Hook, line, and sinker: the best opening lines in children’s and young adult fiction

You only get one chance at a first impression, and never is this truer than with the opening lines of books. Ciara Murphy compiles some of her favourites, from The Catcher in the Rye to Twilight, and The Hobbit to Harry Potter 

Bilbo Baggins in his hobbit hole in The Hobbit: Unexpected Journey – but would the first line of the book make you read as far as he has? Photograph: New Line Cinema/Sportsphoto Ltd./Allstar

Ciara Murphy

Friday 1 January 2016  The Guardian

As the first thing you lay eyes upon when opening up a new book, the first line needs to be impactful, enticing, and enough to get us hooked. In an age where we have more books to choose from than ever before, what are the best examples of opening lines in children’s and young adult fiction that make sure we’re tempted to keep reading right from the first page?

It was a dark and stormy night.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

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