Richard Peck always points to the importance of the first line of your book. Getting that first line just right is worth the time and effort. After looking through dozens of great books, I realized it is quite an achievement to come up with a first line that really stands out and makes the reader want to read more. I discovered that most of the time, it really is the first paragraph that moves the story forward in a way that makes the reader want to keep reading. But here are some of the really good first lines I found.
Perhaps you can find more and share them here.
“We went to the moon to have fun, but the moon turned out to completely suck.” Feed by M.T. Anderson
“I have been accused of being anal retentive, an over-achiever, and a compulsive perfectionist, like those are bad things.” Millicent Min, Girl Genius by Lisa Yee
“If your teacher has to die, August isn’t a bad time of year for it.” The Teacher’s Funeral by Richard Peck
“When the doorbell rings at three in the morning, it’s never good news.” Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz
“Today I moved to a twelve-acre rock covered with cement, topped with bird turd and surrounded by water.” Al Capone Does my Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
“Like much of my life until that sixteenth year, it was a sunny day.” Knots-in-My Yo-Yo String by Jerry Spinelli.
“When My Brother Fish Turned Thirteen, we moved to the deepest part of inland because of the hurricane and, of course, the fact that he’d caused it.” Savvy by Ingrid Law
“My name is India Opal Buloni, and last summer my daddy, the preacher, sent me to the store for a box of macaroni-and-cheese, some white rice, and two tomatoes and I came back with a dog.” Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
“HENRY SMITH’S FATHER told him that if you build your house far enough away from Trouble, then Trouble will never find you.” Trouble by Gary D Schmidt
“I can’t believe there’s going to be a gay Jewish president.” Wide Awake by David Levithan
“When I look into a mirror, it is her face I see.” Identical by Ellen Hopkins
So let’s all go back and look at our first lines, before we send them out.
Kathy



HIGHLIGHTS FOR CHILDREN
and with a professioinal CD of her songs. 
On October 25th, Mary Kate joined us in Princeton for our Mentoring Workshop. It was the first New Jersey event she has participated in and she added a great deal to the day. I thought you might be interested in finding out a little about her.