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Daniel Handler on "The Dark"

From NPR:

If there's one thing kids are scared of, it's the dark. In his latest children's book, The Dark, Daniel Handler — who writes under the pen name Lemony Snicket — takes on darkness itself, with the story of a young boy who confronts his biggest fear. Handler is known for his dry wit and matter-of-fact take on the mysterious and macabre. In his A Series of Unfortunate Events books and , the protagonists confront twisted characters and dastardly villains.

"I can't think of a story that doesn't have something terrible in it," he tells NPR's Neal Conan. "Otherwise, it's dull. So when I embarked into the world of picture books, my first thought was to do something about the dark.

"I think the book is probably a little bit scary. I also hope it's interesting."

Handler talks about his own childhood fears and the process of writing his latest book.


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