First Lines

Posts in The Copybook tagged ‘First Lines’

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By Pierre-Antoine Demachy (1723–1807). Public domain.

A Time Like the Present Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens set his historical novel A Tale of Two Cities (1859) in the French Revolution seventy years before, but it was far from the dead past to him.

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By Eastman Johnson (1824-1906), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

‘What Shall I Do?’ John Bunyan

John Bunyan’s ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ opens with Christian wondering how to convince his wife that their town and their family are in immediate danger.

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© Mike Searle, Geograph. Licence: CC-BY-SA 2.0.

A Universal Truth Jane Austen

From the very first lines, Jane Austen’s classic novel ‘Pride and Prejudice’ pokes affectionate fun at Georgian England.

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© Pymouss, Wikimedia Commons. Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Gossip in Gavrillac Rafael Sabatini

The simple folk of Brittany know what it means when a nobleman calls himself godfather to an unknown infant.

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By George Romney (1734-1802), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

An Easy Life Frederick Marryat

Mr Easy believes he has missed out on fatherhood, and having nothing else to do, turns to political campaigning.

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