Book Beginnings | Robinson Crusoe

"I was born in the year 1632, in the city of York, of a good family, tho' not of that country, my father being a foreigner of Bremen, who settl'd first at Hull."

A very matter of fact beginning to a book which ends up playing out to be very 'matter of fact'.  Usually I don't read the entire work before I post the book beginning, so with hindsight here the opening is true to the rest of the novel.

I suppose that this sort of beginning was fairly common in 1719 when the book was written, though I'd love to know your impressions on it.  I was fairly happy that this book didn't scream of ye ole English, though the punctuation at first may throw you for a loop.