First Line(s)-Game.

[Imladris]

The game goes thus. The first sentence of a famous book is given(possibly 2 sentences or first paragraph) and a succession of people have to guess what the book is. If they are right then the "first line quiz giver" of that book says "correct(or something to that effect)" and the answerer continues with a first line of a different book.
Three different incorrect guesses result in a hint and a further three incorrect guesses result in the solution and another "first liner" by the giver.
Happy "first lining".

*******
You can have polls on who guesses the most right if you want.
*******

I will begin...

"Whether I shall turn out to be a hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anyone else, these pages must show. To begin my life with the beginning of my life, I record that I was born (as I have been formed and believe) on a Friday,at twelve o'clock at night. It was remarked that the clock began to strike, and I began to cry, simultaneously."

[elf_princess]

David Copperfield by Charles Dickens??? I think that's right...

Anyway here's mine...

"When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broke at the elbow. When it healed, and Jem's fears of never being able to play football assuaged, he was seldom self-conscious about his injury. His left arm was somewhat shorter than his right; when he stood or walked, the back of his hand was at right angles to his body, his thumb parallel to his thigh. He couldn't have cared less, so long as he could pass and punt."

That's a little more than the first line... it's the first paragraph... good luck!

[azalea]

One of my favorite books of all time -- TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD! by Harper Lee

I will go ahead and post mine since I know I'm correct.

"It was seven o'clock of a very warm evening in the Seeonee Hills when Father Wolf woke up from his day's rest, scratched himself, yawned, and spread out his paws one after the other to get rid of the sleepy feeling in their tips. Mother Wolf lay with her big grey nose dropped across her four tumbling, squealing cubs, and the moon shone into the mouth of the cave where they all lived."

[Imladris]

This isn't an answer just confirming that David Copperfield was right.

[elf_princess]

Way to go azalea! You are correct... To Kill a Mockingbird is one of my favorite books too... wonderfulness. Yours has me stumped though... :confused:

[Imladris]

I've never read the Jungle Book, Rudyard Kipling, but, is it the Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling?

[azalea]

YES! you are correct!

[Imladris]

What a guess, I knew it wasn't Call of the Wild.
Right,
"It was love at first sight.The first time Yossarian saw the chaplain he fell madly in love with him."

[Khamûl]

With a name like Yossarian, it has to be Catch-22.:)

Here's a terribly easy one: "Call me Ishmael."

[elf_princess]

I believe that would be Moby Dick!

Let's see here... another very, very easy one...

"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... etc... etc... "

[sun-star]

The Tale of Two Cities?

Here's the only one I can think of right now:
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a large fortune must be in want of a wife."

[azalea]

Another of my VERY favourite books -- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin.

[azalea]

Since I know that to be correct, I'll go ahead and post.

"The Signora had no business to do it," said Miss Bartlett, "no business at all. She promised us south rooms with a view close together, instead of which here are north rooms, looking into a courtyard, and a long way apart. Oh, Lucy!"

[Khamûl]

A Room With A View?

[Imladris]

Well done previous answerers.

No idea about current one though.

[GandalfTheWhite]

yeah khamul is right

[azalea]

Well done, Khamul!

[Khamûl]

Thank you. "It was a dark and stormy night;" Believe it or not, that is the opening line of an actual book. If it's too hard, I'll add more to it.:)

[Imladris]

Is it, Hound of the Baskervilles, by A.C.Doyle, it seems to be a sinister setting for some sort of murder mystery, tell me if I'm warm.

[Khamûl]

No, it's not The Hound of the Baskervilles, but it is a Victorian novel.

[elf_princess]

ok... is it Paul Clifford by Edward Bulwer? I'm not very sure on this one at all...

[Khamûl]

Yes it is. I had always heard it, but didn't know until recently that it was an opening line to a book. Very good.

[elf_princess]

Thank you... let's see here...

"No one would have believed that in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own..."

should be fairly easy...

[GandalfTheWhite]

war of the worlds thank you very much

[GandalfTheWhite]

next one here it goes "This is a story about something that happned long ago when your grandfather was a child."

[elf_princess]

Originally posted by GandalfTheWhite
war of the worlds thank you very much

Good job!!! :D

[GandalfTheWhite]

no one even gonna guess?

[azalea]

It seems that I have read that book because the line is familiar, but I can't remember the book. I'll have to go look at my books. It would have to be something that takes place a long time ago, and if it's as I remember it is an old book, so it would probably take place when my great grandfather or great-great grandfather was a boy. Ahh, I just can't think!

