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 t he same road to misery. In fact, the three siblings endure a car accident, a terrible odor, a deadly serpent, a long knife, a large brass reading lamp, and he reappearance of a person they's hoped never to see again.