Tuesday 26 May 2020

Top Ten Tuesday ~ Top Ten Opening Lines


"Top Ten Tuesday" is an original feature/weekly meme created on the blog "The Broke and the Bookish". This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at "The Broke and the Bookish".

It is now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Since I am just as fond of them as they are, I jump at the chance to share my lists with them! Have a look at their page, there are lots of other bloggers who share their lists here.

Top Ten Opening Lines

"Ten days after the war ended, my sister Laura drove a car off a bridge."
Atwood, Margaret "The Blind Assassin" - 2000

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
Austen, Jane "Pride & Prejudice" - 1813

"Long ago, when I was a junior high student in Iowa, I remember being taught by a biology teacher that all the chemicals that make up the human body could be bought at a hardware store for $5.00 or something like that."
Bryson, Bill "The Body. A Guide for Occupants" - 2019

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."
Dickens, Charles "A Tale of Two Cities" - 1859

"Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice."
García Márquez, Gabriel "One Hundred Years of Solitude" (Spanish: Cien años de soledad) - 1967

"They shoot the white girl first." (and I still have no idea who the white girl was)
Morrison, Toni "Paradise" - 1998

"It was a bright cold day in April and the clocks were striking thirteen"
Orwell, George "Nineteen Eighty-Four" - 1949

"They say when trouble comes close ranks, and so the white people did."
Rhys, Jean "Wide Sargasso Sea" - 1966

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

Tolstoy, Leo (Толстой, Лев Николаевич) "Anna Karenina" (Russian: Анна Каренина = Anna Karenina) - 1877

"I'm pretty much f*cked."
Weir, Andy "The Martian" - 2011

I am sure I could have gound a lot more but these were the first that came to mind. I'm sure most of them are pretty well known but maybe some are new to some of you.

22 comments:

  1. Yes, that opening line for The Martian was great!

    Thanks for stopping by my post earlier.

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    1. I almost didn't put it because I thought some people might not appreciate the swear word. But it was too good to be eliminated.

      And no problem about visiting your blog, I always like to see what you post. Thanks for coming here, as well.

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  2. Love your inclusion of the classics! I remember my first read of A Tale of Two Cities. Still the only Dickens I read, though I should probably remedy that. And The Martian made me laugh. That was a good read.

    My TTT!

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    1. Thanks, Matt. I love the classics, there wasn't going to be a list of favourite opening lines with at least one of them.

      There was another Dickens quote I had to eliminate because otherwise I would have had too many. It's from David Copperfield, my absolute favourite of his books.

      "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."

      As I mentioned to Lydia ^^, I almost didn't add the Martian quote. LOL

      Thanks for your visit and leaving your link. I'll head over there to see what you've collected.

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  3. I like that you showed the difference in impact from a short or longer sentence! Also, the one from Pride & Prejudice will forever be a great opening sentence!

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    1. Thanks Tracey, yes, it's a huge difference whether the opening sentence is short or long. They can both have a huge impact but often set the tone for the whole novel.

      Thank you for your comment. I hope to see your name on the TTT list soon.

      Happy Reading.

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  4. The Dickens opener is the only one I can ever remember off the top of my head. I think that's from how often it's been used in quiz shows in the UK!
    I really enjoyed reading your lsit.

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    1. True, you see the Dickens quote a lot but whilst it is not my favourite Dickens novel, it is my favourite opening line. Not just for the Dickens time, it still is very appropriate now.

      Thanks for your visit, will head over to your page now.

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  5. The Toni Morrison opening is wonderful, isn't it? Great list - thanks for sharing!
    My TTT is here https://bookloverssanctuary.com/2020/05/26/top-ten-tuesday-opening-lines/

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    1. Totally wonderful. Have you read the book? If not, I highly recommend it.

      Thanks for your visit and thanks for leaving your link. I'll visit you there, as well.

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  6. The Blind Assassin is such a good book. I’ll always remember the first line of The Martian. I remember laughing when I read it.

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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    1. Definitely a great book, as everything by Margaret Atwood. I must have read The Handmaid's Tale about half a dozen times.

      As I mentioned to Lydia ^^, I almost didn't include the Martian quote. But I'm glad I did, so many people commented on it that they liked it.

      See you on your page ...

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  7. Oh my goodness, that one for THE BODY is great! A little creepy, but intriguing for sure.

    Happy TTT!

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    1. You're welcome, Susan. The book is quite interesting, tells us a lot about ourselves.

      Thanks for your visit.

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  8. I love that one for The Martian. It wins today.

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    1. It definitely does. At least every other comment included it. And I almost didn't mention it as I explained to Lydia ^^

      Thanks for visiting.

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    1. Thanks. This was a tought decision. I had many more great opening lines and I would have love to include more of my favourite books but found that not every great book doesn't have a great entrance.

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  10. Pride and Prejudice is a classic! Here is our Top Ten Tuesday.

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    1. Definitely. And everyone knows it, whether they read the book, watched one of the many series they made of it or just heard the quote in a quiz. ;)

      Thanks for including your link, will head over there now.

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  11. Nicely done! :) Your list has some of the best, classic opening lines in literature. Thanks for reminding me that I need to read The Body: A Guide for Occupants, by Bill Bryson...

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    1. Thank you. I love classics, so some of those openings just had to be on my list.
      And I never need an excuse to mention Bryson, Bill, he is one of my favourite authors. "See" you soon again - on your page or mine. Have a good day!

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