25 Picture Book First Lines

This week the SCBWI San Fernando Valley Schmooze is focusing on picture books and first lines. I grabbed some favorites from my first line posts and I divided them between prose and rhyming Picture Books. The titles are linked to the books. I have fiddled with the spacing and font and today is one of those times Blogger hates me. So I apologize for the non-uniform look of the titles and links and fonts/. Think of it as Blogger's creativity shining through.
Please tell me your favorite. Want to share your best first line from your own work? Comments welcomed. Happy reading and writing.

Prose first lines

1. Everything was just dandy till that Emily Post book showed up.
Thanks a LOT, Emily Post! by Jennifer Larue Huget, Illustrated by Alexandra Boiger (First book)

2.  TUESDAY EVENING, AROUND EIGHT.

Tuesday written and illustrated by David Weisner

3.  In the biggest, brownest muddiest river in all Africa, two crocodiles lay with their heads just above the water. One of the crocodiles was enormous. The other was not so big.

The Enormous Crocodile. Roald Dahl Illustrated by Quentin Blake.

4.  In an old house in Paris that was covered with vines lived twelve little girls in two straight lines 

Madeline  written and illustrated by Ludwig Bemelmans

 5.  Out in the hottest, dustiest part of town is an orphanage run by a female person nasty enough to scare night into day.

Saving Sweetness by Diane Stanley Illustrated by G. Brian Karas 

 

6.  Five little puppies dug a hole under the fence and went for a walk in the wide, wide world. 

The Poky Little Puppy by Janette Sebring Lowrey - Illustrated by Gustaf Tenggren

 7.  My friend Lincoln says you have two dads. That’s right poppa and daddy.

A Tale of Two Daddies by Vanita Oelschlager Iluustated by Kristin Blackwood and Mike Blane

9.  Mama love to sing. Her singing was always a happy part of everyday life. But everything changed the day after my seventh birthday.

Floating on Mama’s Song by Laura Lacamara, Illustrated by Yuyi Morales(First book)

 10. I took the moon for a walk last night.

I took the Moon for a walk by Carolyn Curtis, illustrated by Allison Jay.(First book)

11.  Once upon a time Chicken Licken was standing around when a piece of something fell on her head.
 

The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka, Iluustrated by Lane Smith. (As best as I can determine, this was his first book. Wow!)
 

On a cold afternoon, in a cold little town, where everywhere you looked was either the white of snow or the black of soot from chimneys, Annabelle found a box filled with yarn of every color.

ExtraYarn by Mac Barnette. Illustrated by Jon Klassen Extra Yarn is a also Caldecott Honors Book for 2012

 

12. Everyone was perfectly fine with the way things were. Everyone but Mr. Tiger.

Mr. Tiger Goes Wild written and illustrated by Peter Brown  2014 Cybil winner.

 

13.  Whenever the wind lifted off the river, and sent the trees to dancing, I itched to fly a kite.

I’d race to the great Niagara, plumes of mist rising from plunging waters, wind licking at my face.

 A boy like me knew, just knew which day would be perfect for flying kites.

The Kite That Bridged Two Nations by Alexis O'Neil, Illustrated by Terry Widener 2014 Crystal Kite Winner

14.  The Lion is known throughout the animal kingdom as the “King of Beasts.” 
The Great White Shark is the most feared predator in the ocean. 
And the Timberwolf’s howl strikes terror into the hearts of fuzzy woodland creatures everywhere. 
But even SAVAGE CARNIVORES get their feelings hurt.

Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds, Illustrated by Dan Santat  

15.  Peter snuggled into Uncle's lap as the carriage clattered through the valleys of Switzerland. Baby Annette slept in Mother's arms, a small pink blossom against a wall of black.

The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus, illustrated by Melissa Sweet, written by Jen Bryant. 2015 Caldcott Honor Book

16.  He was born on an island far away where imaginary friends were created."

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend, Written and Illustrated by Dan Santat

 

 Picture Books that Rhyme

1.  Not last night but the night before, three black cats came knocking at the door.

Not Last Night But The Night Before by Colin McNaughton, Illus by Emma Chichester Clark

 

2.  One morning at the breakfast table, when I read the juice box label, (thinking it was tightly closed), my daddy’s pants got orange-hosed. 

 

I Always ALWAYS Get My Way by Thad Kranesky, Illus by David Parkins (Thad is a first time picture book author. It was published in 2009) 

When I grow up, I'll live in a tree.
Just my cats, Quentin, Quigley and me.
 

Growing Up Dreams by Susan J. Berger, Illus by Samantha Bell

 

4.   Beep Beep. Sheep in a jeep on a hill that’s steep

Sheep in a Jeep by Nancy Shaw, Illustrated by Margaret Apple (First Book)

 

5.  In a House on a hill there’s a wild little child not ready to close her eyes.

She burrows in blankets and talks to her toys and listens to lullabies.

 

Hillside Lullaby by Hope Vestergaard Illustrated by Margie Moore

 

6.  Many places make a home – a heap of twigs, a honeycomb.

A castle with a tower or two, an aerie with a birds-eye view.

 

 Castles Caves and Honeycombs by Linda Ashman Illustrated by Lauren Stringer
 

 

7.  See the piggy, see the puddle, see the piggy in the middle of the muddy little puddle.

See her dwaddle, see Her diddle, in the muddy muddy middle.

See her waddle, plump and little, in the very merry middle.

 

The Piggy in the Puddle by Charlotte Pomerantz Illustrated by James Marshall
 

 

 8.  In a wee little house in a wee little hole, lived a wee little mouse and a wee little mole.

 

One Dark Night by Lisa Wheeler Illustrated by Ivan Bated.(This was Lisa Wheeler’s first book. She has written many wonderful books. I wanted to blog the first line of the first one.)


9. Dusk creeps in and day is done.
The last few rays of stubborn sun
Cling to the hilltop, tree and town.
We wish that we could push it down.

 Bats at the Ballgame Written and illustrated by Brian Lies