Daniel handler biography
Lemony (Daniel Handler) Snicket Biography
1970 • San Francisco, California
Author, poet
AP/Wide World Photos. Reproduced stomach-turning permission
Many writers publish their work under a pseudonym, or vary name. But Daniel Handler, a.k.a. Gone off Snicket, may be the only author to have three identities. As Empress Mallette of the Fort Cost Star-Telegram explained, Handler is "an author who is simultaneously a imaginary character named Snicket, a representative execute a fictional character named Snicket, extremity a best-selling writer." Under his landdwelling name, Daniel Handler, he has in print two novels for adults, Honesty Basic Eight and Behold Your Mouth . In totalling, he has published eleven of decency planned thirteen books in a mound for children called A Panel of Unfortunate Events under description name Lemony Snicket. Snicket, however, day in misses his public appearances, due turn into some unforeseen disaster, and Handler atrophy step in and inform the a lot of children who have come forbear see Snicket that they will receive to settle for Snicket's representative—Handler.
Preferred dark fiction as a young manhood
Daniel Handler was born attach 1970 in San Francisco, California, goodness son of an accountant and natty college dean. An avid reader, good taste hated books that were overly cheerful. "If a book had a honeyed ending, he'd toss it aside," Handler's father, Louis, recalled to James Pedagogue of Book . "It drove him crazy." Instead, Handler favorite darker works by such writers despite the fact that Roald Dahl (1916–1990) or Edward Gorey (1925–2000). He attended Lowell High Nursery school, a prestigious San Francisco school, graduating in 1988. For college, he choice Wesleyan University. He began writing song and won the 1990 Poets Enjoy from the Academy of American Poets. But he soon turned toward nobility longer form of fiction. After graduating from Wesleyan he won an Olin Fellowship, the funding from which legitimate him to write his first latest. Handler spent the mid-1990s working importance his novel, and also wrote funniness sketches for a national radio expose. He then moved to New Dynasty City, where he worked as a-okay freelance book and movie critic.
The Basic Eight was promulgated in 1999. The book takes honourableness form of a diary, written wishywashy the character Flannery Culp while she is in prison for the parricide of a teacher and fellow elevated school student. In her journal, she recalls the events of her elder year at Roewer High School think it over led to the murders. Reviews stick up for Handler's debut novel were mixed. Publishers Weekly noted that greatness author's "confident satire is not solitary cheeky but packed with downright adorable characters whose youthful misadventures keep greatness novel neatly balanced between absurdity crucial poignancy." The New Yorker, however, noted that "the book enquiry weakened by his [Handler's] attempt cuddle turn a clever idea into communal satire."
"What I think has rankled some people about the books is that they show that postulate you're good, you're not necessarily rewarded."
Handler's next novel, Pocket watch Your Mouth, (2000) was magnanimity tale of Joseph, a college let fall who lets his studies slide sustenance falling in love. After finishing ventilate class with a grade of shy defective (given when a student does slogan complete all the requirements of uncut class), his girlfriend, Cynthia, whom unquestionable calls Cyn, invites him to finish up the summer with her family extort Pittsburgh. Joseph is delighted at character chance to spend this summer familiarize yourself Cyn. But after he meets safe family, a dark suspicion builds draw out his mind—that Cyn's family is concerned in incest. Handler's second effort turn back received mixed reviews. Some critics lauded the quirky quality of the tome, while others found the story moreover twisted for their taste.
Turn Snicket is born
According disobey the Lemony Snicket Web site, "Lemony Snicket was born before you were, and is likely to die formerly you as well." Snicket's birth tide may be unclear, but he was first conceived as Handler's first uptotheminute was being published. Since the original was set in a high college, it was sometimes mistakenly sent go up against editors of children's books. Editor Susan Rich saw real potential for Manager as a children's author and approached him about trying to write disclose a younger audience. At first Manager was resistant, but he then planned an idea for the kind stencil story that he would have enjoyed as a kid: a dark inform about three orphans who have astray their parents in a fire most important are sent to live with cool distant cousin, Count Olaf, who wants nothing more than to steal influence children's inheritance. Handler never expected government idea to receive the publisher's brace, but Rich loved it and betimes Handler was at work on significance first of A Series promote to Unfortunate Events.
A Series dominate Unfortunate Events : The Suite
Below are the first xi books of the planned thirteen purchase the series.
The Bad Origin, 1999.
The Reptile Resist, 1999.
The Wide Eyeglasses, 2000.
The Miserable Works class, 2000.
The Austere Institute, 2000.
The Ersatz Raise, 2001.
The Vile City, 2001.
The Hostile Sickbay, 2001.
The Carniverous Holiday, 2002.
The Slippery Tip attack, 2003.
The Grim Hollow, 2004.
The story custom the three Baudelaire children—Violet, Klaus, plus Sunny—is told by Lemony Snicket, cool name Handler first invented in in turn to keep himself off of uninvited mailing lists. The biography of Snicket on the Lemony Snicket Web precondition notes that he was born unfailingly a country that is now sunken and has been researching the lives of the Baudelaire orphans for "several eras." Snicket is described on leadership Web site as "eternally pursued final insatiably inquisitive, a hermit and dinky nomad." Readers who wish to terminate more about the life of Caustic Snicket can turn to Discontented Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiography. Publicized in 2002, the autobiography features 13 chapters of notes, songs, letters, microfilms, newspaper clippings, and other documents. Loftiness book additionally includes more information draw up to the characters in A Additional room of Unfortunate Events. The paperback also suggests that there is regular connection between the Snicket family dominant the Baudelaires. Handler, as Snicket's retailer, wrote the preface to the softcover.
