You are only as good as your opening line.

Inspired by this Richard Peck quote, I pulled a few of my favorite books off my bookshelf to see if his statement held true. I love these books so much, especially the ones I grew up on, so I honestly don't care if it holds true; then again, I do want to see if I was hooked from the first sentence or if I gave any of them more time to develop. Here goes:

( "a few examples" may have been an understatement )