I know a lot of people love this opening, but no matter how familiar, it still stands as one of my favorites. The opening of Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451: "It was a pleasure to burn."
It's simple yet undeniably compelling. I wanted to know what it *meant*. To burn something else, or to be oneself burning? Then, of course, he follows it up with his customary striking imagery and tumblings of words--the great python spitting kerosene, the books in sparkling whirls, striding in a swarm of fireflies.
Favourite book-opening.icharlieeSeptember 20 2010, 18:36:10 UTC
Number one favourite book opening:
The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
I guess what I like most about the prologue in this book is that we see how sad Clare gets, as she has to wait for Henry to get back. She has no idea when. We also get to see how Henry feels about his time travelling, and how he can't get back. I just love it.
And, to be honest, your book-opening is already quite far up my list! It gave me the chills!
One of my favorite openings, at least in recent memory, is from The Devouring by Simon Holt. It starts like this:
On Sorry Night, just a few days before Christmas, you have to snuff the lamps, douse the flames in the fireplace, and spend the night in the cold and dark. If you don't, the Vours will get you. They're the monsters you can't see, the ones that crave the heat and light. The ones that feed on your fear and then swallow you whole. I should know. When I was a child, I saw it happen, and I've lived with that fear ever since.
This is an awesome post! I love seeing the iterations a piece of work goes through before becoming a published piece. And I am so excited to read your book!
Favorite opening..."Howard Roark laughed." The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. It sums up the character. She goes on to describe Roark standing naked on top of a cliff, surveying the rock and nature and, essentially, his domain. He is a man of the earth, who takes himself and his life very seriously, which gives him the ability to experience pure, exquisite joy.
Comments 52
It's simple yet undeniably compelling. I wanted to know what it *meant*. To burn something else, or to be oneself burning? Then, of course, he follows it up with his customary striking imagery and tumblings of words--the great python spitting kerosene, the books in sparkling whirls, striding in a swarm of fireflies.
So awesome.
iamrazorwing-at-gmail.com
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The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
I guess what I like most about the prologue in this book is that we see how sad Clare gets, as she has to wait for Henry to get back. She has no idea when.
We also get to see how Henry feels about his time travelling, and how he can't get back. I just love it.
And, to be honest, your book-opening is already quite far up my list! It gave me the chills!
Email: iCharliee@hotmail.com
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On Sorry Night, just a few days before Christmas, you have to snuff the lamps, douse the flames in the fireplace, and spend the night in the cold and dark. If you don't, the Vours will get you.
They're the monsters you can't see, the ones that crave the heat and light. The ones that feed on your fear and then swallow you whole. I should know. When I was a child, I saw it happen, and I've lived with that fear ever since.
It only gets better from there.
-Nikki
wickedawesomebooks(at)hotmail(dot)com
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Favorite opening..."Howard Roark laughed." The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. It sums up the character. She goes on to describe Roark standing naked on top of a cliff, surveying the rock and nature and, essentially, his domain. He is a man of the earth, who takes himself and his life very seriously, which gives him the ability to experience pure, exquisite joy.
zandila at gmail dot com
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