[Imladris]

It looks as if you're going to have to drop us a hint.

[sun-star]

Is it one of the Narnia books by any chance?

[elf_princess]

Sorry! you have got me stumped with this one. I'll keep thinking about it and searching...:confused:

[Khamûl]

I honestly have no clue. Doesn't ring any bells either. Hmmm...:confused:

[Imladris]

Ooh yes, I think you're right with the Narnia books, is it The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Knew I'd seen it somewhere before.

[azalea]

The Magician's Nephew! Yea! I got it! I KNEW I had read it!

"Stately, plump Buck Mulligan came from the stairhead, bearing a bowl of lather on which a mirror and a razor lay crossed."

[Imladris]

Ulysses, Jame Joyce.
Know I'm right so I'll continue...
"On a very hot evening at the beginning of July a young man left his room at the top of a house in Carpenter Lane, went out into the street, and, as though unable to make up his mind, walked slowly in the direction of Kolushkin Brudge."

[Imladris]

No one even guessing?

[elf_princess]

I would guess but I have no clue! I'm sorry... :(

[azalea]

I'd need a hint before I'd be able to start guessing. ;)

[Imladris]

ok, I'll give a hint, it is a Russian book, written by a person with a hard to spell name. ( unless you speak Russian(or spell it!!!).

[azalea]

Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky!

Here's an easy one, but I love the book:
"All children, except one, grow up."

[sun-star]

Peter Pan! :D I love it too.
Speaking of children's classics: "One thing was certain, that the white kitten had had nothing to do with it - it was the black kitten's fault entirely."

[azalea]

Through the Looking-Glass, Lewis Carroll. I love that one, too.

Whan that Aprill with his shoures sote,
The droghte of Marche hath perced to the rote,
And bathed every veyne in swich licour
Of which vertu engendred is the flour;
Whan Zephirus eek with his swete breeth
Inspired hath in every holt and heeth
The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne,
And smale fowles maken melodye,
That slepen al the night with open ye
(So priketh hem Nature in hir corages):
That longen folk to goon on pilgrimages
And palmers for to seken straunge strondes,
To ferne halwes, couthe in sondry londes;
And specially, from every shires ende
Of Engelond, to Caunterbury they wende,
The holy blisful martir for to seke
That hem hath holpen, whan that they were seke.

Pretty easy, but another of my faves.

[Imladris]

Crime and Punishment was right!!!

[azalea]

Do you need a hint?

[Khamûl]

Sounds like Canterbury Tales by Chaucer. Just a guess, but is it right?

[azalea]

Yes! You're right!

[Khamûl]

Ok. Here you go:

Two households, both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

I say that this one is fairly easy.:)

[azalea]

Romeo and Juliet - Shakespeare.
"Once upon a time there was a little chimney sweep, and his name was Tom."

[sun-star]

Is it the Water Babies?

[azalea]

Yes! Do you know the author?

[sun-star]

Um, no, sorry.

[azalea]

Hmm, well I guess since no one is jumping in with an answer, I'll just tell you that it is Charles Kingsley, and that it's your turn!

[Imladris]

Since nobody's rteplied for 24hrs, I'll start it up again...

"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderly again."

[sun-star]

This one I am (fairly) sure about: Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier.

"On an evening in the latter part of May, a middle-aged man was walking homeward from Shaston to the village of Marlott, in the adjoining Vale of Blakemore or Blackmoor".

[GandalfTheWhite]

Tess of the d'Urbervilles by hardy

[GandalfTheWhite]

here we go

"I am by birth a Genevese, and my family is one of the most distinguished of that republic."

[Khamûl]

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.

Here's one:
3 May. Bistritz. --- Left Munich at 8:35 p.m. on 1st May, arriving at Vienna early next morning; should have arrived at 6:46, but train was an hour late.

[azalea]

Dracula, Bram Stoker.

"The studio was filled with the rich odor of roses, and when the light summer wind stirred amidst the trees of the garden, there came through the open door the heavy scent of lilac, or the more delicate perfume of the pink-flowering thorn."

[sun-star]

The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde.

"When I reached 'C' Company lines, which were at the top of the hill, I paused and looked back at the camp, just coming into ful view below me through the grey mist of early morning."

[GandalfTheWhite]

is it Brideshead Revisited?

[sun-star]

Yes! I thought no one was going to guess!
Your turn...

[Treebeard's apprentice]

I have one. I really like this book. This one is different, because its actually from a series of novels (hint hint).

