Thoughts on A Series of Unfortunate Events and Miller’s Text (:

I am currently reading A Series of Unfortunate Events. The book is depressing, these two kids were out playing on the bach and all of a sudden they get the news that their parents are dead. They get handed off to this uncle that came out of nowhere and he treats them badly. He doesn’t appreciate a single thing that they do for him. Count Olaf (the uncle) is a nasty old man who lives in a disgusting home. Not only does he treat them badly, but he is out for the children’s money. Violet is the oldest child, she is interested in engineering. She likes to invent and build new inventions. Klaus is the middle child, he likes to gain knowledge through books. Lastly, we have Sunny, the baby. She likes to mumble words and bite things. Everything about this book is sad, but the plot isn’t as bad, it’s actually quite interesting. So many unfortunate events happen one after another. The kids are definitely trying to make the best out of every situation they are put in. A part of the book that really upset me was when Count Olaf demanded the children to cook him dinner for him and his friends. The children asked the neighbor for a cookbook and went grocery shopping, they ended up making a puttanesca sauce. They were really proud of their creation but when count Olaf got home he was very upset that they didn’t make roast beef, even his rude guest were upset. That just shows you how vile the man is and what kind of people he surrounds himself with.

I have never read these books before but my friends who have told me that the books get sadder as you read. So far I have noticed that these books aren’t that hard to read and it doesn’t have that many difficult words. I’m sure a sixth grader would greatly enjoy these books. It is a pretty intense series so as long as their guardian is okay with it.

An interesting take away from the Miller text was when she stated that we should let children read so they can enjoy it and feel comfortable in their reading personalities. She stated that readers to her are “children who incorporate reading into their personal identities to the degree that it weaves into their lives along with everything else that interests them.” I find it so interesting because growing up I realized that children were forced to read whatever parents or adults thought was right for them to read, when in reality if they read what they want they can flourish either way. This is a great statement because it makes you realize that when you become a teacher you have an opportunity to make your children gain good reading behavior by offering them something they like. I am sure they will become excellent readers who can continue to read through adulthood.