<P> Since the release of the first novel , The Bad Beginning , in September 1999 , the books have gained significant popularity , critical acclaim , and commercial success worldwide , spawning a film , a video game , assorted merchandise and a television series on Netflix . The main thirteen books in the series have collectively sold more than 60 million copies and have been translated into 41 languages . Several companion books set in the same universe of the series have also been released , including Lemony Snicket : The Unauthorized Autobiography , The Beatrice Letters and the noir prequel tetralogy All the Wrong Questions , which chronicles Snicket 's youth . </P>
when was a series of unfortunate events published
September 1999