First Line Friday
How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa
I’m starting a new thing. On Fridays, I will post the first lines of the stories in selected collections. Hope you enjoy!
First up, is How to Pronounce Knife.
“How to Pronounce Knife”
The note had been typed out, folded over two times, and pinned to the child’s chest.
“Paris”
The sky was black like the middle of an eye.
“Slingshot”
I was seventy when I met Richard.
“Randy Travis”
The only thing my mother liked about the new country we were living in was its music.
“Mani Pedi”
The bright industrial lights hung in neat rows on the ceiling.
“Chick-A-Chee!”
Our building had five floors, and each one looked the same—two green doors on one side of a hallway facing two green doors on the other side.
“The Universe Would Be So Cruel”
Mr. Vong stretched his neck to peer over the heads of the wedding guests, trying to get a good view of the bride and groom.
“Edge of the World”
When I was about four, my mother and I spent our days sitting side by side on the couch, watching soap operas and eating chocolates and laughing.
“The School Bus Driver”
The school bus driver was named Jai.
“You Are So Embarrassing”
Everything outside was blurry and wet, and there was nothing to be done about it.
“Ewwrrrkk”
The summer I turned eight, my great-grandmother showed me her boobs.
“The Gas Station”
Mary believed there were two kinds of people in the world.
“A Far Distant Thing”
The mould on the walls started as little black dots near the floor.
“Picking Worms”
I remember that morning because I woke up to such dark.
Buy How to Pronounce Knife here.
Buy River of Dolls and Other Stories by Suzanne Kamata here.
Buy The Beautiful One Has Come by Suzanne Kamata here.
Buy Owls in the Ginza (and other stories from a life in Japan) here.
Cool idea!