On the Shelf

Opening Lines Quiz #1

I am a fan of great opening and closing lines of books. So, I thought, “Why not present a quiz on some really, really good (in my humble opinion) opening lines?”. So, here I present you with the opening lines; you come up with author and title of the work. (There may be more to come in future columns.)

1. “We are at rest five miles behind the front. Yesterday we were relieved, and now our bellies are full of beef and haricot beans. We are satisfied and at peace.”
2. “The cold passed reluctantly from the earth, and the retiring fogs revealed an army stretched out on the hills, resting. As the landscape changed from brown to green, the army awakened, and began to tremble with eagerness at the noise of rumors.”
3. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way…”
4. “Mr. Jones, of the Manor Farm, had locked the hen-houses for the night, but was too drunk to remember to shut the pop-holes. With the ring of light from his lantern dancing from side to side, he lurched across the yard, kicked off his boots at the back door, drew himself a glass of beer from the barrel in the scullery, and made his way up to bed, where Mrs. Jones was already snoring.”
5. “To Mrs. Saville, England…St. Petersburgh, Dec. 11th, 17-…You will rejoice to hear that no disaster has accompanied the commencement of an enterprise which you have regarded with such evil forebodings. I arrived here yesterday, and my first task is to assure my dear sister of my welfare and increasing confidence in the success of my undertaking.”
6. “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.”
7. “Call me Ishmael. Some years ago — never mind how long precisely — having little of no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world.”
8. “Sing to me of the man, Muse, the man of twists and turns/driven time and again off course, once he had plundered/the hallowed heights of Troy.”
9. “Marley was dead, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner.”
10. “Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story is about something that happened to them when they were sent away from London during the war because of the air-raids.”
11. “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”
12. “If you want to find Cherry-Tree Lane all you have to do is ask the Police at the cross-roads. He will push his helmet slightly to one side, scratch his head thoughtfully, and then he will point his huge white-gloved finger and say: ‘First to your right, second to your left, sharp right again, and you’re there. Good morning.’”