A celebration of great opening lines in literature.

“Supreme Court Associate Justice J. Mortimer Brinnin’s deteriorating mental condition had been the subject of talk for some months now, but when he showed up for oral argument with his ears wrapped in aluminum foil, the consensus was that the time had finally come for him to retire. Thank God, his fellow justices agreed -- unanimously, for once -- cameras weren’t allowed in the Court.”

-- Supreme Courtship (Twelve, $25) by Christopher Buckley