Post by Dante on Feb 23, 2006 16:42:12 GMT -5
The Beatrice Letters
Barnes & Noble page
First draft:
Egmont:
Top secret—only for readers deeply interested in the Baudelaire case. How I pity these readers.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket
LemonySnicket.com synopsis:
You shouldn’t read other people’s mail…especially when it is addressed to Lemony Snicket or someone named Beatrice.
The Beatrice Letters is an exquisite collection of personal correspondence that sheds light on the mysteries surrounding Lemony Snicket and A Series of Unfortunate Events. The Beatrice Letters contains evidence that should not be examined by anyone, including:
Egmont synopsis:
Who is Beatrice, the woman to whom Mr. Snicket dedicates every book? There is no question more often asked by fans of Lemony Snicket. Now this captivating collection of letters between Lemony Snicket and Beatrice provides answers to that question, as well as other, more upsetting ones, such as “What was Count Olaf like as a boy?” and “What are the ingredients in a really good root beer float?”
Readers looking for clues to The Series of Unfortunate Events, which culminates this season with the publication of Book the Thirteenth, should proceed with great caution: the more they examine The Beatrice Letters, the more they will decode.
Original retailer synopsis:
On the cusp of the last book in A Series of Unfortunate Events, Lemony Snicket offers an unprecedented compilation of evidence encoded in a collection of revealing correspondence.
Collected by Mr. Snicket himself and delivered to HarperCollins under cover of night, this exquisite collection of intriguing correspondence sheds light on many of the mysteries surrounding Lemony Snicket and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Including:
This groundbreaking interactive package contains letters between Lemony Snicket and Beatrice as well as letters of the alphabet hidden throughout the package; unscramble it all and you will uncover what the future holds.
Other information:
Release Date U.S.: September 5th 2006.
Release Date U.K.: September 4th 2006 (although not expected to be in stores until the 5th or 6th, and at latest the 8th).
Page Count: 72
Print Run: 500,000
Original speculation:
I'm inclined to think that the hidden message alluded to in the last passage corresponds to the second bullet point, about what happens in B13. The note about Count Olaf as a boy leads me to think that these letters may stretch all the way from Lemony and Beatrice's childhood, and so would give away an enormous amount of information on the backstory of the series. I think I am more "hyped" about this book than I am about B13.
Barnes & Noble page
First draft:
Egmont:
Top secret—only for readers deeply interested in the Baudelaire case. How I pity these readers.
With all due respect,
Lemony Snicket
LemonySnicket.com synopsis:
You shouldn’t read other people’s mail…especially when it is addressed to Lemony Snicket or someone named Beatrice.
The Beatrice Letters is an exquisite collection of personal correspondence that sheds light on the mysteries surrounding Lemony Snicket and A Series of Unfortunate Events. The Beatrice Letters contains evidence that should not be examined by anyone, including:
- Unsettling photographs of suspicious objects
- Hidden compartments containing disconcerting communications
- A double-sided poster featuring confounding clues
- Coded cut-out letters that reveal terrible secrets
Egmont synopsis:
Who is Beatrice, the woman to whom Mr. Snicket dedicates every book? There is no question more often asked by fans of Lemony Snicket. Now this captivating collection of letters between Lemony Snicket and Beatrice provides answers to that question, as well as other, more upsetting ones, such as “What was Count Olaf like as a boy?” and “What are the ingredients in a really good root beer float?”
Readers looking for clues to The Series of Unfortunate Events, which culminates this season with the publication of Book the Thirteenth, should proceed with great caution: the more they examine The Beatrice Letters, the more they will decode.
Original retailer synopsis:
On the cusp of the last book in A Series of Unfortunate Events, Lemony Snicket offers an unprecedented compilation of evidence encoded in a collection of revealing correspondence.
Collected by Mr. Snicket himself and delivered to HarperCollins under cover of night, this exquisite collection of intriguing correspondence sheds light on many of the mysteries surrounding Lemony Snicket and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Including:
- What was Count Olaf like as a boy?
- What will happen in Book The 13th?
- What are the ingredients in a really good root beer float?
This groundbreaking interactive package contains letters between Lemony Snicket and Beatrice as well as letters of the alphabet hidden throughout the package; unscramble it all and you will uncover what the future holds.
Other information:
- Described by AuthorTracker on January 13th as "a series of communications from someone named Beatrice."
- PublishersWeekly.com describes The Beatrice Letters as "a clue-filled novelty book by Lemony Snicket inspired by the mysteries in the Series of Unfortunate Events books."
- The A Series of Unfortunate Events page on B&N adds that in TBL we will "learn the mystery of how it all began."
- According to The Thirteen Shocking Secrets of Lemony Snicket, then The Beatrice Letters will include "unsettling photographs of suspicious objects," "a double-sided poster featuring confounding clues," and "punch-out letters that serve a mysterious purpose" (click for a screenshot);
- Various articles have added a few other variations on these details;
- FirstNews used to (before the link died) describe the book as "highly illustrated" and confirmed the U.K. release date of 4th September.
- Page 23 of this HarperCollins Canada document gives more detail on the book's structure (quoted here, screenshot here).
- TBL's page on Chapters reveals more about its contents and structure.
- June's AuthorTracker includes an apparent quote from TBL: "The only other student I know in this class is O., who is nothing but an annoyance. As I write this, he is filling his notebook with anagrams of obscene words."
- A further AuthorTracker makes numerous cryptic hints about TBL, and lists among its contents "a note passed in class, a startling telegram, a coded sonnet, and a desperate plea for assistance between Mr. Snicket and Beatrice," and claims that it "starts long before The Bad Beginning and extends far beyond The End."
- Extended images of some of the contents of The Beatrice Letters can be seen here.
- A lengthy, detailed, spoiler-containing review of the book can be found here.
- An advertisement for TBL in a HarperCollins Book Blast makes five revelations (screenshot here).
- HarperChildrens says that the telegram is "alarming," and the book also features calling cards.
- Book Blast puts the spotlight on TBL on the day of its release.
- AuthorTracker gives a detailed description of TBL.
Release Date U.S.: September 5th 2006.
Release Date U.K.: September 4th 2006 (although not expected to be in stores until the 5th or 6th, and at latest the 8th).
Page Count: 72
Print Run: 500,000
Original speculation:
I'm inclined to think that the hidden message alluded to in the last passage corresponds to the second bullet point, about what happens in B13. The note about Count Olaf as a boy leads me to think that these letters may stretch all the way from Lemony and Beatrice's childhood, and so would give away an enormous amount of information on the backstory of the series. I think I am more "hyped" about this book than I am about B13.