The Most Elegant Opening Sentences In All Of Literature

“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since.”

— F. Scott Fitzgerald, Nick Carraway, amazon.com

“Water clings to my wrists. It has been my fragrance since birth.”

— Nayyirah Waheed, amazon.com

“Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of my abundant free time thinking about death.”

— John Green, Hazel, amazon.com

“There was nothing left to say.”

— Jodi Picoult, amazon.com

“The body you are wearing used to be mine.”

— Daniel O'malley, amazon.com

“Stories are as unique as the people who tell them, and the best stories are those in which the ending is a surprise.”

— Nicholas Sparks, amazon.com

“The moon blew up without warning and for no apparent reason.”

— Neal Stephenson, amazon.com

“Every morning I wake up and I tell myself this: It's just one day, one twenty-four-hour period to get yourself through.”

— Gayle Forman, Adam, amazon.com

“True love doesn't exist.”

— Audrey Carlan, amazon.com

“Be soft.”

— Iain S. Thomas, amazon.com

“The way I figure it, everyone gets a miracle.”

— John Green, amazon.com

“In my first memory, I am three years old and I am trying to kill my sister.”

— Jodi Picoult, Anna Fitzgerald, amazon.com

“The automatic doors at Austin International Airport whoosh open, ejecting me into a bright, sunny afternoon.”

— Kate Mccarthy, amazon.com

“The morning after noted child prodigy Colin Singleton graduated from high school and got dumped for the nineteenth time by a girl named Katherine, he took a bath.”

— John Green, amazon.com

“'Do you really think we can get away with it?'”

— Liane Moriarty, amazon.com

“I slept on one of the couches in Camilla’s living room, using my packed duffel bag as a pillow and my jacket as a blanket.”

— David Shapiro, amazon.com

“Patrick worked the day shift at Zoney's GoMart one Wednesday a month: sealed into the vacuum-packed chill behind the convenience store's dirty plate-glass windows, watching cars zoom by on the highway while he stood still.”

— Kelly Braffet, amazon.com

“Everyone thinks it was because of the snow.”

— Gayle Forman, Mia, amazon.com

“Let me say this: bein a idiot is no box of chocolates.”

— Winston Groom, amazon.com

“In the corner of a first-class smoking carriage, Mr. Justice Wargrave, lately retired from the bench, puffed at a cigar and ran an interested eye through the political news in The Times.”

— Agatha Christie, amazon.com

“Nurse Thorton dropped into the long-term-care ward a little before eight with a hot bag of blood for Charlie Manx.”

— Joe Hill, amazon.com

“In the darkness, he touched her arm and said, 'Stay here.'”

— Michael Crichton, amazon.com

“It's not just about the motion of the ocean, ladies.”

— Lauren Blakely, amazon.com

“The two stalwart highway patrolman guarding the barricade stared at her without registering any emotion, but because of the media blitz of the past few days, she knew they recognized her and that, in spite of their implacable demeanor, they were curious to know why Judge Holly Spencer was angling to…”

— Sandra Brown, amazon.com

“The sky above the port was the color of television, tuned to a dead channel.”

— William Gibson, amazon.com

“I'm still dreaming, in that half-asleep moment before dawn, when I feel his hand curl between my legs.”

— Aubrey Dark, amazon.com

“Quentin did a magic trick.”

— Lev Grossman, amazon.com

“Karl Selig steadied himself on the ship's rail and peered through the binoculars at the massive iceberg.”

— A.G. Riddle, amazon.com

“I want the legs.”

— Megan Abbott, amazon.com

“My mother's voice echoes in the background, her message blaring from my cell phone's speaker.”

— Sejal Badani, amazon.com