I recently read a top 100 list of the best first lines in fiction*. And while it got some things right - chiefly, it managed to include "There once was a boy named Eustace Clarence Scrubb and he almost deserved it" - I can't help but think it was incomplete without this gem:
"As I sat in the bath tub, soaping a meditative foot and singing, if I remember correctly, 'Pale Hands I Loved Beside the Shalimar,' it would be deceiving my public to say that I was feeling boomps-a-daisy."
Ah, Mr. Wodehouse. I lift my glass to thee.
Peace of Christ to you,
Jessica Snell
*I'm sorry, I can't remember where.
1 comment:
Connie Willis gave a great talk at the RMFW conference last month and talked about great first lines and paragraphs. I'll add this to my list. =)
Post a Comment