long knife, a large brass reading lamp, and the reappearance of a person they'd hoped never to see again.
I have made a solemn vow to present this information to the public, but there is nothing stopping you from pretending you've never heard of the audiobook. Then you can buy something that is less unpleasant.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket
©1999 Lemony Snicket; (P)2002 HarperCollins US

DEDICATION: For Beatrice: My love for you shall live forever. You, however, did not.

MY THOUGHTS: Those poor Baudelaire orphans just can’t catch a break. It seemed like things were finally going their way when Mister Poe placed them with their Uncle Monty, a world renowned herpatologist, and a very interesting and jolly man, if I may say so. But who should show up, but that miserable, conniving, Count Olaf, disguised as Uncle Monty’s new assistant. He hasn’t given up on stealing the Baudelaire fortune yet.
“The Reptile Room” is the second audiobook in Lemony Snicket’s “A Series of Unfortunate Events” series, and just as in the first audiobook, this one is overflowing with woe and misery. It seems like kids would want to read something happier, but the series sold more than 50 million copies. Maybe reading about the unfortunate Baudelaire’s makes kids realize that their own lives are not so bad after all.

LEMONY SNIPPET: It is very unnerving to be proven wrong, particularly when you are really right and the person who is really wrong is the one who is proving you wrong and proving himself, wrongly, right. Right?

NARRATOR: “The Reptile Room” was narrated by Tim Curry, as was the first audiobook in the series, “the Bad Beginning.” Curry makes a good narrator, and I can see where he may be especially pleasing to younger listners. His voices are very dramatic, and sound like something you might hear in a cartoon.
Tim Curry’s acting career began with the Broadway musical “Hair” in 1968. After that he played Doctor Frankenfurter n the musical “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”. In 1981 he played the lead role in “Amadeus” and was nominated for his first Tony Award, but lost out to his co-star, Ian McKellen.

SPECIAL FEATURES: Each of the audiobook recordings in “A Series of Unfortunate Events” includes a song which is loosely related to the story. The songs are written and performed by a band called “The Gothic Archies”, of which Daniel Handler is a member. “The Reptile Room” contains a song titled “Scream and Run Away”, which explains what you should do if you meet Count Olaf.

FINAL WORD: I’m beginning to enjoy Lemony Snicket’s writing very much. I would recommend this series of audiobooks to anyone.

FILM ADAPTATION: Lemony Snicket’s “A Series of Unfortunate Events” hit theaters in 2004, and starred Jim Carrey, Meryl Streep, Billy Connolly, and Catherine O’Hara. It had a monumental budget of $140 million, and grossed about $209 million.
The film version of the wildly popular children’s book series covered only the first three books, out of a total of 13. It would have been nice to see some sequels covering the other books, but it doesn’t seem likely at this point since the children will all have aged several years by now.

CHECK OUT THESE OTHER AUDIOBOOK REVIEWS:
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket (Audiobook Review)
The Reptile Room by Lemony Snicket (Audiobook review)
The Wide Window by Lemony Snicket (Audiobook Review)

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If you liked this audiobook review, you can purchase the audiobook here:
Get "The Reptile Room", A Series of Unfortunate Events, Book 2 by Lemony Snicket (Unabridged Audiobook) from Amazon.com.

Interested in the movie?
Get "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events" (2-Disc Special Collector's Edition) on DVD from Amazon.com.

This audiobook review is based on the unabridged audiobook.
Audiobook review by Steven Brandt
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