The Other First Lines
"All children, except one, grow up."
Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie
"It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen."
1984, George Orwell
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife."
Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
Brilliant. Grabbing. Memorable. These opening lines have it all. I could name a few more of my favorites, but I won't. This post isn't about those first lines. It's about the other ones – the first lines we read in the book, though the last the author writes. I'm talking about dedications.
I am fascinated by dedications. It is the last glimpse I have of the author before I go on the journey he or she has set before me and make it my own. They range from the poignant to the hilarious, but they share one thing in common: they are the truth beneath the author's wings that allowed imagination to take flight.
I've put together a small collection of dedications that I thought you might enjoy:
"To Vic Lovell for telling me that dragons don't exist, and then leading me to their lair."
Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
"My Dear Lucy,
I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand, a word you say, but I shall still be your affectionate Godfather, C. S. Lewis"
C.S. Lewis, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe
"The dedication of this book is split seven ways: to Neil, to Jessica, to David, to Kenzie, to Di, to Anne, and to you, if you have stuck with Harry until the very end."
J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows
Here are dedications from a series:
Book 1: City of Golden Shadow
"This Book is dedicated to my father Joseph Hill Evans with love.
Actually Dad doesn't read fiction, so if someone doesn't tell him about this, he'll never know."
Book 2: River of Blue Fire
"This Book is dedicated to my father Joseph Hill Evans with love.
As I said before, Dad doesn't read fiction. He still hasn't noticed that this thing is dedicated to him. This is Volume Two – let's see how many more until he catches on."
Book 3: Mountain of Black Glass
"This is still dedicated to you-know-who, even if he doesn't.
Maybe we can keep this a secret all the way to the final volume."
Book 4: Sea of Silver Light
"My father still hasn't actually cracked any of the books – so, no, he still hasn't noticed. I think I'm just going to have to tell him. Maybe I should break it to him gently.
'Everyone here who hasn't had a book dedicated to them, take three steps forward. Whoops, Dad, hang on there for a second…' "
Tad Williams, Otherland series
"You know how it is. You pick up a book, flip to the dedication, and find that, once again, the author has dedicated a book to someone else and not to you.
Not This Time.
Because we haven't yet met/have only a glancing acquaintance/are just crazy about each other/haven't seen each other in much too long/are in some way related/will never meet, but will, I trust, despite that, always think fondly of each other…
This one's for you.
With you know what, and you probably know why. "
Neil Gaiman, Anansi Boys
I've saved my all time favorite for last…
For Colin Firth–You're a really great guy, but I'm married, so I think we should just be friends.
Shannon Hale, Austenland
Do you have any favorite dedications in mind? Or better yet, what dedication would you write?
