Whilst sorting out some old books in storage to give to Lifeline I came across a copy of Heidi by Johanna Spyri. That name's become fairly significant to me recently and my aunt mentioned that she liked this book. It seemed the universe wanted me to read it. Unfortunately I have bad news for the universe.

This sentence begins in paragraph two on page one:

"She did not look more than five years old, if as much, but what her natural figure was like, it would have been hard to say, for she had on apparently two, if not three dresses, one above the other, and over these a thick red woollen shawl wound round about her, so that the little body presented a shapeless appearance, as, with its small feet shod in thick, nailed mountain-shoes, it slowly and laboriously plodded its way up in the heat."

o_0

Now imagine that sentence in the original language of Swiss-German.

I read on for a bit but I'm afraid Heidi failed to reel me in. I vaguely recalled opening the book when I was maybe twelve and doing the exact same thing. Determined to read at least some good novels before watching their corresponding films, I opened Ian McEwan's Atonement. This is the first sentence:

"The play - for which Briony had designed the posters, programmes and tickets, constructed the sales booth out of a folding screen tipped on its side, and lined the collection box in red crepe paper - was written by her in a two-day tempest of composition, causing her to miss a breakfast and a lunch."