Paul Volponi

Famous First Impressions

The Power of Perfect Opening Lines

• Gebundenes Buch

Produktbeschreibung

A unique exploration of opening lines from classic literature to modern music. You never get a second chance to make a first impression. In that spirit, Famous First Impressions: The Power of Perfect Opening Lines revels in the greatest openings from novels, plays, poems, songs, films, speeches, and more. Bestselling author Paul Volponi examines how talented writers and artists instantly gain our attention, often in just a few words, and dissects each line's style, value, and impact. Exploring themes such as crime and punishment, dystopian landscapes, identity, science fiction, and the natural world, Volponi reveals the interconnectedness of opening lines ranging from Emily Dickinson's I'm Nobody! Who are You? to Taylor Swift's Blank Space. Famous First Impressions features individuals as diverse as Toni Morrison, Adele, Edgar Allan Poe, Don McLean, Maya Angelou, William Shakespeare, Dr. Seuss, Anne Frank, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., introducing readers to new genres and writers while also providing fascinating insight into those they already love. And with science fiction and drama discussed in the same breath as classic rock and poetry, this book is sure to inspire less-than-enthusiastic readers and booklovers alike.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Bloomsbury Academic
• Seitenzahl: 240
• Altersempfehlung: 12 bis 18 Jahre
• Erscheinungstermin: 4. September 2025
• Englisch
• Abmessung: 219mm x 148mm x 20mm
• Gewicht: 454g
• ISBN-13: 9798881803612
• Artikelnr.: 73822005