"Three. This is the number of your fate. "
Three?
"Yes, three is mystic. Three stands at the heart of the mantra "
Which three?

[Imladris]

I honestly don't know... but maybe a premature hint would help...???

[Khamûl]

*does his best Ben Stein impression*

Anyone...anyone...Bueller...Bueller... Sorry. Ferris Bueller moment.:D

Perhaps a hint? I have no clue.

[Treebeard's apprentice]

It is the second book in a series by a famous author who lives in Maine.

[azalea]

Is it from the Bachman Books?

[Khamûl]

Is it "The Drawing of the Three" from the Dark Tower series by Stephen King?

[Treebeard's apprentice]

Yes Khamul, you are right.

The guess of the Bachman Books is close (the are the same author in case anyone doesn't know). The Bachman Books are not actually a series, though.



Next question? . . .

[Khamûl]

Alright.

"In compliance with the request of a friend of mine, who wrote me from the East, I called on good-natured, garrulous old Simon Wheeler, and inquired after my friend’s friend, Leonidas W. Smiley, as requested to do, and I hereunto append the result."

[Imladris]

No idea.

[Khamûl]

OK. Here's a hint: I think you would consider it a short story, but it was written by a famous American humorist from Hannibal, Missouri. It must be a fairly well-known story, because I read it in my high school literature book. Hope that helps.

[azalea]

The only two short stories I remember by Mark Twain right off the top of my head are My Grandfather's Goat and The Jumping Frogs of Calavaris County (forget quite what that one's called).

[Khamûl]

Yes, it's The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County by Mark Twain. Since that was a bit tough, and it was one of the ones you named azalea, I'll give it to you.:) Your turn.

[azalea]

This one might be too easy, but it's a great book.
" 'Where's Papa going with that ax?' said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast.

[Khamûl]

"Charlotte's Web" by E.B. White.

[azalea]

Whoa, that was easy! Your turn!

[Khamûl]

In my younger days, I watched the cartoon enough to know that anything having to do with Fern, an ax, and Papa had to be Charlotte's Web.:D

"In the year 1878 I took my degree of Doctor of Medicine of the University of London, and proceeded to Netley to go through the course prescribed for surgeons in the Army. Having completed my studies there, I was duly attached to the Fifth Northumberland Fusiliers as assistant surgeon."

[Imladris]

A Study In Scarlet, A.C. Doyle.
It's a brilliant book!

[Imladris]

I've just checked and I no i'm right, so here goes,...

"Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents,"

[sun-star]

Little Women, Louisa May Alcott.
I need to find a book that hasn't been used now...

[Imladris]

Correct!

[sun-star]

OK then:

"The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there."

[Khamûl]

Perhaps a hint?

[sun-star]

It's set in 1900 and is told through the eyes of a 13-year-old boy. Hope that helps!

[Khamûl]

The Go-Between by LP Hartley?

[sun-star]

Correct! Well done!

[Khamûl]

Sorry that this reply took so long, but I've been away for a week.

Here's a new first line: "Ryan was nearly killed twice in half an hour."

It's from one of my favorite books.

[FrodoFriend]

Patriot Games by Tom Clancy, right?

I remember because my friend and I read that together in school, and we both freaked out when we read that. Jack Ryan, nearly killed? NOOO!

Anyway, how about this:

"What's it going to be then, eh?"

[Khamûl]

Right! It is Patriot Games.:)

[Khamûl]

Originally posted by FrodoFriend
"What's it going to be then, eh?" Is it "A Clockwork Orange" by Anthony Burgess?

[Imladris]

I've just checked, it is A Clockwork Orange. You go Khamul.

[Khamûl]

Right then.:)
I don't think that this one will be very hard.

"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much."

[sun-star]

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's (or Sorcerer's, if you prefer :) ) Stone, by J.K. Rowling.

[sun-star]

I know I'm right, so:

"It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen."

[azalea]

1984, George Orwell.

"There was no possibility of taking a walk that day."

[azalea]

Okay, I'll give a hint. The title has 2 words. Another hint soon if no one guesses.

[Khamûl]

Is it Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte?

[azalea]

Correct!

[Khamûl]

Yay!:D

"The year 1866 was signalised by a remarkable incident, a mysterious and puzzling phenomenon, which doubtless no one has yet forgotten."

[sun-star]

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, by Jules Verne.

