Lemony Snicket (which I think is a pseudonym for Daniel Handler, and a writer who I find fabulously entertaining) is best known for his authorship of the Series of Unfortunate Events. I have a few books left to complete the series, but I know enough about them to know that A) Lemony Snicket is hilarious, and B) this series in particular is most delicious when consumed audibly.
Horseradish is a collection of maxims that are categorized by applicable areas of life (as Lemony Snicket sees them), including Home, Family, Literature, A Life of Mystery, the Mystery of Life, and An Overall Feeling of Doom that One Cannot Ever Escape No Matter What One Does, etc. There are some adages that are of a more serious nature, and others which seem serious but end silly. And then there are those that start silly and end serious. Something for everyone, you see.
Just a few of my favorites:
"No matter who you are, no matter where you live, and no matter how many people are chasing you, what you don't read is often as important as what you do read."
"A good library will never be too neat, or too dusty, because somebody will always be in it, taking books off the shelves and staying up late to read them."
"A library is like an island in the middle of a vast sea of ignorance, particularly if the library is very tall and the surrounding area has been flooded."
"Love can change a person the way a parent can change a baby - awkwardly, and often with a great deal of mess."
"Just about everything in this world is easier said than done, with the exception of "systematically assisting Sisyphus's stealthy, cyst-susceptible sister," which is easier done than said."
Easily consumed in one sitting, Horseradish is sarcasm at its best.
I adore the first quotation here and I absolutely am going to read the series now! Bit and pieces is all I have read. I remember reading one of the first passages in one of the first books that says the kids' parents are dead. It was horrifying at the time, since I didn't know anything about the books. Then it took a turn for the hilarious and tongue-in-cheek! Of course my son loved it from the get-go!
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