The Bad Beginning

The Bad Beginning
US Cover of The Bad Beginning
AuthorLemony Snicket (pen name of Daniel Handler)
IllustratorBrett Helquist
Cover artistBrett Helquist
LanguageEnglish
SeriesA Series of Unfortunate Events
GenreGothic fiction
Absurdist fiction
Mystery
PublisherHarperCollins
Publication date
September 30, 1999
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (hardback & paperback)
Pages162
ISBN0-06-440766-7
OCLC41070636
Fic 21
LC ClassPZ7.S6795 Bad 1999
Followed byThe Reptile Room 

Book the First: The Bad Beginning is the first novel of the children's novel series A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. The novel tells the story of three children, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire, who become orphans following a fire and are sent to live with Count Olaf, who attempts to steal their inheritance.

The book was published on September 30, 1999, by Scholastic Inc. and illustrated by Brett Helquist. An audiobook was released in 2003 with narration by Tim Curry, several special editions of the book have been made and the book has been translated into many different languages. There is a film based on the series starring Jim Carrey and a Netflix TV mini-series starring Neil Patrick Harris.