Thanks for playing everyone, and this wraps up our 5th  #FirstLineFriday Trivia Quiz! Again, this quiz is about more than getting the right answer. It’s an opportunity to really think about what makes up a good opening line, and that’s something important to each of us, both from a writing standpoint, and a reading one. I have been pulling these lines from several lists of the Best Opening Lines of All Time, so far. I may branch out to my own favorites at some future point, but for now, all of the lines I’ve shared with you are famous in one way or another. 

Today, we have three winners: Jeanne Owens, Staci Troilo, and Deborah Jay. Congratulations, Ladies! Well done! 

And here’s the answer to today’s quiz:

“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since”  is the opening line from the quintessential novel of the American Jazz Age, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. 

The book was published in 1925  and has been made into at least two films (one with Robert Redford and one with Leonardo di Caprio) and countless stage productions. As first lines go, it isn’t my favorite, so maybe this is the contradiction that proves the rule. I read and thoroughly enjoyed the book more than once, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t because this line riveted my eyes to the pages. Maybe that’s just me? But if you’ve never checked out this classic, you probably should add it to your list. It’s a powerful, beautifully told tale.

BLURB:

A true classic of twentieth-century literature, this edition has been updated by Fitzgerald scholar James L.W. West III to include the author’s final revisions and features a note on the composition and text, a personal foreword by Fitzgerald’s granddaughter, Eleanor Lanahan—and a new introduction by two-time National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward.

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s third book, stands as the supreme achievement of his career. First published in 1925, this quintessential novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the mysteriously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan, of lavish parties on Long Island at a time when The New York Times noted “gin was the national drink and sex the national obsession,” it is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.

Buy The Great Gatsby HERE

And there you have it for today’s #FirstLineFriday quiz. Hope you enjoyed it, and also hope you’ll check out The Great Gatsby. It’s one of those books everyone should read, whether the first line grabbed you or not. (In fact, I wouldn’t mind hearing how others felt about that line.)

Be sure to tune in next week for another of the 100 Best Opening Lines of All Time. See you then.