OT: Favorite opening line from a novel

[EricSD]

“Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin.” Winnie the Pooh

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.” The Hobbit...

 

[Ron and Vida]

James Conrad Heart of Darkness
The Nellie, a cruising yawl, swung to her anchor without a flutter of the sails, and was at rest. The flood had been made, the wind was nearly calm, and being bound down the river, the only thing for it was to come to and wait for the turn of the tide...

 

[Monte]

"He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish."
The Old Man and the Sea

 

[RockyMTblue2]

An update from Paul Clifford:
"It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents, except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness."

Oh, for want of a dog barking, off in the distance, mournfully!

 

[Hope]

"I met her in a bar and knew I was in trouble."

Los Angeles Without a Map
Richard Rayner

 

[rvwsleep]

Since "David Copperfield" was mentioned previously, I couldn't resist.

"Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show."

The original CD.

 

[Atleast5char]

"The primroses were over."

Richard Adams, Watership Down

 

[connie]

"Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul."

Lolita
Vladimir Nabokov

In truth, the opening line is in the forward: " "Lolita, or the Confession of a White Widowed Male," such were the two titles under which the writer of the present note received the strange pages it preambulates. "

But you are right that the words you quote are almost always credited as the opening lines. What an extraordinary work, for oh at least 10 or 15 reasons. Absolutely without question in my top 10 personal favorite all-time. Maybe number 1.

 

[bags27]

" In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth" Genesis 1:1

Not that I necessary;y believe it but it is one very powerful sentence.

I like that you think that the quotation begins a novel. Definition: "a fictitious prose narrative of book length, typically representing character and action with some degree of realism." . That is a joke, not a religious statement!

 

[bags27]

Great thread.

"All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Now that is a great, great, great novel!

 

[connie]

I like that you think that the quotation begins a novel. Definition: "a fictitious prose narrative of book length, typically representing character and action with some degree of realism." . That is a joke, not a religious statement!

This reminds me of a line in a Woody Allen movie (can't remember which one). Something about so-and-so rejecting Christianity because he found the plot of the Bible implausible and the main character not credible (?)

 

[trb123]

"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again."

Rebecca
Daphne du Maurier

 

[trb123]

In truth, the opening line is in the forward: " "Lolita, or the Confession of a White Widowed Male," such were the two titles under which the writer of the present note received the strange pages it preambulates. "

But you are right that the words you quote are almost always credited as the opening lines. What an extraordinary work, for oh at least 10 or 15 reasons. Absolutely without question in my top 10 personal favorite all-time. Maybe number 1.

Not terribly interested in forewords, prefaces etc with occasional exceptions. The first chapter starts with the quote.

 

[JordyG]

Two more opening lines that changed my perspective on literature:

"When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk and excitement in Hobbiton".

Fellowship of the Ring
J.R.R, Tolkien.

"The Galactic Empire was dying".

Foundation and Empire
Issac Asimov.

 

[trb123]

First two sentences (stretching it a bit) from The Return of the native, one of my favorite novels by Thomas Hardy:

"A Saturday afternoon in November was approaching the time of twilight, and the vast tract of unenclosed wild known as Egdon Heath embrowned itself moment by moment. Overhead the hollow stretch of whitish cloud shutting out the sky was as a tent which had the whole heath for its floor."

Some of you may have a preference for the first sentence from the preface:

"The date at which the following events are assumed to have occurred may be set down as between 1840 and 1850, when the old watering place herein called “Budmouth” still retained sufficient afterglow from its Georgian gaiety and prestige to lend it an absorbing attractiveness to the romantic and imaginative soul of a lonely dweller inland."

It is nearly as good as the first sentence in Nabokov's foreword to Lolita.

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away............

Star Wars - RETURN OF THE JEDI
by James Kahn & George Lucas

 

[rugbymate]

I like that you think that the quotation begins a novel. Definition: "a fictitious prose narrative of book length, typically representing character and action with some degree of realism." . That is a joke, not a religious statement!

The modifier of "degree of realism" is some....a word that you can drive a truck through...so , yes, I believe the Bible to have novel qualities ...,,(smiley face)

 

[CL82]

“Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin.” Winnie the Pooh

“In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.” The Hobbit...

I thought about going with the Hobbit as my entry. Tolkien establishes that we are in another world and sets the tone for the novel.

I've said this elsewhere on the BY but I was disappointed that the Hobbit movie(s) failed to honor this tone and instead tried to be Lord of the Rings light. They are two very different stories in tone and length for that matter. The Hobbit would have been better told if it were no more than two movies and kept the whimsical tone of the original. Chris Columbus (the director of the first two Harry Potters) would have been a better choice than Peter Jackson.

Finally, when you are making a long awaited movie about a beloved classic it is best not to create material out of whole cloth. It will likely alienate fans and break up the narrative.

/end rant

 

[Orangutan]

Went to my bookshelf last night. Turns out all my favorite novels have really boring first lines. So, per usual, I have nothing of value to contribute.

 

[chj001]

"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again."

Rebecca
Daphne du Maurier

One of only two that I know by heart, the other being "Call me . . ."
NO! Not . . . "Mr. Tibbs." "Call me Ishmael."

Rebecca is my all-time favorite Hitchcock movie, fairly faithful to the book, thanks to Selznik's reining in Hitch's instinct to rewrite the whole thing.

 

[connie]

Not terribly interested in forewords, prefaces etc with occasional exceptions. The first chapter starts with the quote.

