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)

Wish there were more

Love this story and it’s tone and the performance really lives up to them. Just wish the rest of the books were available in this quality.

Stranger than I Remember

The background noise is a little too loud for me. It makes it hard to listen. What a kind if inappropriate story, too. I forgot about that.

I love this book because...

1 : its realistic not just happy ever after
2 : story line
3 : well not much to say but great book

great way to read the story

I somehow never read this now-classic series, but don't have the attention span for reading physical books. I liked having the full cast, even if the children's acting was not great. I docked a star because the audio needed to be mixed better. voices were too quiet while background noise was distractingly loud and at times grating. From a sensory perspective, I wish the sound effects had been toned down and pulled back. I don't want to listen to a baby crying for five minutes over the conversation even if that's what's happening in the book. overall, worth the read though. well-paced story.

also wish all the books could be combined into one or two audiobooks. don't love the idea of buying 13(?) of them when they're so short.

Great series opener

Loved this series for years. Always happy to return to it. Thank you very much, Lemony.

Fun!

Somehow, I missed reading these books when my daughter read them in elementary school. I’m glad that’s now rectified. What a fun story! I love the embedded structure of foreshadowing and vocabulary. Just plain fun.

Very good story! Loved the performance!

Loved this story! Very well written as well as entertaining on the part of the performers. Can’t wait to hear the other parts of the series.

All the Noise

wonderfully read, awesome writing, but the background noise was unnecessary, mildly irritating, and at times made the reading hard to hear. A great performance but is go with the normal audiobook version if I had to choose again.

Great story, but a terrible production

I really love this story; however, there was far, far too much background noise and voices that were supposed to enhance the experience. It had just the opposite effect and was very distracting.

Tim Curry out does himself

I was absolutely unsure about this title. I didn't know if I would like this at all. But man...Tim Curry pulls you in and keeps you there. You can help but want to keep going. He is mesmerizing! It was great!