Popular books have this unique tendency to stand out and defy time. Some capture the mood of the world at a particular moment, while others provide a way to escape it. These are books that continue to enrich and entertain generations, be it through their prose, their stories, or by being genre-defining pieces of literature with a worldwide appeal.

One of the greatest joys of reading is that it allows book lovers to imagine a world, that the writer has created for them, in their way. The same holds true for first lines of novels, which can either tell everything about the story that follows, or absolutely nothing at all.

A list of 15 legendary opening lines from classics across distinct genres, tackling diverse human emotions.