#prima belladonna

[famous1stwords]

I first met Jane Ciracylides during the Recess, that world slump of boredom, lethargy and high summer which carried us all so blissfully through ten unforgettable years, and I suppose that may have had a lot to do with what went on between us. Certainly I can't believe I could make myself as ridiculous now, but then again, it might have been just Jane herself. 

Whatever else they said about her, everyone had to agree she was a beautiful girl, even if her genetic background was a little mixed. The gossips at Vermilion Sands soon decided there was a good deal of mutant in her, because she had a rich patina–golden skin and what looked like insects for eyes, but that didn't bother either myself or any of my friends, one or two of whom, like Tony Miles and Harry Devine, have never since been quite the same to their wives.

J.G. Ballard. Prima Belladonna.

[crossettlibrary]

First Line Friday

I first met Jane Ciracylides during the Recess, that world slump of boredom, lethargy and high summer which carried us all so blissfully through ten unforgettable years, and I suppose that may have had a lot to do with what went on between us.

The Complete Stories of J.G. Ballard

Odysseus comes back to Ithaca in a little boat on a clear day.

The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason

These days, when people ask how I'm doing - some of them still ask, you'd be surprised - I shrug and say, as manfully as I can, "Much better than you'd think."

A Friend of the Family by Lauren Grodstein

On a cold January day in 1925, a tall, distinguished gentleman hurried across the docks in Hoboken, New Jersey, toward the SS Vauban, a five-hundred-and-eleven-foot ocean liner bound for Rio de Janeiro.

The Lost City of Z by David Grann