While I generally may find a forward, preface, etc. of interest, I do agree with you in spirit. The preface to Lolita is quite different from most, however, because it is itself a part of the fiction. That is to say, it is presented by a fictitious editor of "the work" ("John Ray, Jr., PhD") who explains that the work of "the author" (Humbert) was given to the editor by Humbert's lawyer, for posthumous publication. Among the remarkable features of this preface is that it reveals (a mere two paragraphs into the book) not only that the fictional narrator of the work we are about to read is already dead, but also that the subject of the narrator's obsession and the titular character (Lolita) has also died (both, within months of the events that conclude the novel). That Lolita dies after such an ordeal, so young, and in childbirth no less, is just one of the many heartbreaking aspects of the novel. Of course, the reader cannot know that upon first cracking open the book. Indeed, it is not uncommon for the first-time reader to miss this revealing detail regarding Lolita's death, flagged on the very first page.

 

[connie]

but there are so, so many others that it's hard for me to choose! "Call me Ishmael" etc etc.

It occurred to me a long time ago that this opening line from Moby-Dick is humbly mirrored in Marilyn Robinson's jewel Housekeeping: "My name is Ruth." As to the former, I carried it around, read and re-read it obsessively for well over a year in my mid-20s. As for the latter, it arguably belongs in the discussion as among the best first novels written in the English language in the 20th century.

 

[connie]

Finally, when you are making a long awaited movie about a beloved classic it is best not to create material out whole clothe. It will likely alienate fans and break up the narrative.

And that invites an OT discussion for the future: what is the best film to actually improve on a beloved classic? (Are there any?)

 

[f1f1ferrari]

Actually, that is part of the opening line from a novel called "Paul Clifford" by the English novelist Edward
Bulwer-Litton.

The line has become a literary cliche, and inspired the Bulwer-Litton Fiction Contest, an annual contest
sponsored by the San Jose State English Department, in which contestants are invited to compose the
worst opening line that they can think of. The prize for winning is "a pittance". Notable, but not quite
bad enough entries are awarded a Dishonorable Mention.

I know, but the the comic strips with Snoopy writing his book are classic, and I did mean it to be tongue in cheek

 

[connie]

Of course, the reader cannot know that upon first cracking open the book. Indeed, it is not uncommon for the first-time reader to miss this revealing detail regarding Lolita's death, flagged on the very first page.

I admit it is in poor taste to quote one's own post. But this reminded me . . . a somewhat similar effect (not an unusual one) is manifested in the film The Usual Suspects. Remember the opening scene? remember the very first word? "Kayser" . . . spoken by Keaton, looking up at the shadowy figure who urinates on the lit trail of gunpowder. It is only at the very end of the film that we learn exactly who that figure truly is. If the viewer is astute enough to remember the opening scene, then by film's end they would know that the mastermind behind the entire caper could not have been Keaton (which is what Agent Kujan wants Verbal Kint to conclude, and what Verbal feigns believing as a pretext towards engineering his--Kayser's--deft escape).

Oddly, the first time I saw the film, when I heard the shadowy figure respond "Hello, Keaton", I specifically remember recognizing the voice as that of Kevin Spacey. But the recognition did not register as the narrative began to unfold. And by the end, I was as much surprised as anyone.

 

[JordyG]

And that invites an OT discussion for the future: what is the best film to actually improve on a beloved classic? (Are there any?)

Nice idea. Start the thread.

 

[trb123]

While I generally may find a forward, preface, etc. of interest, I do agree with you in spirit. The preface to Lolita is quite different from most, however, because it is itself a part of the fiction. That is to say, it is presented by a fictitious editor of "the work" ("John Ray, Jr., PhD") who explains that the work of "the author" (Humbert) was given to the editor by Humbert's lawyer, for posthumous publication. Among the remarkable features of this preface is that it reveals (a mere two paragraphs into the book) not only that the fictional narrator of the work we are about to read is already dead, but also that the subject of the narrator's obsession and the titular character (Lolita) has also died (both, within months of the events that conclude the novel). That Lolita dies after such an ordeal, so young, and in childbirth no less, is just one of the many heartbreaking aspects of the novel. Of course, the reader cannot know that upon first cracking open the book. Indeed, it is not uncommon for the first-time reader to miss this revealing detail regarding Lolita's death, flagged on the very first page.

Authors use many variations of this technique. In The Master of Ballantrae, the narrator Ephraim Mckellar's 18th century manuscript is discovered almost a hundred years later at the beginning of the novel. Richardson praised himself under a pseudonym in Pamela (could be Clarissa). You can come up with a lot more examples. In general I do not approve of this method.

 

[trb123]

Went to my bookshelf last night. Turns out all my favorite novels have really boring first lines. So, per usual, I have nothing of value to contribute.

Build a new shelf.

 

[Orangutan]

Build a new shelf.

Most of the novels I own are not actually in my possession currently due to space constraints. The ones I had handy were Adam Bede by George Eliot, North and South by Elisabeth Gaskell, On Beauty and White Teeth by Zadie Smith and Brave New World. Great novels all. Very boring first lines.

I didn't look at the first lines of any of the Agatha Christie novels I have. Maybe tonight.

 

[JRRRJ]

"In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit." The Hobbit, J.R.R. Tolkien

"I know a place where there is no smog and no parking problem and no population explosion...no Cold War and no H-bombs and no television commercials...no Summit Conferences, no Foreign Aid, no hidden taxes--no income tax." Glory Road, R.A. Heinlein

"It was a pleasure to burn." Farenheit 451, Ray Bradbury

"The man in the bare steel chair was as naked as the room's white walls." The Shockwave Rider, John Brunner

...and many others already cited here or long-forgotten by me. Thx for sending me to the bookshelves.