{"product_id":"9781365867194","title":"And Then the Murders Began: Classic Literature Bestsellers' Opening Lines ReImagined Darkly","description":"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Mystery To This Book\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e...is to make you smile, laugh, or just shake your head.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eAlice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do: once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or conversations in it, ‘and what is the use of a book,’ thought Alice ‘without pictures or conversations?’\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eAnd then the murders began.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAlice’s Adventures In Wonderland, By Lewis Carroll\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eIt all started with a small quote from Marc Laidlaw who created a nice approach to revisiting first lines of books. His 3 March 2017 tweet said, “The first line of almost any story can be improved by making sure the second line is, '\u003ci\u003eAnd then the murders began.\u003c\/i\u003e'”\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis book was a test of that idea.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eI took the first lines of the top 100 downloaded books from Gutenberg.org, in order, and applied that concept.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe idea does work in almost all cases to create something humorous (depending on your idea of what's funny.)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo be fair, in many cases, a better effect is often achieved once the scene is set. Especially when you are already familiar with the author's style. Romances seem to work best. Plays are awkward.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eYou can try this for yourself as you go – take only the first line and add “And then the murders began.” The results are more often than not incredibly hilarious. Sometimes merely droll. And even non-fiction can be as surprising.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eOr, just read along with my excerpts and see which one you like better. I give you, then, two books in one. (Three, if you want to explore that classic further...)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbove all, the idea is to have fun.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eGet Your Copy Now.\u003c\/i\u003e","brand":"PublishDrive","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47168872087792,"sku":"9781365867194","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781365867194_p0.jpg?v=1763710977","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781365867194","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}