Autorenporträt

Paul Volponi

Inhaltsangabe

INTRODUCTION CHAPTER ONE: Setting, Mood and Tone Dark and Stormy
Charles M. Schulz and Snoopy (World Famous Author) A Talking Raven
Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven Starry Night
Don McLean, Vincent CHAPTER TWO: Identity Woman Powered
Taylor Swift, Blank Space
Billie Eilish/Finneas O'Connell, What Was I Made For?
Olivia Rodrigo, Jealousy, Jealousy
Maya Angelou, Phenomenal Woman What's In a Name, or Not
Herman Melville, Moby
Dick Or, The Whale
Have a Chocolate
Eric Roth, Forrest Gump (film)
Winston Groom, Forrest Gump (novel) Can You See Me?
Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man Nobody is Somebody
Emily Dickinson, I'm Nobody! Who are You? CHAPTER THREE: The Human Condition Why Shakespeare? Hamlet's Dilemma
William Shakespeare, Hamlet Songs of Social Change
Marvin Gaye, What's Going On
Jay
Z, Some How, Some Way Warning Signs
Theodore Seuss Geisel (Dr. Seuss), The Butter Battle Book Mob Mentality
Shirley Jackson, The Lottery You Can Do It Too
Ordinary people making great literature A Need to Communicate
Anne Frank, Anne Frank: Diary of a Young Girl The Plight of Addiction
Pink, Sober
Selena Odom, My Master
Amy Winehouse, Rehab
Neil Young, The Needle and the Damage Done CHAPTER FOUR: Self
Determination Making Your Own Way
Lin
Manuel Miranda, Hamilton Change by Example
Michael Jackson/Glen Ballard/Siedah Garrett, Man in the Mirror
Michael Jackson/Lionel Richie We are the World From Behind Bars
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail The Trap of Hatred
Wendell Berry, Enemies Double
Standard
Gwen Stefani/Tom Dumont, I'm Just a Girl
Beyoncé, If I Were a Boy CHAPTER FIVE: Time and Space To Boldly Go
Gene Roddenberry/William Shatner, Star Trek (intro) From Science Fiction to Reality
Neil Armstrong, One Small Step for Man May the Force Be with You
George Lucas, Star Wars Space Parody
Mel Brooks, Spaceballs AI Gone Wrong
Arthur C. Clarke/Stanley Kubrick, 2001: A Space Odyssey (film) Hitch
Hiking
Douglas Adams, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy Better Read, Or Else
Damon Knight, To Serve Man Warring Worlds
H. G. Wells, The War of the Worlds (novel) Public Panic
H. G. Wells, The War of the Worlds (fake radio broadcast) CHAPTER SIX: The Road, Streets and Other Travels Nothing to Hide
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath The Boss Voices Tom
Bruce Springsteen, The Ghost of Tom Joad Nobody Street
Octavio Paz, The Street You Decide
Robert Frost, The Road Not Taken Changing Course
Adele/ Greg Kurstin, I Drink Wine They're Your Footsteps
Walt Whitman, Song of the Open Road On the Wind You Say?
Bob Dylan, Blowin' In the Wind CHAPTER SEVEN: Sports Attention Getting
Jim McKay, Wide World of Sports (intro) LaPoem James
Sean Thomas Dougherty, Biography of LeBron as Ohio (poem) Remember When?
John Updike, Ex
Basketball Player Surf's Up
Susan Orlean, Life's Swell Wide Shoulders
Earnest Lawrence Thayer, Casey at the Bat A Price to Pay
Eva Holland, Why We Play Fighter, defender, Advocate
Muhammad Ali, I Am America (poem and other verse) Right Field is for Heroes
Noel Paul Stookey, Right Field No
Nonsense Conscience
Sherman Alexie, Victory PIT STOP #1: Reflecting on what we've seen and what's to come, plus potential projects CHAPTER EIGHT: Freedom and Captivity, Supers and Sleuths Freedom and Captivity A Jury of Your Peers?
Reginald Rose, Twelve Angry Men (play) Chains of the Mind
Bob Marley, Redemption Song Broken and Transformed
Franz Kafka, In the Penal Colony Bug
Off
Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis Separate and Unequal
Maya Angelou, Caged Bird Life on the Inside
Stephen King, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (novella) and Frank Darabont, The Shawshank redemption (film) Proper Manners and Penance
Langston Hughes, Thank You, Ma'am Supers and Sleuths Revised Steel
Jerome Siegel/Joel Shuster, Super
Man. A Dark Crusader
Bill Finger/Bob Kane, Batman Opening the Door Wider
Dr. William Moulton Marston, Wonder Woman Web Slinger
Stan Lee/Steve Ditko, Spider
Man Hey, Sherlock
Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet and The Sign of the Four Encyclopedia B.
Donald Sobel, Encyclopedia Brown Gets His Man Teen Sleuths
Edward Stratemeyer, The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew CHAPTER NINE: True Love and Heartbreak Feuding Families
William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet Streetlight Serenade
Mark Knopfler, Romeo and Juliet (song) Fairytale Romance
Taylor Swift, I Knew You Were Trouble Did He or Didn't He?
Shakespeare/Once upon a Time Love without Obligation
John Hartford, Gentle on my Mind Love and Marriage?
Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice Can You Hear Me?
Donika Ross Kelly, Love Poem: Mermaid Hold Nothing Back
Janis Ian, At Seventeen Constantly Parodied
Elizabeth Barrett Browning, How Do I Love Thee and Karen McCullah/Kristen Smith, Ten Things I Hate About You (film) CHAPTER TEN: Orators and Famous Speeches Galvanizing Words
Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address Liberty or Death
Patrick Henry, Speech at Second Virginia Convention A Declaration
Thomas Jefferson et al., Declaration of Independence The Voice of Youth
