most beautiful novel opening

[kelber at mindspring.com]

New York Magazine used to have various fun competitions.  One of them asked people to write the first line of an uninspired novel.  One of the winners  was:  "You won't believe the size of the bug I just killed up in Gregor's room."

Laura

>> The opening sentence of  Günter Grass' novel "Der Butt" (1977) has
>> been awarded with the title: "most beautiful opening sentence in a
>> German novel".
>>
>> The sentence is:
>>
>> "Ilsebill salzte nach"

>>
>> Second is Kafka's opening of "The Metamorphosis" and third Siegfried
>> Lenz's story "Der Leseteufel", the first story of his early
>> short-story collection "So zärtlich war Suleyken" (1955):