I love a great first line of a novel. It’s an opportunity to captivate right from the beginning. I’ve trudged through openings of novels that are weak, boring, or difficult and found reward on the other side, but isn’t it so much better when a novel’s first line is wonderful? A little burst that snaps you to attention right away.
If I ever wrote a novel, I think I would obsess over the first line. It would probably keep me up at night. Or perhaps it would come to me first and the rest of the story would have to try to live up to it.
Here is my favorite first line of all time:
“I write this sitting in the kitchen sink.”
–I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
How intriguing is this sentence? It gives us a little glimmer into the personality of our narrator, but leaves us with so many questions. We want to know her. We read on. It does that in eight words.
Here are a few more of my favorite first lines from some of my favorite novels:
“Hello, this is Paul Chowder, and I’m going to try to tell you everything I know.”
–The Anthologist by Nicholson Baker
“Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral Arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.”
–The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
“It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.”
–The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
“There once was a boy named Milo who didn’t know what to do with himself – not just sometimes, but always.”
–The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
“Serene was a word you could put to Brooklyn, New York.”
–A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
“Mr and Mrs Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.”
–Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by JK Rowling
“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.”
–David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
“My father had a face that could stop a clock.”
–The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
P. G. Wodehouse is a master of first lines. They are so friendly and conversational, and they do a perfect job of introducing his signature jovial tone. For example:
“I reached out a hand from under the blankets, and rang the bell for Jeeves.”
–The Code of the Woosters
“I was a shade perturbed.”
–Thank You, Jeeves
“I marmaladed a slice of toast with something of a flourish, and I don’t suppose I have ever come much closer to saying ‘Tra-la-la’ as I did the lathering, for I was feeling in mid-season form this morning.”
–Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves
“Jeeves placed the sizzling eggs and b. on the breakfast table, and Reginald (Kipper) Herring and I, licking the lips, squared our elbows and got down to it.”
–How Right You Are, Jeeves
Other collections of first lines:
- 100 Best First Lines From Novels (American Book Review)
- The 50 Best First Lines in Fiction (Gawker)
- The 10 best first lines in fiction (The Guardian)
What are your favorite first lines?
(PS – It’s also fun to browse the opening lines section of WikiQuote.)
Ha ha I actually came here to share my love for P.G.Wodehouse first lines but I think you’ve got it covered!
Haha I do! I tried to just choose one of his to feature and then realized there are too many good ones – he’s a first line master!
All wonderful ones! I am never sure if my love of particular first lines is inherent, or if it’s just because I have seen them so often now (like the Dodie Smith one) that I’ve been talked into thinking they are great. I think it is the latter, I’m afraid! I never seem to notice them in random books I am reading.
That’s an interesting point! When I was making this list, most of the lines that came to mind were from books I read years ago – nothing I’ve read terribly recently has stuck with me. I’m going to try to pay better attention when starting a novel – but maybe that defeats the point. If it’s fantastic – I should notice!
I will say though that I’ve loved the Dodie Smith line for ages, and I read it and loved that line long before there were millions of internet lists collecting the best lines, so I do think that one is just very good. :D
Great topic, Emily, and yours are all great examples and many make me want to pick up the books they came from. I can’t quote many, but some recent favorites include Don Winslow’s SAVAGES (“Fuck you.” – behind which there is a great story) and the follow-up/prequel, KINGS OF COOL (“Fuck me.”). Then, there’s THE MARTIAN, which also includes an “I’m fucked,” though I can’t now quote it directly. Finally, there’s Stephen Hunter’s DIRTY WHITE BOYS, which is a long first sentence that I can’t repeat here because it’s (1) long and (2) well…dirty. So all of this seems to indicate that sweariness sticks with me. I know there have been others, but I have no recollection of them without my little nerdy notebooks at hand. :)
Haha I love all of those! Especially the “Fuck You” / “Fuck Me” – that’s a great little joke for a sequel. I’ll have to look up the Dirty White Boys first line! :)
What struck me when I wrote this list was that most of these were from books I read a long time ago – nothing I’ve read terribly recently stuck in my mind. I’m going to keep a closer eye on first lines from now on and see if it’s me not noticing great ones, or a lack of them in my reading!
That’s curious that most of them were from long ago. You didn’t just REMEMBER them, did you? Please tell me you had them written down and don’t have a bionic memory. I can hardly remember the first line when I’ve moved on to page 2. Well, unless it’s sweary, I guess. :)
I will gladly send you the first line of DWB, I had something else to chat to you about as well.
I definitely do NOT have a bionic memory – far from it! I can barely remember plots of books I read a few months ago. :D
A very small number of them are in my memory – I Capture the Castle, and The Anthologist, and David Copperfield, to be specific. But I’ve only memorized them because I’ve listed them and thought about them so often over the years. The rest were collected over time very deliberately.
Sounds good – please do! My email is emwilson@gmail.com
Eerie. I found your email on the site earlier and was just sitting down to find DWB and shoot you a missive. Sit tight!
I started reading The Opposite of Loneliness by Marina Keegan after reading this post and the first line stood out to me. Perhaps it stood out because your post was on my mind, but it hooked me and made me want to continue reading.
“We don’t have a word for the opposite of loneliness, but if we did, I could say that’s what I want in life.”
I like that first line! I’m also curious about this book, I’ve been seeing it for a while and it looks good. Please let me know what you think when you’re finished!
These are all so wonderful, Emily. I don’t know that I’ll ever forget the opening lines to Sorcerer’s Stone. They’re just… perfect.
Also, I love the mental image of someone ‘tra la la’-ing while they prepare their toast. That kind of sounds like something I would do!
I’ve got one of my own favorites to share:
“124 was spiteful.” — Beloved, by Toni Morrison. I don’t think there’s a better way she could have opened this haunting novel. It tells you so much while saying so little.
Now excuse me while I go bumble around on that WikiQuote page for far too long.
Ahhhh the first line of Sorcerer’s Stone. Just reading it makes me feel happy.
I like the Toni Morrison first line you shared, and it’s a bit of a happy coincidence because I’ve been thinking about her for the past few weeks (I think her new book being out is what’s kept her popping back into my mind) and feeling utterly SHAMED that I’ve never read anything by her! I’ve been pondering over which of her novels to start with. If you have a recommendation, please let me know!
I find that great first lines in a new book are such a treat! :)
The one from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is one of my favourites, as well as the one from The Sorcerer’s Stone, I think it’s perfect.
I also really like the openings of The Baron in the Trees (Italo Calvino) and of We Have Always Lived in the Castle.
Yes! I love the first lines of We Have Always Lived in the Castle. So good!
If you have a chance, I’d love to know the first line of The Baron in the Trees – I tried to Google it but nothing came up! :D
I love all the Wodehouse quotes. I just started listening to Right Ho, Jeeves as I was gardening over the weekend. My neighbors probably think I’m crazy, laughing out loud as I pull out weeds. Just can’t help it when you listen to Wodehouse!
I love that PG Wodehouse, years after he passed away, is making you laugh out loud in your garden. :D I think he’d be delighted to know that too.
So many audiobooks (and print books!) make me laugh out loud in public. I read so much on the subway that I’m often giggling over something I’m listening to or reading on the train.