Book Description

Dear Puzzle Enthusiast,

I have spent many unhappy years doing many unhappy things, and I do not recommend it. My work researching Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire and their endless troubles with Count Olaf leaves me moaning, weeping, and pulling out my hair almost every night, including weekends.

But there is no reason for you to spend your life the same way. Instead, you might choose to spend your youth distracted by mildly entertaining activities. Like school, prison, or an enormous cake with a spyglass baked into it, this collection of puzzles and games will help keep you "out of trouble," a phrase which here means "far away from distressing books and movies." In this short digest alone, I have collected such instructive diversions as a do-it-yourself blindfold, a coded message, a crossword puzzle, and a monkey fist -- enough to fill up several years of your life.

I am bound to continue my research into the tragic lives of the Baudelaire orphans, but you have an opportunity to do cheerier things with your time. Take it.

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

About the Author
Lemony Snicket was born before you were, and is likely to die before you as well. His family has roots in a part of the country which is now underwater, and his childhood was spent in the relative splendor of the Snicket Villa which has since become a factory, a fortress and a pharmacy and is now, alas, someone else's villa.To the untrained eye, Mr. Snicket's hometown would not appear to be filled with secrets. Untrained eyes have been wrong before. The aftermath of the scandal was swift, brutal and inaccurately reported in the periodicals of the day. It is true, however, that Mr. Snicket was stripped of several awards by the reigning authorities, including Honorable Mention, the Grey Ribbon and First Runner Up. The High Council reached a convenient if questionable verdict and Mr. Snicket found himself in exile.Though his formal training was chiefly in rhetorical analysis, he has spent the last several eras researching the travails of the Baudelaire orphans. This project, being published serially by HarperCollins, takes him to the scenes of numerous crimes, often during the off-season. Eternally pursued and insatiably inquisitive, a hermit and a nomad, Mr. Snicket wishes you nothing but the best.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Instead of watching the depressing movie based on Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, prospective movie-goers should focus on this activity book full of Snickety distractions, including mazes, puzzles, word games, crafts, and more.