Malala Yousafzai, Speech at United Nations Youth Assembly I Have a Dream
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I Have a Dream (speech) No More, Forever
Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce, Surrender Speech Heating Things Up
Greta Thunberg, Speech at United Nations Climate Action Summit Heartfelt Farewell
Lou Gehrig, Retirement Speech at Yankee Stadium CHAPTER ELEVEN: Perspective Just Imagine
John Lennon/Yoko Ono, Imagine Scrambled Eggs?
Paul McCartney/John Lennon, Yesterday The Best and Worst
Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities A More Personal Perspective
Billy Joel, Summer Highland Falls Two for One, Mark Twain, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Scrub a Word?
Removing original language from books Blind Faith
Amari Baraka, Preface to a Twenty Volume Suicide Note Parallel Play
Stephen Schwartz, What is this Feeling? (from Wicked) Slipper Trivia
Dorothy's changing shoe colors Measure of a Year
Jonathan Larson, Seasons of Love (from Rent) CHAPTER TWELVE: Young Adults Un
fortunately Intriguing
Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket), A Series of Unfortunate Events Almost Never
J. B. Barrie, Peter and Wendy Missing Parents
Orphans in literature Angst Personified
J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye The Anti
Holden (Save Ferris!)
John Hughes, Ferris Bueller's Day Off Modeled Upon
Dan Pikey, Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie Harry Is Still Harry
J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Not So Wimpy
Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid Always On
line
T. M. Anderson, Feed PIT STOP #2: Reflecting on what we've seen and what's to come, and more potential projects CHAPTER THIRTEEN: The Senses/Unity and Discord The Senses Like Alphabet Soup?
Mark Strand, Eating Poetry Speaking Up
Paul Simon, The Sound of Silence Deep Breaths
William Carlos Williams, Smell! Beyond Us
Judith Wright, Five Senses You Fill Up My Senses
John Denver, Annie's Song Unity and Discord Love Light
Hafiz, Even After All This Time The Price and Reward
Rose Marie Juan
austin, Poetry is a Solitary Art Sharing the Load
Bill Withers, Lean on Me Island or Continent?
John Donne, No Man is an Island Closing The Circle
Seinfeld and the second button, again CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Fantasy Sneak Peak
Stephenie Meyer, Twilight Toll Taker
Norton Juster, The Phantom Tollbooth Storm on the Horizon
Rick Riordan, The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians) Rabbit Hole
Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Allusions to Alice
Grace Slick, White Rabbit Buttercup and Westley
William Goldman, The Princess Bride (film) and The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure, The "Good Parts" Version (novel) Hobbits and Rings
J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit and The Lord of The Rings CHAPTER FIFTEEN: The Natural (Unnatural) World/Life and Death Genesis
Bible (In the Beginning) The Lamb and Tyger
William Blake, Little Lamb Who Made Thee? and Tyger, Tyger, Burning Bright The Creature
Mary Shelley, Frankenstein; Or the Modern Prometheus Digging Deep
Ada Limon, Notes on the Below Never
ending Summer
William Shakespeare, Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day? Murdering Sleep
William Shakespeare, Macbeth Middle of the Night
Dana Gioia, Insomnia Clinging to Light
Dylan Thomas, Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night Revisiting Emily
Emily Dickinson, I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died Graveyard Ballard
Tom T. Hall, Ballard of Forty Dollars Debating an Ending
Robert Frost, Fire and Ice CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Society and Its Influences Three the Easy Way/Hard Way
F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
Lorde, Royals
Frederick Douglass, The Narrative life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave Privilege, a Plus or Handicap
Jimmy Page/Robert Plant, Stairway to Heaven
Langston Hughes, Mother to Son The Burden of Fame?
Elton John/Bernie Taupin, Candle in the Wind
Eminem, Stan That Book is Fire!
Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451 CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: War Heavy Jacket
Gustav Hasford/Michael Herr/Stanley Kubrick, Full Metal Jacket War and Laughs?
Larry Gelbart, M*A*S*H (TV show) Anti
War Anthem
Norman Whitfield/Barrett Strong, War Different Paths, Same Destination
Denise Levertov, Making Peace
Brian Turner, Hurt Locker Deserving Better
John Prine, Sam Stone War Hawk
Francis Ford Coppola/Edmund North, Patton CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: Dystopian Landscapes Women and Unwomen
Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale Feed the Hungry, But Just Some of Them
Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games A Second Chance
James Cameron/William Wisher, Terminator 2: Judgement Day Opposite Land
George Orwell, 1984 Your True Calling
Veronica Roth, Divergent Conclusion: Hooray, Success!: Concluding thoughts, forward thinking, new literary friendships and ideas for fun. Further Reading Bibliography About the Author