From classics and clunkers to the latest page turners at the Arkansas Literary Festival, every book has to start somewhere.
“Call me Ishmael.” This whale of an opener is No. 1 on American Book Review’s list of the 100 best first lines - the start of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick.
“It was a dark and stormy night …. ” Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s novel, Paul Clifford, is the origin. Bulwer-Lytton’s thundering prose inspires the annual Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest for bad writing.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Charles Dickens scores adouble with A Tale of Two Cities.
Literary festival coordinator Brad Mooy cites some of his favorite lines from books to be featured in this year’s event:
“I was a snoop, but a peculiar kind.” - Mona Simpson, Casebook
“When they found Emeline, a nail held her sack dress together at the neck.” - Tess Taylor, The Forage House
“They brought the big man in on a winter night when the moon looked as hazy as the heart of an ice cube.” - Victor LaValle, The Devil in Silver
Style, Pages 52 on 04/20/2014