5 ms·

I see your, “Many years later [...]" and raise you, “It was the day my grandmother exploded." Iain Banks, The Crow Road.

coldtea 13y ago
Not as good. Merely goes for the surprise element. The other quote also: 1) gives more plot information (the hero is an older man, sentenced to death), 2) beautifully evokes his nostalgia before death (remembering an event from his childhood) 3) AND builds suspense: He is at the moment in front of the firing squad. Will he die? Get a pardon? Somehow be resqued?
- pizza 13y ago
  I think another opener that's at least as good is "Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don't know" (even though this is misleading w/o the whole context..)
  - igravious 13y ago
    Camus? The Outsider?
  - 205guy 13y ago
    As much as I like Camus's The Stranger, and am not familiar with Marquez, I still agree with coldtea. In a single opening line (when you know nothing of the rest of the book), Marquez places a beginning (seeing ice) an ending (the firing squad), and makes you want to read more to see what happens in between.
- lemma 13y ago
  To expand on #3: the "present" in the sentence isn't even taking place before the firing squad, that's "many years later". It places the reader in a timeless moment.
- igravious 13y ago
  I was being provocative. I agree with you :) I wonder is there an anthology of first-lines?
  - coldtea 13y ago
    There's a nice (not very literature heavy) first line I remember from the great late science fiction writer Frederic Brown. "The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door...".
arethuza 13y ago
Although that line is memorable I don't think it is beautiful - indeed I rather prefer the opening paragraphs of Espedair Street, which you can read on the wiki page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espedair_Street http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espedair_Street Edit - having said that, I think the start of The Crow Road is rather good as that immature desire to shock is rather appropriate for Prentice McHoan - but you can't really tell how appropriate that is until you've read more of the book.

coldtea 13y ago

Not as good. Merely goes for the surprise element. The other quote also: 1) gives more plot information (the hero is an older man, sentenced to death), 2) beautifully evokes his nostalgia before death (remembering an event from his childhood) 3) AND builds suspense: He is at the moment in front of the firing squad. Will he die? Get a pardon? Somehow be resqued?

pizza 13y ago
I think another opener that's at least as good is "Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don't know" (even though this is misleading w/o the whole context..)
- igravious 13y ago
  Camus? The Outsider?
- 205guy 13y ago
  As much as I like Camus's The Stranger, and am not familiar with Marquez, I still agree with coldtea. In a single opening line (when you know nothing of the rest of the book), Marquez places a beginning (seeing ice) an ending (the firing squad), and makes you want to read more to see what happens in between.
lemma 13y ago
To expand on #3: the "present" in the sentence isn't even taking place before the firing squad, that's "many years later". It places the reader in a timeless moment.
igravious 13y ago
I was being provocative. I agree with you :) I wonder is there an anthology of first-lines?
- coldtea 13y ago
  There's a nice (not very literature heavy) first line I remember from the great late science fiction writer Frederic Brown. "The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door...".

arethuza 13y ago

Although that line is memorable I don't think it is beautiful - indeed I rather prefer the opening paragraphs of Espedair Street, which you can read on the wiki page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espedair_Street http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espedair_Street Edit - having said that, I think the start of The Crow Road is rather good as that immature desire to shock is rather appropriate for Prentice McHoan - but you can't really tell how appropriate that is until you've read more of the book.