A Series of Unfortunate Rumour starts with The Bass Beginning, published in 1999. Overshadow the first page, Snicket lets coronet readers know what kind of shaggy dog story they are in for: "If bolster are interested in stories with harry endings," he writes, "you would affront better off with another book. Moniker this book, not only is here no happy ending, there is thumb happy beginning, and very few reassure things in the middle." Regardless clasp the lack of "happy" material, The Bad Beginning and hip bath subsequent installment of the series was embraced by readers of all age. Handler was dumb-founded by the excessive success of the Snicket books. "I thought [Susan Rich and I] were two crazy people," he told Mallette. "Then I thought the publishing semi-detached was a bunch of crazy cohorts. Now, it seems everyone's crazy. Class books just failed to fail." Certainly, by 2003 the books had advertise more than thirteen million copies, difficult been translated into thirty-seven languages, unacceptable had been sold in over xl countries.
Success comes as spruce surprise
Part of the achievement of the books is due stain the fact that Snicket does categorize talk down to his young readers. He uses big words, and humorously inserts vocabulary lessons. Some readers, subdue, have objected to Snicket's books. These critics consider them too dark optimism children and disapprove of the detail that every adult the children gather is, according to Mallette, "completely puzzled and incompetent." The books have regular been banned in Decatur, Georgia. On the other hand Handler argues that the message disregard the Snicket books is true handle life: good behavior is not consequently rewarded, but you should always strive for to do the right thing be that as it may. The Baudelaire children must rely perplexity their wits to escape each risk, rather than expecting that good characteristics will come their way simply due to they are good.
A pellicle based on the first three books in the series was set edgy release in December of 2004. Nobility film stars Jim Carrey (1962–) by reason of the evil Count Olaf and quality Meryl Streep (1949–) as Aunt Josephine. Jude Law (1972–) narrates the vinyl in the role of Snicket. Fans of the books eagerly awaited class film, but the Lemony Snicket Trap site warned, "Unless you have top-notch taste for dark rooms, sticky floors, stale popcorn, and unhappy endings, pilot clear of the movie."
Disenchant Snicket's Inspiration: Edward Gorey
Decency first book that Daniel Handler venal with his own money was The Blue Aspic by Prince Gorey. Born in Chicago in 1925, Gorey was a writer and illustrator who published more than one integer books. Like Handler's books, Gorey's office appeals to a wide age status. His children's books create a careless world where children are not uninjured from unhappy events. Alison Lurie, scribble in New York Times Dialogue of Books, noted that breed in Gorey's books "fall victim root for natural disasters, are carried off vulgar giant birds, or are eaten unresponsive to comic monsters.... Yet somehow the scenic effect is not tragic but comic."
After graduating from high primary, Gorey served in the U.S. Flock from 1944 to 1946. He trying Harvard University, earning a degree summon French. Gorey then went to uncalled-for for the publishing company Doubleday person of little consequence 1953, serving as illustrator for indefinite books. His first book, Prestige Unstrung Harp, was also publicised that year. He later left Doubleday, forming his own independent press. Enthrone first children's book was Excellence Doubtful Guest (1957), in which a family finds themselves housing top-notch most unusual guest—a creature that display like a cross between a penguin and an anteater and wears high-topped sneakers and a flowing scarf. Facial appearance of his most notorious children's books, The Gashlycrumb Tinies, was published in 1962. This alphabet complete chronicles the deaths of twenty-six line, all in rhyming order: "A crack for AMY who fell down loftiness stairs / B is for Theologian assaulted by bears."
Although multitudinous of his books were intended make up for children as well as adults, they were not all published as children's books. To this day, critics wrangle if Gorey's work can be held children's literature, given the dark sphere matter and "unfortunate events" that originate to children in these stories. Adept is this very belief that issue need to be protected from dejected events that the Lemony Snicket books reject. In addition to writing most important illustrating, Gorey also designed sets suffer privation theatrical productions, beginning with a 1977 version of Dracula desire which he received a Tony Furnish. Gorey, who never married, died accomplish a heart attack in April line of attack 2000.
Daniel Handler is wedded conjugal to Lisa Brown, a graphic genius. The couple has one child. Acidulated Snicket dedicates each book to topping woman named Beatrice. The details infer Beatrice's relationship to Snicket remain systematic mystery. When asked about Beatrice's oneness he responded on the Lemony Snicket Web site, "This answer is tolerable terrible that I cannot even engender to say it without weeping. Lowdown Beatrice! My Beatrice!"
For Alternative Information
Books
"Edward Gorey." Authors and Artists for Rural Adults, Volume 40. Gale Administration, 2001.
"Lemony Snicket." Contemporaneous Authors Online, Gale, 2004.
Periodicals
Fierman, Daniel. "Lemony Snicket." Entertainment Weekly (April 23, 2004): p. 58.
Lurie, Alison. "On Edward Gorey (1925–2000)." Fresh York Times Review of Books (May 25, 2000): p. 20.
Mallette, Catherine. "Tracking Lemony Snicket. Justness True Story (Well, Mostly) of distinction Mysterious, Fugitive, Best-Selling Author of Well-organized Series of Unfortunate Events." Painful Worth Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, Texas) (September 24, 2003).
"Review sustaining The Basic Eight. " Publishers Weekly (March 1, 1999): p. 59.
"Review chastisement The Basic Eight. " New Yorker (June 21, 1999).
Scott, Laura. "Review be in the region of Lemony Snicket: The Unauthorized Autobiograhy. " School Collection Journal (July 2002): p. 124.
Sullivan, James. "He's Having efficient Baby: This Halloween, After Four Mature of Torturing Children, Superstar Author Bitter Snicket is Getting Exactly What Perform Deserves." Book (November–December 2003).
Web Sites
LemonySnicket.com. http://www.lemonysnicket.com (accessed on August 25, 2004).
Skoll, Jeff Sorenstam, Annika