First Chapter ~ First Paragraph

It's Tuesday . . . time for . . .

                                                      

First Chapter ~ First Paragraph Tuesday Intros, hosted by Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea, is where bloggers post the first paragraph(s) of a book they are currently reading or planning to read sometime soon.  

I've been out of the blog loop since the start of the year, but I'm back today and featuring Miss Jane by Brad Watson, a novel I acquired last May at Library Journal's Day of Dialog for librarians. 

 

   

You would not think someone so afflicted would or could be cheerful, not prone to melancholy or miseries.  Early on she acquired ways of dealing with her life, with life in general.  And as she grew older it became evident that she feared almost nothing--perhaps only horses and something she couldn't quite name, a strange presence of danger not quite or not really a part of the world.


 

What do you think?  Would you continue reading?

The first paragraph is intriguing and makes me curious about the life of the character whose outlook is described.  I'm several chapters into this story, which begins with the birth of Miss Jane in 1915 rural Mississippi.

Incidentally, I find the cover stunning.

This First Chapter ~ First Paragraph post was originally written and published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.com.  It cannot be republished without attribution.  Retweeting and sharing on Google+ are appreciated.

First Chapter ~ First Paragraph

It's Tuesday . . . time for . . .

                                                      

First Chapter ~ First Paragraph Tuesday Intros, hosted by Diane at Bibliophile by the Sea, is where bloggers post the first paragraph(s) of a book they are currently reading or planning to read sometime soon.  

Today I'm featuring Alice Hoffman's newest novel, which I selected as my First Book of the Year 2017.  

  

Chapter 

1

In February, when the snow comes down hard, little globes of light are left along Route 110, on the side of the road that slopes off when a driver least expects it.  The lights are candles set inside paper bags, surrounded by sand, and they burn past midnight.  They shouldn't last for that amount of time, but that's part of the miracle.  On the second anniversary of the accident, a gang of boys creep out their windows and gather at two in the morning to see if Helene's mother, Diana Boyd, drives along the road replacing each melting pool of wax with a fresh candle.  They're hoping to reveal a con in process and dispel the myth of a miracle, but after keeping watch for a while the boys all flee.  In the early morning hours, safe in their beds, they wonder how much of the world can never be understood or explained.

What do you think?  Would you continue reading?

The first paragraph is a good example of Hoffman's exquisite writing style.  With a mystical touch she connects a significant past event with the present, while observing the elements of nature (human and environmental) and the complexity of life.

Those of you already familiar with this novel (and/or Hoffman's other work) know what I mean.  If you haven't yet sampled an Alice Hoffman novel, I hope 2017 will be the year that you do.

This First Chapter ~ First Paragraph post was originally written and published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.com.  It cannot be republished without attribution.  Retweeting and sharing on Google+ are appreciated.

First Book of the Year 2017

Happy New Year!!

It's 2017. . . Welcome to my first post of the new year . . . and my participation in a new meme . . . First Book of the Year . . . hosted by Sheila at Book Journey.

My first book of the year is Faithful by Alice Hoffman . . .

 

I am a huge fan of Alice Hoffman, having read and enjoyed so many of her books over the years.  

Her newest novel is the January selection of one of my book clubs.  Last year this group read Hoffman's 2014 novel The Museum of Extraordinary Things and it was one of our favorite books of the entire year.  

I can't think of a better read to start off the new year . . .

Now, I'm going to visit Book Journey to see what other bloggers have selected as their first books of the year.

First Book of the Year 2017 was originally written and published by Catherine for bookclublibrarian.com and cannot be republished without attribution.  Retweeting and sharing on Google+ are appreciated.