First Line Friday

FIRST LINE FRIDAY...First lines have always intrigued me since I heard an author say that writing the first sentence is, by far, the most difficult part of writing a novel. The reasoning was that a first sentence can make the reader continue reading or cause the book to be tossed aside. So, go to your To Be Read Pile, choose as many books as you want and share the first line. Be sure to include the title and author so that if your reader also finds it intriguing, they can find the book. Also, share your thoughts about the first line. Does it draw you in? Is it...exciting...thought provoking...scary...funny?

"Gwenda was eight years old, but she was not afraid of the dark."
World Without End
Ken Follett


I love first lines that begins with a character, rather than something like, "The sky was blue and the grass was green." While that is one way to begiin a novel, I love when you are immediately introduced to a chracter. Is Gwenda the heroine of World Without End? Will she make it out of the dark? Is her lack of fear a catalyst for a bigger event? Those are things I think about when I read this line.

World Without End is the sequel to Pillars of the Earth. I loved Pillars, even with it's flaws. It's a novel that readers either really like or really hate. I think it has one of the best first lines, though... "The small boys came early to the hanging."

I finally bought World as a paperback... although, at over 1000 pages, it's still a hefty read. I'm not sure when I'll start reading it. It's just nice to know it's there. Sometimes, I'll look at my bookshelves and my TBR pile and wait for something to jump out at me. I know this will be a go-to book... when nothing else strikes me. I'm not saying that this isn't going to be a great read as I'm sure it is. I just know it'll be a book I can put down and come back to... a "comfort" book, so to speak.


Today, I carried two different bags. I used a Kathy Van Zeeland Cheetah print bag for work and, later, when we went shoe shopping for J, my bag was my Vera Wang black satchel with patent trim. Before you think I'm crazy, I have to say that I'm completely organized and switching bags is a very simple process. With minor changes... my wallet is a Dooney & Bourke, my planner is a black & white Fleur-de-Lis and my phone now has a white faceplate... this is all I carry...