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October 23, 2009
Famous first words
"There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife." - Neil Gaiman, The Graveyard Book
Some books have an opening line that just hooks you and draws you in. In the spirit of the season, I wanted to post some creepy favorites.
1 - "3 May. Bistritz--Left Munich at 8.35 P.M. on 1st May, arriving at Vienna early next morning; should have arrived at 6.46, but train was an hour late."
2 - "You will rejoice to hear that no disaster has accompanied the commencement of an enterprise which you have regarded with such evil forebodings."
3 - "It was a dark and stormy night."
4 - "When shall we three meet again?
In thunder, lightning or in rain?"
5 - "It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen."
6 - "Coraline discovered the door a little while after they moved into the house."
7 - "I'd never given much thought to how I would die--though I'd had reason enough in the last few months--but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this."
8 - "My name is Darren Shan. I'm a half-vampire."
9 - "My name was Salmon, like the fish; first name, Susie. I was fourteen when I was murdered on December 6, 1973."
10 - "Once upon a time, not so long ago a monster came to the small town of Castle Rock."
Can you guess the books?
Here are the answers:
1 - Dracula, Bram Stoker
2 - Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus, Mary Shelley
3 - A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L'Engle
4 - Macbeth, William Shakespeare
5 - 1984, George Orwell
6 - Coraline, Neil Gaiman
7 - Twilight, Stephenie Meyer
8 - Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant, Darren Shan
9 - The Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold
10 - Cujo, Stephen King
Posted by egoldberg at October 23, 2009 2:34 PM