#this makes me emotional for junie b jones i'm so glad i kept my collection

[elphabaoftheopera]

Tagged by @raven-curls​ and @vinkunwildflowerqueen​ thank you!

This inspired me to finally re-shelve the books strewn all about my place (and dust my bookshelf). So thank you for that.

From last place to first:

#10. Time Travel Short Stories foreword by David Wittenberg: “It may surprise readers to know that the sorts of spectacular time travel plots one typically encounters in contemporary science fiction, full of multiplied time lines, paradoxes, revisions of history and butterfly effects, are a late innovation of the genre.”

Pretty dry writing even for a foreword, and I was not surprised by the fact. Next!

#9. The Norton Shakespeare Anthology: (from the preface) “Since Shakespeare’s principal medium, the drama, was thoroughly collaborative, it seems appropriate that this edition of his works is itself the result of a sustained collaboration.”

There were like four collaborators for this anthology. I get what they’re going for here, but kind of boring. Bring on the Shakespeare!

#8. Star Wars I, Jedi by Michael A. Stackpole: “None of us liked waiting in ambush, primarily because we couldn’t be wholly certain we weren’t the ones being set up for a hot-vape.”

What is a hot-vape? When I googled it I just got “vape hot” which warned people that they were vaping too much if their vape was hot. Is it a Star Wars thing? Deducted points for confusion.

#7. Midnight Sun by Stephanie Meyer: “This was the time of day when I most wished I were able to sleep.” (I had to add the next few lines just to appreciate the brooding: “(cont.) High school Or was purgatory the right word?”)

I laughed when I pulled this one out. I borrowed it from my mother-in-law like over a year ago but couldn’t make it through the first chapter. I would give it higher points for the next two lines but judging just by the first line doesn’t make it a standout.

#6. The First Five Novels The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum: (from the intro) “In 1900, a moderately successful writer for children by the name of L. Frank Baum set out to write a new type of “wonder tale” in which (in his words) “the stereotyped genie, dwarf and fairy are eliminated, together with all the horrible and bloodcurdling incident devised by their authors to point a fearsome moral to each tale.”

L. Frank Baum is obviously a fave, it was cool to learn a more about him in this long ass sentence. I laughed at the irony of “moderately successful writer”. Still, it’s a foreword and forewords are bland.

#5. Play Directing In The School (A drama director’s survival guide) by David Grote: “Play directing can be an art, but like all real art, it is built on a solid foundation of craft.”

I haven’t read this book yet and I’m not a drama teacher but I do direct plays. It’s a sentiment I agree with. No more, no less. Still a foreword! I promise I do have novels too...

#4. 1912 Facts About Titanic by Lee W. Merideth: “On April 11, 1912, many of the more than 2,200 people aboard RMS Titanic watched the green hills of Ireland slowly disappear from view as the magnificent liner steamed west into a beautiful Atlantic sunset—and into history.”

Actually kind of pretty imagery for a non-fiction foreword. A topic that interests me. I feel like if this were an introductory paragraph/sentence in an essay the teacher would write “nice work!” off on the margin. 

#3. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss: “It was night again.”

Simple. Concise. Informative. It was night again. I’m simply gripped! I have no idea what this book is about but this made me laugh out loud.

#2. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel: “Like many fathers, mine could occasionally be prevailed on for a spot of “airplane.”

Masterful, and I mean that unironically. Obviously Alison Bechdel is a fantastic writer, but this is a really great first sentence. It puts you right into the narrative and is creatively expositional. Makes me actually want to finally read the graphic novel in full. Obviously makes me think about the musical too which is a plus!

#1. Junie B. Jones Is Not a Crook by Barbara Park: “My name is Junie. B. Jones. The B stands for Beatric. Except I don’t like Beatrice. I just like B and that’s all.”

I didn’t even need to crack the cover to know what the first sentence would be. Yes, I cheated a little to get the full bit but even so I’d rank it first. This intro is iconic and just delights me every time I read or recite it. This sentence was literally the first sentence of a chapter book I ever read on my own (though I was reading Sneaky Peeky Spying), and for that Junie B. Jones will always “B” #1 in my heart.

I'm tagging @the-shark-is-a-mammal​, @character-shoes-and-misery, @amidalleia, @cultishsocialgathering, @lavalierre, @starspangledpumpkin, @itsniaeveryone, and @misosuper and anyone else who wants to participate!