Good morning! It’s time for Friday Potpourri, and we’re celebrating Book Beginnings by A Few More Pages, and The Friday 56, hosted by Freda’s Voice.
Want to join in? Grab a book you’re reading (or about to read), and share the opening lines. Comment on them, if you like. Then turn to page 56 and excerpt something from that page. That’s it!
Post your link at the hosts’ pages.
Today I’m spotlighting a book from next week’s stack: The Grief of Others, by Leah Hager Cohen.
Blurb: “Leah Hager Cohen is one of our foremost chroniclers of the mundane complexities, nuanced tragedies and unexpected tendernesses of human connection. . . . For all its deep-seated sorrows, this is a hopeful book, a series of striking vignettes illuminating the humanity of these fully realized characters.”
-The New York Times Book Review
“In this subtle portrait of family life she shows the maddening arithmetic of marriage, the useless attempts to balance the equation. As Ricky and John’s kids start to come unglued themselves, we see how the grief of others is contagious. . . . Ms. Cohen’s painstaking excavation pays off, especially as Ricky and John decide to rebuild.”
-The New York Times
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Beginning:
Prologue: When he was born, he was alive. That was one thing.
Chapter One: Shortly past noon on the first Friday of the month, Biscuit Ryrie approached the low brick building where she attended fifth grade. She had ridden her bike a mile already and her lungs were sharp with the sweet-onion sting of early April.
I’m not quite sure what I think of these opening lines. They definitely hint at something very poignant…but then the title itself gives that away. I do want to know more.
***
56: “Paul?” His father answered from the back of the house. “We’re in here.” Walking through the passageway, Paul detected multiple voices, and when he rounded the corner he saw that the kitchen was seriously populated.
***
I’ve been wanting to read this one for awhile. So the time has come!
What are you all featuring today? I hope you’ll come on by and share.
POTPOURRI 
I have really wanted to read this one, too…I will love hearing what you think about it…
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I am eager to dive in, Patty! Thanks for stopping by….
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Looks like a book shrouded in mystery.
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Yes…thanks for stopping by, Freda.
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Oh my, this one sounds mysterious and I just love your book header!
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Thanks, Lady D…I sometimes manage to capture the quirky treasures that surround me! Glad you could stop by.
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Let us know what you think….should I read it? sounds very mysterious.
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I will let you know, Linda…I should have the review up by next Friday….thanks for stopping by.
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Hi!
Sounds like there could be a mystery involved. Have a great day!
Sherrie
Just Books
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Yes, I think so, too, Sherrie…thanks for stopping by!
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Sounds interesting. Have a great weekend!
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You, too, Srivalli…and thanks for stopping by!
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I look forward to hearing what you think of it. Interesting part in the first sentence about the “sweet onion taste of April.”
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Oh, I liked that description, too, Elspeth. Thanks for stopping by.
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My first instinct is “not going to read this, it’s about grief.” Then I realize that I read all sorts of books with depressing subject matter, they just don’t put it out on the title! 🙂
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I like to think of books like this as bringing the issues out and showing the strength of the characters as they work their way through the grief….
Thanks for stopping by, Helen.
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Oooh, I like those opening lines! The chapter one beginning is especially descriptive.
Thanks for participating in Book Beginnings!
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Thanks for stopping by, Katy…I like the Chapter One beginning, too.
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Hello! Thanks for stopping by my blog!
“… he saw that the kitchen was seriously populated.”
Sounds like my grandmother’s house during the festive season.
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I liked the way he described the kitchen, too…it struck a nostalgic chord for me.
Thanks for stopping by, wuthering willow.
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Goodness, the title alone is intriguing, now you’ve got me wondering!
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Yes, I was captivated by the title, too, aloi. Thanks for stopping by.
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A precise moment in time for Biscuit Ryrie – what will happen next? Does the ‘he’ in the prologue connect with her in some way? The title prepares the reader for a sad story.
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Yes, I’m curious about this, too. And a sad story certainly lies ahead. Thanks for stopping by, Linda.
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