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Episode 130: Opening Movements: Entering the World of a Book
In this episode, we begin a three-part series on the movements of a novel, starting with the opening. Not just the first line or even the first chapter, but that early stretch where a book begins to take shape, sets the tone, introduces its concerns, and makes its promises to the reader.
What do we look for in an opening movement? What helps us trust a book? And how do great openings draw us in? We talk about some of our favorite examples and consider how novels teach us how to read them from the very start.
2026 Novella Book Club
We have announced the four novellas we will be reading for The…
The skinny
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