The Bad Beginning, A Multi-Voice Recording

A Series of Unfortunate Events #1

By: Lemony Snicket

Narrated by: Tim Curry, Full Cast

Length: 2 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Like a car alarm, bagpipe music, or a doorbell ringing in the middle of the night, hearing this all-new audio edition of The Bad Beginning will only upset you. This unique multi-voice recording brings the first book in Lemony Snicket's alarming A Series of Unfortunate Events to such terrible life that no one should really have to experience it. Unless you have an ear for such ghastly details as a tragic fire, a nefarious villain, itchy clothing, and cold porridge for breakfast, all narrated in chilly detail by the distinguished, and disturbed, Tim Curry with a team of talented readers, you would be better off listening to something else.

Don't miss the rest of A Series of Unfortunate Events or Audible's exclusive interview with Lemony Snicket!

©1999 Lemony Snicket (P)2004 HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Critic reviews

Audie Award Finalist, Children's Titles for Ages 8+, 2005
Grammy Award Nominee, Best Spoken Word Album for Children, 2005
Book Sense Book of the Year Award Finalist, Children's Literature, 2001

"Tension-producing orchestral music, scene-setting sound effects, and most of all, Tim Curry's chocolate-voiced narration captivate the listener in this multicast production of the Lemony Snicket that started it all.... It's all good fun for listening children and their parents." (AudioFile)

I got it for Tim Curry but loved it for itself

This is a wonderful story, supposedly a kids' story but really good for family and adult audiences as well. The narration performance is superb. My only complaint is I cannot seem to get the whole series from Audible...

To Lemony, Dreadful, weeping, presumed dead

Unlike books such as Harry Potter, Artemis Fowl, or even Where the Red Fern Grows this audio program contains nothing happy. There is no happy tower, no happy reptile room, no happy schools, no happy apartments, no happy village, nor is there any happiness at all. You will most certainly cry, unlike the first of the two previously mentioned books, and unlike the third book mentioned you will most certainly be tracked down by a villainous actor who will try to steal not only the absurd amount of money that everyone apparently has by using arson, but he will also poke you with a stick until you give him your almond cookie. Your day will become Reptilian, wide, miserable, austere, ersatz, vile, hostile, carnivorous, slippery, grim, penultimate, and to end, inevitably- a word which here means "a fancy word for all adjectives that I just listed and more terrible things, but ending on an obvious adjective"- bad. So in conclusion instead of listening to an audio book reported by a man who is tied up in a coffin at a funeral that is for a woman named Beatrice, don't expect a happy ending. Besides, that's not how the story goes.

Great book!

I read the series when I was a kid, and really enjoyed getting to relive it via audiobook. I wasn't a huge fan of the full cast, though. I think I prefer single-performer works. Tim Curry is an excellent narrator, and the story was just as good as I remembered!

Stellar performance; great for tweens and up.

This reading kept the attention of a very fidgety 10-year-old who "hates books", an almost 9-year-old who loves books, and a middle-aged parent for almost the entirety of what otherwise would have felt like a VERY long automobile trip. Thank you, Audible, Tim Curry and cast, and Lemony Snicket!

sound effects

not a huge fan of the theatrical recording, just like the books a whole lot, so I had to give this book 5 starts

A view of a 9 year old

I like the personality of the story you really feel for the Baudelaire its a good story full of adventuroe bravery and love

Great story, scary music

My 7-year-old son loved listening to this book. It is well-narrated and a good, literary tale. However, the music that accompanies the audiobook is pretty terrifying. He wasn’t able to listen to it at night. As long as you’re aware of that, we highly recommend.

I love it

I loved these books as a kid and they did a great job in this audible there are some background noises that I felt were a little much but highly recommend this to anyone even remotely interested in the book.

What a gem.

Would you listen to The Bad Beginning, A Multi-Voice Recording again? Why?

YES! It was so brilliant- the writing is great and the performances just made it that much better.

Any additional comments?

Listening to this book was a real treat. I laughed, I sighed- it was great. Even my husband, who is not an audiobook listener, came in to the kitchen one night as I listened to it and was prepping dinner, and even he became enthralled. I would highly recommend to anyone.

loved it

OMG Tim curry was an amazing narrator and I was happy to finish it in a day