A Series of Unfortunate Events Book 1 | Page 9

Olaf, who would often not appear until
nighttime. Most of the day he spent out of the house, or up in the high
tower, where the children were forbidden to go. The instructions he
left for them were usually difficult chores, such as repainting the back
porch or repairing the windows, and instead of a signature Count Olaf
would draw an eye at the bottom of the note. One
morning his note read, “My theater troupe will be coming for dinner
before tonight's performance. Have dinner ready for all ten of them
by the time they arrive at seven o'clock. Buy the food, prepare it,
set the table, serve dinner, clean up afterwards, and stay out of our way.”
Below that there was the usual eye, and underneath the note was
a small sum of money for the groceries. Violet
and Klaus read the note as they ate their breakfast, which was a gray
and lumpy oatmeal Count Olaf left for them each morning in a large
pot on the stove. Then they looked at each other in dismay. “None
of us knows how to cook,” Klaus said. “That's
true,” Violet said. “I knew how to repair those windows, and how
to clean the chimney, because those sorts of things interest me. But
I don't know how to cook anything except toast.” “And
sometimes you burn the toast,” Klaus said, and they smiled. They were
both remembering a time when the two of them got up early to make
a special breakfast for their parents. Violet had burned the toast, and
their parents, smelling smoke, had run downstairs to see what the matter
was. When they saw Violet and Klaus, looking forlornly at pieces
of pitch-black toast, they laughed and laughed, and then made pancakes
for the whole family. “I
wish they were here,” Violet said. She did not have to explain she was
talking about their parents. “They would never let us stay in this

dreadful
place.” “If
they were here,” Klaus said, his voice rising as he got more and more
upset, “we would not be with Count Olaf in the first place. I hate it
here, Violet! I hate this house! I hate our room! I hate having to do all
these chores, and I hate Count Olaf!” “I
hate it too,” Violet said, and Klaus looked at his older sister with relief.
Sometimes, just saying that you hate something, and having someone
agree with you, can make you feel better about a terrible situation.
“I hate everything about our lives right now, Klaus,” she said,
“but we have to keep our chin up.” This was an expression the children's
father had used, and it meant “try to stay cheerful.” “You're
right,” Klaus said. “But it is very difficult to keep one's chin up when
Count Olaf keeps shoving it down.” “Jook!”
Sunny shrieked, banging on the table with her oatmeal spoon. Violet
and Klaus were jerked out of their conversation and looked once again
at Count Olaf's note. “Perhaps
we could find a cookbook, and read about how to cook,” Klaus
said. “It shouldn't be that difficult to make a simple meal.” Violet and
Klaus spent several minutes opening and shutting Count Olaf's kitchen
cupboards, but there weren't any cookbooks to be