Words from Books

propinquity

/prəˈpiNGkwədē/
noun

  1. the state of being close to someone or something; proximity
  2. [technical] close kinship
And, in spite of it all, Miss Browning and Miss Phoebe considered themselves as Mr Gibson’s most intimate friends, in right of their regard for his dead wife, and would fain have taken a quasi-motherly interest in his little girl, had she not been guarded by a watchful dragon in the shape of Betty, her nurse, who was jealous of any interference between her and her charge; and especially resentful and disagreeable towards all those ladies who, by suitable age, rank, or propinquity, she thought capable of ‘casting sheep’s eyes at master.’

First Lines Fridays: February 22, 2019

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First Lines:

The Chinese have a curse, “May you live in interesting times.” As curses went, Cora felt that this was truly the best she’d ever heard. Not that she was particularly fond of curses, but in her opinion this one was eminently applicable, far superior to the generic “Go to hell” or the cheery “Break a leg” or even the medieval “A pox on your house.”

Did the quote pique your interest? View this book on Goodreads!

First Lines Fridays: February 15, 2019

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First Lines:

“You don’t want to kill me,” I said.

Did the quote pique your interest? View this book on Goodreads!

First Lines Fridays: February 8, 2019

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First Lines:

The door slid open, and Clarke knew it was time to die.

Did the quote pique your interest? View this book on Goodreads!

 

First Lines Fridays: February 1, 2019

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First Lines:

It was nighttime, February 1943, and I was standing next to my mother, thinking about the war in Europe. I had a very good relationship with my mother, so there’s no need for any psychoanalysis about why I was thinking of the war.

Did the quote pique your interest? View this book on Goodreads!

 

First Lines Fridays: January 25, 2019

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First Lines:

I’m pretty much fucked. That’s my considered opinion. Fucked.

Did the quote pique your interest? View this book on Goodreads!