The Bad Beginning is a very humorous book.  It is also scary.  It is the first book in the series, "A Series Of Unfortunate Events." 

Three of the four main characters are Baudelaire siblings: Violet (age 14), Klaus (age 12), and Sunny (age 6 months).  The children were orphaned when their parents perished in a fire, which also destroyed all of their personal belongings. 

Although the Baudelaire Family is rich, the children cannot have access to the money until Violet comes of age. 

The other main character is Count Olaf. He is a distant relative of the Baudelaires and, as the late parents directed in their wills, the children were to live with a relative. Count Olaf had a tatoo of an eye on his ankle.  He is the main villain in this book series, and is aided by one or more members of his "theater troupe."  The troupe consists of a bald man with a long nose, a hook-handed man, two powdered faced ladies (who look like ghosts), and a fat person that looks like neither man nor woman.

The Baudelaire children must somehow try to survive a series of unfortunate events.  You will be both scared and entertained as you journey along with them.  I really recommend this series and give it 5 stars (and if possible, more).