Reader's Block

I was sitting with my sister-in-law a few weeks ago and we were talking about life, the universe and everything. I told her that I have not finished a book since June. She looked at me and told me that she was the same way after her dad died. (Most of you know that my mom died in July.) I've been thinking about it a lot and wondering just WHY is that the case? Is it just (JUST!) the grief? I've not been all that "efficient" at reading for the last couple of years. Grad school and Web 2.0 seems to have taken quite a bit of my reading energy. The only other time I remember going so long without finishing a book was when my son was born. Back then, I didn't even start a book. Now, I start a book but don't get it finished.

Here's a sample of books I've started:

Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett

The Lord is My Shepherd by Harold Kushner

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving

Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell

The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver

Those poor books! They don't deserve to be neglected like this. I think a need a prescription from the doctor that says I HAVE to read for 30 minutes a day. No matter what. Not that I do everything my doctor tells me to do.

Anyway, I was just wondering have any of you ever experienced Reader's Block? If so, do you know what caused it? How long did it last? Do you remember the first books you read after your reading slump was over?

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Cross posted at T-Dot Bloggers Book Club.

Unforgettable Firsts

I am reading Bel Canto by Ann Patchett for one of my bookclubs.  (I am only in two.)  I was struck by the first line of the book:

"When the lights went off, the accompanist kissed her."

What a great first line.  It leads to all sorts of questions.  

"Kissed who?"

"Why did the lights go off?"

"Did he kiss her because the lights went off?"

Immediately you want answers to your questions.  That line draws you in.

It reminded me of another one of my favorite first lines from Charles Williams' War in Heaven:

"The telephone bell was ringing wildly, but without result, since there was no-one in the room except the corpse."

You get a picture in your head right away of this scene and again, it raises questions and draws you in to the story.  It also made me want to answer that phone!

There are some very famous first lines in novels:

"Call me Ishmael."

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.

Anyone have trouble connecting those first lines with the novels they come from?  I didn't think so.

This first line rumination got me, well, ruminating some more...

What are some of your favorite first lines in novels, short stories, non-fiction?