Cannery Row by John Steinbeck is my candidate for best opening line in a fiction book: “Cannery Row in Monterey in California is a poem, a stink, a grating noise, a quality of light, a tone, a habit, a nostalgia, a dream.” The rest of the opening paragraph isn’t bad either, and provides a great orientation for Steinbeck’s exploration of the characters inhabiting this small part of Monterey, CA before the Second World War. Dropping in on Cannery Row, we meet Lee Chong, Dora, Mack, and Doc as we’re introduced to their community. Like much of Steinbeck’s short fiction, the chapters build upon each other in layers, and we see the characters interact with each other in different ways as they struggle to support one another, get ahead, and survive.

Rich details pull you into the book. Cannery Row is a place that Steinbeck knew well, and you can taste the spray coming in off the ocean as you read. The author was friendly with Ed Ricketts, who appears here as Doc, and he based the events of his novel on the real stories and culture of the Row. Steinbeck’s inspirations for the novel are detailed in Real Life on Cannery Row, a comprehensive collection of biographical and historical anecdotes collected by Al Lundy that vividly brings characters and locations to life by placing them in context. If you’re looking for a more visual experience, a 1982 movie starring Nick Nolte and Deborah Winger consolidates material from the novel and its sequel, Sweet Thursday.

You can’t beat the original novel though, and especially that first dynamite paragraph. For a close-up look at an interesting community, check out Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. You’ll be hooked by the end of the first page! Please leave a comment naming your candidate for best opening lines. I’ll be interested to see the list.

John Jewitt – Savage Branch