This is evidence of a complete failure of imagination on my part :) :

'When Mr. Bilbo Baggins of Bag End announced that he would shortly be celebrating his eleventy-first birthday with a party of special magnificence, there was much talk and excitement in Hobbiton'.

[Starr Polish]

Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, JRR Tolkien

"It was almost December, and Jonas was beginning to be frightened."

[Lucy Brandybuck]

The Giver by Lois Lowry

[Lucy Brandybuck]

The Giver by Lois Lowry

[Lucy Brandybuck]

sorry..I had trouble thinking of one. Try this one.

"The boy with fair hair lowered himself down the last few feet of rock and began to pick his way toward the lagoon."

[Treebeard's apprentice]

Lord of the Flies by William Golding

By the way, I didn't like Lord of the Flies.
Here's the first line of a book I really, REALLY don't like:

"The Nellie , a cruising yawl, swung to her anchor without a flutter of the sails, and was at rest."

Good Luck!

[Lucy Brandybuck]

Good job Treebeard's apprentice! I can't quite place yours though....

[Starr Polish]

I'm going to take a wild guess and say The Adventures of Charlotte Doyle, by...Ava? Ave? Can't remember teh author's exact name.

[Treebeard's apprentice]

Sorry Starr Polish, keep guessing.

[Lucy Brandybuck]

I still have no idea....but I do know...


Originally posted by Starr Polish
I'm going to take a wild guess and say The Adventures of Charlotte Doyle, by...Ava? Ave? Can't remember teh author's exact name.

Avi wrote The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle.

[Celandine]

The Tru Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is an interesting book.

[Lucy Brandybuck]

I believe the quote in question comes from The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad....just took me a while to figure it out.

[Treebeard's apprentice]

Heart of Darkness is right.

Your turn Lucy

[Lucy Brandybuck]

This one may be a little difficult...

.Right here and now, as an old friend used to say, we are in the fluid present, where clear-sightedness never guarantees perfect vision.

Good luck!

[Shadowfax]

Black House by Stephen King & Peter Straub?

Here's mine:

"It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen."

[Lucy Brandybuck]

Nice job, Shadowfax!:)

[Willow Oran]

It's from 1984 by George Orwell. And it had already been used.

"Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin."

[sun-star]

Winnie the Pooh (is that the full title?) by A.A. Milne.

From my current favourite book:
"If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it."

[azalea]

Wild guess: Catcher in the Rye?

[sun-star]

Yes, well done :)

[azalea]

The author being J.D. Salinger.

"Marley was dead, to begin with."

A pretty easy one.

[Khamûl]

Sounds like "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. Unless you're talking about Bob Marley...:p

[azalea]

Lol! You're right, though. Your turn, SuperMod!

[Khamûl]

"You don't know about me without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer; but that ain't no matter."

[Starr Polish]

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain.

Hopefully this one will stump you:

"Women on their own run in Alice's family."

[Willow Oran]

Is it from Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver?

[Starr Polish]

Right-o!

[Willow Oran]

This one should be pretty easy.

"I had a farm in Africa."

[tulc711]

"Out of Africa"?
tulc

[Willow Oran]

And the answer was... Out of Africa! That is correct.

[azalea]

Since tulc has not thrown out a line, I'll jump in:

Before I was born, I went on the road

[Cirdan]

"On the Road" - J. Kerouac

This is a guess since I don't actually remember.:)

[azalea]

No, although that is a logical guess.

[Wayfarer]

Um... the Lord of the Rings?

]: )

...a wind rises in the...

[crickhollow]

The life and times of Willie Nelson (on the road again...) *crick ducks various flying objects*
alright, that was bad.

I dont know

[Wayfarer]

...

[Imladris]

if no one's answering then..

"One evening of late summer, before the present century had reached its thirtieth year, a young man and woman, the latter carrying a child, were approaching the large village of Weydon-Priors on foot."

[sun-star]

I'll try the Mayor of Casterbridge, by Thomas Hardy.

[azalea]

Sorry about mine, guys, I had to go out of town unexpectedly for a funeral. It was "A Life on the Road" by Charles Kuralt.

My guess for the current one is Silas Marner by AAHHH I can't remember.

[crickhollow]

no problem, azalea. I actually looked it up (google is a wonderful thing) after my "guess", but felt it would be cheating to post it.

(I think silas marner is by george eliot, az)

Imladris?

[Aeryn]

Is that the answer, or what?

[Imladris]

sorry, yes, correct! That is the answer! If no-one replies within a day carry on in future.

