5 of the best opening lines in books

You start reading a book and the moment that captures and alters your brain is when the opening line strikes you and you don't let the book fall out of your hands. It grips you from the start, and you never let go of it. You know the vibes, you know how it is going to be... Today, I have 5 of the best opening lines in books that I love... Believe me, 'it's better than sex Jeremy!'

The Outsider by Albert Camus (1942)

'Mother died today. Or maybe, yesterday; I can't be sure.'

Empthiness of existence, being detached from reality and yourself, and indifference towards anyone, anywhere, anything. The Outsider unsettles you with the opening line of the characters' emotional distance and indifference towards his mother by pulling you into the detached mind of the protagonist.

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath (1963)

'It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.'

With a sense of alienation from the world and hatred for the patriarchal society, The Bell Jar delves into the haunting New York City experience of Esther Greenwood as a young woman trying to fit in the traditional and societal roles yet finding herself in a bell jar, trapped in the overwhelming expectations for women in the 20th century and barely holding on with depression, alienation, and a growing sense of disconnection whereas she is only trying to find her own identity.

Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka (1915)

'As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.'

Gregor Samsa becomes a cockroach as he wakes up from a dreadful night and a dreadful dream. Kafka's take on the metamorphosis acts as a reaction to the society that alienates and dehumanizes the members of the society. And if you are interested in Kafka, you know a lot about his problems with his dad, his emotional depth and his struggle for individuality. Do I really need to provide further information? We all read this book. We all love Kafka.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1925)

In my younger and more vulnerable years, my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since. ''Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone," he told me, "just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had.”

American Dream, class division, new and old money, Roaring Twenties, moral decay and love. Even if you haven't read the book, you have probably seen the movie version. To be honest, the book is one of the greatest examples of the pursuit of fame, wealth and status in times when wealth and pursuit of it paved the way for moral decay and empty promises of the consequences of prosperity.

Fahrenheit, 451 by Ray Bradbury (1953)

'It was a pleasure to burn.'

Set in a dystopian future, firemen now work to destroy the books because the government suppresses critical thinking. Guy Montag, the protagonist, is a fireman who begins to question his existence as a fireman who destroys books and helps the government ban critical thinking and intellectual freedom.