The Road Less Traveled

Some things are best communicated in person. Among these things are sign language, marriage proposals, and infectious diseases. However, in many cases personal communication is simply not feasible. While I would like to declare to each of you personally the release of the 13th and final book in Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events," I must resort to an impersonal means of making this most important announcement, so I am posting it on my blog.

For the sake of those who are unfamiliar with the series (and no, seeing the movie does not count as being familiar with the series), I will give you a small taste of what you are missing. The following is the opening paragraph from the tenth book:

A man of my acquaintance once wrote a poem called "The Road Less Traveled," describing a journey he took through the woods along a path most travelers never used. The poet found that the road less traveled was peaceful but quite lonely, and he was probably a bit nervous as he went along, because if anything happened on the road less traveled, the other travelers would be on the road more frequently traveled and so couldn't hear him as he cried for help. Sure enough, that poet is now dead."

As is evidenced by the above excerpt, this book series is not for the faint of heart. If you want to read a book with a formulaic fairy-tale ending, or one that transports you to a land replete with butterflies and lollipops, then look elsewhere. So why am I so excited to read a book that is sure to be fraught with tragedy, woe, and death? Because it's funny as hades. If you want to read a book that takes life with all its maladies and presents it with such cleverness and wit that you can't help but laugh, then look no further. You'll be glad you took the road less traveled.