Who is Lemony Snicket?

As to the why of series success, Handler says he used to explain that "the books make no bones about the world being a chaotic and confusing place where one's behavior does not lead to one's just rewards," but he recognizes that "plenty of books say that and are not popular." When pushed he is hesitant to "talk in large, abstract terms," but he notes that the Baudelaire children in his novels are "not in control of their own fate. Even good behavior doesn't seem to get them ahead. They behave well anyway."