| The Miserable Mill |
"The pages of this book, I'm sorry to inform you, contain such unpleasantries as a giant pincher machine, a bad casserole, a man with a cloud of smoke where his head should be, a hypnotist, a terrible accident resulting in injury, and coupons." The fourth book in A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS by Lemony Snicket has the young Baudelaire orphans being turned over to the owner of a mill. The children never get a chance to warm up to their new guardian, whose name is unknown, because they have been put to work in the saw mill, de-branching trees and whatnot even though it is dangerous and they are just children. The new task force monitor happens to be one of Olaf's cronies, so the Baudelaires know they're in for trouble. But when the overseer purposely trips Klaus so that he breaks his glasses, he is forced to go to the optician . . . and comes back hypnotized. Violet and Sunny have to figure out how to unhypnotize him, and try to keep him from being hypnotized the next time it happens (though they are unsuccessful). It turns out Count Olaf is pretending to be the optician's secretary (he is even dressed as a woman!) and insists that he is Shirley, citing as proof his deskplate and business cards. This seems to convince everyone else. Olaf then puts his plot into action; he is using Klaus under hypnosis to make him cause accidents, and their guardian has decided to give them into "Shirley's" custody if they make one more mistake. . . . Obviously this almost happens but does not, and though the orphans escape without physical harm, Olaf again gets away.
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