Easy 1st Lines in Children's and Young Adult Literature Trivia Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Which book has this beginning? "The sun did not shine, it was too wet to play, so we sat in the house all that cold, cold, wet day."

Answer: The Cat in the Hat

In 1954 "Life" magazine wrote a very critical article about "Dick and Jane" primers. The educational division at Houghton Mifflin publishers asked Theodore Geisel to write "a story that first-graders can't put down." Theodor Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, wrote "The Cat in the Hat" in 1957. Seuss was his mother's maiden name. Reflecting on the book's success, Dr. Seuss later said "It is the book I'm proudest of because it had something to do with the death of the "Dick and Jane" primers."

The story is about two children home alone on a rainy day until they are visited by a talking cat with a magical hat.

2. What book starts with this line? "'Where's Papa going with the ax?' said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast."

Answer: Charlotte's Web

"Charlotte's Web" was written by E. B. White in 1952. Elwyn White was a writer for "The New Yorker" magazine for over 50 years, starting in 1925. He later focused his work on writing children's stories and won a special Pulitzer Prize in 1978.

The story is about a pig named Wilbur whose life is saved when a spider named Charlotte writes messages about Wilbur in her web.

3. What book has this opening? "Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy."

Answer: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

"The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" was written by C. S. Lewis in 1950. It is the first book in a series called "The Chronicles of Narnia", which consists of seven novels. Clive Staples Lewis was born in Belfast, Ireland and studied in England. In England, Clive converted to Christianity, which can be seen in many of his stories.

"The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" is about four siblings who pass through a magical wardrobe into the land of Narnia where an evil witch and a heroic lion are at odds.

4. What book opens with this line? "The night Max wore his wolf suit and made mischief of one kind and another his mother called him "WILD THING!" and Max said "I'LL EAT YOU UP!" so he was sent to bed without eating anything."

Answer: Where The Wild Things Are

"Where The Wild Things Are" was both written and illustrated by Maurice Sendak in 1963. It was first banned by many schools and given some bad reviews for being too dark. A couple years later Sendak won the Caldecott Medal for 'Most Distinguished American Picture Book of the Year'.

In the story Max fantasizes about a mysterious island of wild creatures who he befriends.

5. What story is this opening line from? "The Mole had been working very hard all the morning, spring cleaning his little home."

Answer: The Wind in the Willows

"The Wind in the Willows" was written by Scottish writer Kenneth Grahame in 1908. Kenneth worked at the Bank of England most his life. After retiring from the bank, he moved to a farm with his wife and son. It is believed his books originated from stories he told his son.

The story is about the life of garden creatures and their adventures. This includes a toad who loves driving cars and later being arrested. There are also the stories of the badger, the mole, and the rat.

6. Who wrote this first line? "Once upon a time there were four little rabbits, and their names were Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-tail, and Peter."

Answer: Beatrix Potter

"The Tale of Peter Rabbit" was created by English writer Helen Beatrix Potter for the son of her governess. Helen later published the story herself in 1901. The book was later picked up by Frederick Warne & Co. and sold over 45 million copies internationally, making it the bestselling book of its time.

Peter Rabbit disobeys his mother's warning and sneaks into the garden of farmer McGregor where danger awaits.

7. Translated from French, what book begins with this line? "Once when I was six years old I saw a magnificent picture in a book called 'True Stories from Nature', about the primeval forest. It was a picture of a boa constrictor in the act of swallowing an animal."

Answer: The Little Prince

"Le Petit Prince" (The Little Prince) was written by Antoine de Saint-Exup�ry in 1943. It is one of the most translated books in the world, printed in 300 languages. Antoine was a pilot in the French Air Force. His first novella was "L'Aviateur" (The Aviator). Besides France, he also lived in the US and Canada. In July of 1944, he took off on a reconnaissance mission from Corsica, and he was never seen again.

In "The Little Prince" a pilot crashes in the desert and meets a boy. The boy tells the pilot his story: He is from a small planet he calls Asteroid 325. He also tells of his travels across the heavens.

8. Who wrote this opening line? "Squire Trelawney, Dr. Livesey, and the rest of these gentlemen having asked me to write down the whole particulars about Treasure Island, from the beginning to the end ..."

Answer: Robert Louis Stevenson

Birth name Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson of Edinburgh, Scotland, he wrote "Treasure Island" in 1883. He started in the family business of lighthouse engineering. He later traveled much of the world forsaking lighthouse designing. Due to poor health, he was also looking for an ideal climate. He later married American Fanny Van de Grift Osbourne.

"Treasure Island" is a coming-of-age story of a boy named Jim Hawkins who hides on a pirate ship and later meets Long John Silver who is on a quest to find buried treasure.

9. This is an excerpt from the poem that opens the story. What book is it from? "This is the hour of pride and power, talon and tusk and claw. Oh, hear the call! Good hunting all, that keep the Jungle Law"

Answer: The Jungle Book

In 1894, Rudyard Kipling wrote a collection of stories called "The Jungle Book". Kipling was an English writer born in Bombay, British India. At age 5, his parents brought him to England but at age 17 he returned to India where he studied and worked in a museum. The next year he started writing stories for a local British paper. Several years after that, he started traveling the world, having a home in both America and England.

"The Jungle Book" is about a boy named Mowgli who is raised by wolves and has many adventure in the jungle where he lives.

10. Who is traditionally credited for writing the poem/story that starts with this line? "'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse."

Answer: Clement Clarke Moore

Clement Clarke Moore was born in 1779 to a wealthy New York family who owned much of the property in New York City's Chelsea area. Clement was a Professor of Oriental and Greek Literature, as well as Divinity and Biblical studies. Moore's Christmas poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas" is his only noted work, and some scholars question if Moore truly authored the work.

The poem is a Christmas story of a home visited by St. Nick.

Source: Author PhillyRex

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor looney_tunes before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

1st Lines in Children's and Young Adult Literature Quiz

This quiz focuses on the first lines of popular children and young adult stories. Some questions ask for the title, others ask for the author.

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