The Bad Beginning By Lemony Snicket Book Discussion and Activities Discussion Questions: 1. At the beginning of the book, how did the author make you want to keep reading? 2. How do you picture the city where the Baudelaire children live? 3. Tell me what you think of Mr. Poe. 4. What is the first impression the Baudelaires have of Count Olaf? How often do you rely on the first impression you have of someone? How much effort do you put into making a good first impression when you meet someone new? 5. Count Olaf is obviously a villain. Think of other villains in other books that you have read and compare him to them. 6. Talk about the personalities of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny. To which character are you most similar? 7. Eyes are all around Count Olaf. What is the meaning of the eyes? 8. Lemony Snicket will often use a word like “standoffish” as an example and then add “a word here which means . .” Did this help you learn the meanings of new words? Do you think it is important to have a good vocabulary? Why? 9. Why does the author give the reader hope that things will go well for the children, for example with Justice Strauss, and then take away the hope? 10. How would the story be different if the orphans fought with each other rather than working together to solve their problems? Extension Activities: 1. Character suitcase - pick one of the characters from the story and pack a suitcase for that character to take on a trip. The suitcase can be made from a tissue box or a paper bag. Make a luggage tag identifying the character and a destination. Decorate the suitcase, showing the places the character has been. Put ten items in the suitcase. These can be drawn, cut out of magazines, or made from construction paper. Share the suitcases and tell about the contents. 2. Menu Planning - Using cookbooks, plan a three-course meal for Count Olaf and his acting troupe. It should include an appetizer, a main course, and a dessert. Design a menu with illustrations. 3. Make a giant sentence - use as many of these words as possible in one sentence. This time a run-on sentence is okay! misfortune thieves intelligent performance despair poisonous resourceful troupe mansion responsibility mysterious concentrate frightening distracted participate delicious perish abominable orphans repetitive enthusiasm inhuman recuperate revolting grotesque despicable conversation circumstances convenient meditate guardian predicament dilapidated posthaste ridiculous notorious impression dilemma tolerated stagestruck 4. Write a Cinquain Poem based upon a character in the book. Line 1 - one word (subject or noun) Line 2 - two words (adjectives that describe line 1) Line 3 - three words (action verbs that relate to line 1) Line 4 - four words (feelings or a complete sentence that relates to line 1) Line 5 - one word (synonym for line 1 or a word that sums it up) Books in The Series of Unfortunate Events (in order) The Bad Beginning The Hostile Hospital The Reptile Room The Carnivorous Carnival The Wide Window The Slippery Slope The Miserable Mill The Grim Grotto The Austere Academy The Penultimate Peril The Ersatz Elevator The End The Vile Village .