The Miserable Mill

American author Dan Handler is best known for his 13-book series aimed at children called A Series of Unfortunate Events, which he wrote under the pseudonym Lemony Snicket. The fourth novel of the series is called The Miserable Mill (2000). It follows three orphans as they endure hard labor while their distant relative, Count Olaf, attempts to steal the inheritance left to them by their deceased parents. The series has been lauded for its dark humor, literary references, and characters who encourage qualities such as resilience, courage, compassion, and sacrifice for family and friends.

The Miserable Mill begins with the purported author, Lemony Snicket, describing the current life of the Baudelaire children. In each book in the series, the unfortunate orphans move from one guardian to the next. The oldest child is 14-year-old Violet. She is an inventor who always puts her hair up with a ribbon when she’s about to build a machine that will help the children escape the clutches of one of their many adversaries. At 12, Klaus is the middle child. He is remarkable for his big, round glasses, and his capacious memory. Sunny is a toddler who can only crawl at the moment, and who frequently uses her four sharp teeth to help the Baudelaire Children escape their foes.

The children arrive in Paltryville, a depressing rural area where, they are told, their new guardian will take care of them. Their suspicions that this guardian will also be terrible increase as they start walking toward the Lucky Smells Lumbermill. Their new guardian, the owner of the mill, is simply called Sir. The children never see his face because it is always surrounded by cigar smoke. Their other caretaker, Mr. Poe, an inept bank employee, introduces the children to him. Sir, a very distant relative, has a very difficult name, and Mr. Poe ends up changing the first syllable everytime they meet (e.g. Mr. Gek; Mr. Wuz, Mr. Sho). Mr. Poe warns Sir to keep Count Olaf away from the children. Count Olaf is their distant uncle who is absurdly selfish and cruel. He has plotted the deaths of their previous guardians in the earlier books. He is a vicious man who will stop at nothing to gain access to the Baudelaire fortune. The children take some comfort in hearing Sir say he will keep Count Olaf far away from them. Sir tells the children that they will work in the lumber mill for their room and board. Sadly, the only real meal they’re rewarded with is a stick of chewing gum and cold soup; they are paid in coupons, and Sir ignores the fact that they can’t use the coupons, as they receive no money. Sir’s partner, Charles, is a kind but unhelpful man. The children, always eager for something to read, find only three books in the Lumbermill’s library: a history of the town of Paltryville, a history of Lucky Smells Lumbermill, and one donated by the local optometrist, Dr. Georgina Orwell.

One day, as Klaus works in the mill, Flacutono, the new foreman, trips Klaus as punishment for not working fast enough. Klaus breaks his glasses, and ends up walking to the optometrist. When he returns to Violet and Sunny hours later, Klaus is in a trancelike state. This trance is only broken the Foreman Flacutono says the word “inordinate,” which seems to bring Klaus back to himself. At the Lumbermill the next day, Klaus accidentally drops an automated stamping machine and breaks his glasses again. This time, Violet and Sunny accompany him to the mysterious optometrist. Dr. Orwell happens to live in an eye shaped building that is mysteriously similar in appearance to the tattoo of a sinister eye that Count Olaf has on his ankle. While she is sweet to the children and helps fix Klaus’s glasses, Violet notices that Count Olaf is in the office. He claims to be a receptionist named Shirley and wears outlandish makeup.

The children return to the lumbermill. Klaus is disoriented and keeps calling Violet “Veronica” and Sunny, “Susan.” As soon as they return to the lumbermill, they find a note from Sir telling them that he will turn them over to the care of the seemingly affable woman, Shirley, if they have another accident at his lumbermill. From the book donated by Dr. Orwell, Violet learns that there is a start and release word for the hypnosis. “Lucky” begins a hypnosis, but she doesn’t yet know the word to end the hypnosis. Violet and Sunny hear saws from the lumbermill but it’s way too early for work to begin, and they rush over there to see what’s the matter. As soon as they enter the work room, they see that someone has strapped Charles to a log and Klaus is pushing the button to make the log move towards an enormous circular saw. They see that Klaus has no shoes on, which suggests that he was in bed and has been ordered, in his hypnotised state, to kill Charles in the Lumbermill. Violet and Sunny struggle to think of a way to stop Klaus. Violet tries using the command word “lucky” to get him to stop, but Flacutono, who is revealed to be one of Count Olaf’s henchman, screams at Klaus to continue. Klaus pauses briefly, with the saw still buzzing. Just then, Dr. Orwell and Shirley/ Count Olaf appear on the scene. Dr. Orwell commands Klaus to continue with the murder, and he follows does as he is told. As Charles moves closer to the buzz saw, Violet figures out that the word to reverse hypnosis is “inordinate.” Klaus returns to himself, and unties Charles from the log. A fight ensues. Baby Sunny uses her teeth to have a sword fight with Dr. Orwell. Olaf and Flacutono capture Violet, but Klaus escapes. Sir and Mr. Poe break into the room, surprising everyone. Dr. Orwell is especially shocked and backs into the buzz saw, where she is chopped in half and dies instantly. Mr. Poe and Sir apprehend Olaf and Flacutono, but the villains escape through a window. Sir reckons he has had enough trouble with the orphans and charges Mr. Poe to find another guardian for them. The novel ends with the children once again facing an uncertain future.