[Dussander]

hint: Not the introduction. but the start of the...er...work


THESEUS:
Now fair Hippolyta our nuptial hour draws on apace. Four happy days brings in another moon; but, O, methinks how slow the old moon wanes! She lingers my desires like a stepdame or a dowager long withering out a young man's revenue.

Name the writer, and the play...ergh...that was a hint...:)

[barrelrider110]

Shakespere.
A Midsummer Night's Dream

"It was a feature peculiar to the colonial wars of North America, that the toils and dangers of the wilderness were to be encountered before the adverse hosts could meet. "

[barrelrider110]

Guesses? No?
OK, a hint. OK several hints:

This work is considered a classic of American literature. (It was the first work from an American author to be widely acclaimed in Europe). The hero of the story was knick-named for his outstanding marksmanship.

[Aeryn]

OOC: WHAT THE HECK IS YOUR AVATAR, IT IS SCARY!

















:D

[Khamûl]

Taking a guess from the hint, it seems to be "The Last of the Mohicans" by James Fenimore Cooper. Or at least one of the Leatherstocking Tales.

[Aeryn]

YAWNS!


*quietly sneaks up behind Khamul, pulls a hair, and runS*


*comes back alittle later and repeats process*


*and repeats*


*and repeats*


*and repeats*


*and repeats*


*hides*

[The Ringbearer]

Feeling a little bored? :rolleyes:










*sneaks up behind Aeryn*

*pulls a hair*

*repeats.......*

[barrelrider110]

Originally posted by Aeryn
OOC: WHAT THE HECK IS YOUR AVATAR, IT IS SCARY!:D
It's a hobbit. I think he's kinda cute. If I can remember where I found it, I will post a hyperlink to the entire picture. He's standing in a vegetable patch smoking a pipe. If you saw the entire picture, you might be a bit less disturbed.

Anyway....

The Last of the Mohicans is correct, (the hero of the story is known as Hawkeye).

Well done, Khamûl, now please give us a line before some of us have a conniption.

[Khamûl]

Sorry for the delay...

"My father's family name being Pirrip, and my christian name Philip, my infant tongue could make of both names nothing longer or more explicit than Pip."

[Starr Polish]

Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens

I know I'm right, so I'll go on.

"Imagine a ruin so strange it must have never happened."

[Khamûl]

Very good, Starr.:D

[sun-star]

Is it the Poisonwood Bible?

[Starr Polish]

Right-o.

[sun-star]

Okay: "With a single drop of ink for a mirror, the Egyptian sorcerer undertakes to reveal to any chance comer far-reaching visions of the past".

(so as not to be too confusing, a hint: it has nothing to do with Egypt ;) )

[Elven Archer]

Adam Bede?

[sun-star]

Yes, well done! :)

[Elven Archer]

thank you:)

It was my devil's own temper that brought me to grief,my temper and a skill with weapons born of my father's teaching.
Yet without that skill I might have emptied my lifes's blood upon the cobblestones of Stamford,emptied my body of blood...and for what?

[azalea]

I give up.

[sun-star]

How about a clue?

[Elven Archer]

well there hasn't been 3 wrong guesses but it doesn't look like there will be any time soon. now i just gotta think of a clue.

it's by Louis L'Amour. is that a good enough clue?

[azalea]

The only book I know by Lamour is The Walking Drum.

[elendili]

The Devil's Dictionary?

Someone think of a start for me if it's right

[Elven Archer]

sorry that's incorrect.

[elendili]

Dark Canyon ?

Scary avatar by the way

[Elven Archer]

you mean my avatar's scary? does that mean you don't like it?

that's three wrong guesses. it's from Sackett's Land. somebody else can go instead.

[Treebeard's apprentice]

"For want of a nail the kingdom was lost -- that's how the catechism goes when you boil it down."

[azalea]

How about a clue?

[BeardofPants]

Sounds waffly: That could only mean Stephen King. Um... Tommy Knockers? Misery? :confused:

[elendili]

you mean my avatar's scary? does that mean you don't like it?

I like it iits just moving so quickly that it looks as if you're trying to hypnotise someone, *uhh* feeling dizzy ( i love conspiracies)

(that's right BoP)

[Treebeard's apprentice]

The Tommyknockers is correct.

By the way, what does 'waffly' mean, exactly?

[elendili]

waffle: to randomly chat on about the same thing over and over again but slightly diffferent e.g. in in english exams or to say something that doesn't actually mean anything or explain anything

It's your go Treebeard's apprentice