Top Ten Opening Lines

1. "Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show. To begin my life with the beginning of my life, I record that I was born (as I have been informed and believe) on a Friday, at twelve o'clock at night." - David Copperfield by Charles Dickens. 

2. "The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone... she was no longer the careless colour of sea foam, but rather the colour of snow falling on a moonlit night." - The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle.

3. "My father took one hundred and thirty-two minutes to die. I counted. It happened on the Jellicoe Road." - On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta.

4. "First the colours. Then the humans. That’s how I usually see things. Or at least, how I try. ***Here is a small fact*** You are going to die." - The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

5. "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again." - Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.

6. "It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen." - 1984 by George Orwell.

7. "All children, except one, grow up." - Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie.

8. "Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that... Old Marley was as dead as a door-nail. Mind! I don't mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what there is particularly dead about a door-nail. I might have been inclined, myself, to regard a coffin-nail as the deadest piece of ironmongery in the trade. But the wisdom of our ancestors is in the simile; and my unhallowed hands shall not disturb it, or the Country's done for. You will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as dead as a door-nail." - A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

9. "This is my favourite book in all the world, though I have never read it." The Princess Bride by William Goldman.

10. "Jasper Jones has come to my window. I don't know why, but he has." - Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey.

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten: Books With Vivid Settings

1.The Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. This one's a bit of a no brainer, right? Who DOESN'T want to go to Hogwarts? Post-Voldemort, natch. I want to drink Butterbeer with Hagrid and discuss hair potions with Hermione.

2. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle. Sigh. This book is so, so beautiful - and the setting is a big part of that. Just look at these opening lines: "The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone... she was no longer the careless color of sea foam, but rather the color of snow falling on a moonlit night.” Vivid, no?

3. The Neverending Story by Michael Ende. From the Ivory Tower to the Desert of Colours, and the from the City of Old Emperors to the Waters of Life, Fantastica contains about a gazillion different settings for the price of one. The various lands are one of the highlights of the book.

4. Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie. Though I can't follow directions very well (second star to the right and straight on till morning!), I just have to open the pages of Peter Pan to visit the mysterious, dark and wonderful world of Neverland any time I want.

5. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. Like The Neverending Story, and to a lesser extent Peter Pan, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is filled with many enchanting - and occasionally terrifying - lands. While everyone is familiar with the Yellow Brick Road and Emerald City, my favourite is the China Village.

6. The Princess Bride by William Goldman. Oh, how I'd love to visit Florin. Mainly to track down Westley and convince him that his True Love is really me, not that ninny Buttercup. I'd also eat peanuts with Fezzik and quote Inigo Montoya to himself.

7. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. The evocative descriptions of the magical black and white Night Circus was my favourite thing about this book. Can someone make it happen in real life, please? Only, minus the battle to the death and all that.

8. Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. This is one vivid setting that I most definitely don't want to visit. The totalitarian world of Oceana is the stuff nightmares are made of. It's drab, grey, depressing and horrific.

9. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. The Republic of Gilead is another place I wouldn't want to visit in a hurry. The oppressive atmosphere is terrifyingly tangible through the the eyes of strong-minded Offred.

10. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. This is the only book on my list with a real world setting. But it's Paris. That's magic enough in itself. If I didn't already want to travel there, this book would definitely put it on my wish list. Somebody get me a croissant.

What are your fave book settings?

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish