Friday, June 23, 2017

Book Beginnings: The Westing Game


The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin (first published 1978). These are the book's first lines:
The sun sets in the west (just about everyone knows that), but Sunset Towers faced east. Strange!
Sunset Towers faced east and had no towers.
About the Book:
The mysterious death of an eccentric millionaire brings together an unlikely assortment of heirs who must uncover the circumstances of his death before they can claim their inheritance.
Initial Thoughts:

Lately I've been having a really hard time sticking with any book long enough to finish it, and sometimes a good children's book will give me a little jump start and get me back on track. The Westing Game was the winner of the 1978 Newbery Medal, the annual prize handed out to the most distinguished literary work for young people. I've had it on my "must read" list for decades and I finally picked up a copy recently and thought maybe now might be a good time to give it a look. So far, it's holding my interest — and it's a fairly short read, so I'm hoping I'll actually stay with this one right to the end!

What about you? Do you ever read children's lit or books written for young adults? Do you have any strategies for overcoming the dreaded reading slump? And would that opening draw you in and keep you reading?




Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Friday.  As she says, the idea is to post the first sentence (or so) of the book you're currently reading, along with any first impressions or thoughts you have about the book, the author, etc.  It's a wonderful way of adding new books to your must-read list, and a chance to connect with other readers and bloggers.


Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Teaser Tuesday: Grief Cottage


This week my teaser lines come from Gail Godwin's latest novel, Grief Cottage (Bloomsbury USA, June 2017). This quote comes from an advance copy of the novel, so please remember it might be slightly different in the published edition.

In this snippet, eleven-year-old Marcus is visiting the ruined cottage the locals call "Grief Cottage" for the first time; he's been napping, but slowly realizes he's actually awake now. And someone (or something) is watching over him.
I felt its presence by the electric prickles all down my back and by my serious reluctance to move a muscle. Then the reluctance turned to cold fear. There was no way in the world I could muster the courage to roll over and see what was in that doorway. (Kindle, Location 309)
I've never read anything by Gail Godwin before this, so I didn't really know what to expect. I haven't officially started this one yet (just took a quick look at the early pages), but so far I like what I've seen.





If you'd like to see more Teaser Tuesday offerings, or do some teasing yourself, just head on over to The Purple Booker and leave your link. And please feel free to leave me a link to your Teaser Tuesday post in your comment here.