inlibrisveritas
Written on Dec 13, 2014
Who Could That Be At This Hour? is basically this generations Unfortunate Events, and that's not necessarily a bad thing considering I loved UE when they were coming out. However since I have read UE and I know...Read more
3.5 Stars
Who Could That Be At This Hour? is basically this generations Unfortunate Events, and that's not necessarily a bad thing considering I loved UE when they were coming out. However since I have read UE and I know the author's style, I also know that this one isn't that much different from those. So nostalgia both hampered and heightened my enjoyment.
Our main character is none other than Lemony Snicket himself, as a young boy. He's quick witted and after answers, but to what we're never quite sure. True to form Lemony snicket writes the story in a sort of odd and clever way; defining words as he goes, asking odd questions, and pointing out things that would never have garnered much notice before. One cool thing is how it has a very noir crime novel feel to it and I love that he decided to do that in a middle grade novel. It's not a gritty read of course but it has that first person description thing going on. The story in itself is pretty fun and I love the amount of questions it makes you ask, because that's sort of the point. I also love the incredible round about way the characters decide to do things.
I like Lemony as a character. He's very serious and quite smart, bringing his observant personality to the board as he sets about solving a rather...silly crime. I hated his 'mentor' though. She's really dumb, but I did appreciate that fact that he knew that quite well. It's the typical kid knows best storyline, which is great for the age but a bit overdone. I loved the taxi kids, it's a bit odd that anyone lets them drive but I loved how they always want tips.
Overall it's a good book, especially for those it is intended for. It's a bit out of the ordinary in terms of writing style and is a great way to up your vocabulary in a fun way.
Who Could That Be At This Hour? is basically this generations Unfortunate Events, and that's not necessarily a bad thing considering I loved UE when they were coming out. However since I have read UE and I know the author's style, I also know that this one isn't that much different from those. So nostalgia both hampered and heightened my enjoyment.
Our main character is none other than Lemony Snicket himself, as a young boy. He's quick witted and after answers, but to what we're never quite sure. True to form Lemony snicket writes the story in a sort of odd and clever way; defining words as he goes, asking odd questions, and pointing out things that would never have garnered much notice before. One cool thing is how it has a very noir crime novel feel to it and I love that he decided to do that in a middle grade novel. It's not a gritty read of course but it has that first person description thing going on. The story in itself is pretty fun and I love the amount of questions it makes you ask, because that's sort of the point. I also love the incredible round about way the characters decide to do things.
I like Lemony as a character. He's very serious and quite smart, bringing his observant personality to the board as he sets about solving a rather...silly crime. I hated his 'mentor' though. She's really dumb, but I did appreciate that fact that he knew that quite well. It's the typical kid knows best storyline, which is great for the age but a bit overdone. I loved the taxi kids, it's a bit odd that anyone lets them drive but I loved how they always want tips.
Overall it's a good book, especially for those it is intended for. It's a bit out of the ordinary in terms of writing style and is a great way to up your vocabulary in a fun way.