Booking Through Thursday: Writing Challenge

Here's this week's prompt from Booking Through Thursday:

• Pick up the nearest book. (I’m sure you must have one nearby.)
• Turn to page 123.
• What is the first sentence on the page?
• The last sentence on the page?
• Now . . . connect them together….
  (And no, you may not transcribe the entire page of the book–that’s cheating!)

At first, I thought you were just supposed to put the two sentences together-- and I wondered where the "challenge" was ;o)-- but then I realized that the idea is that we should write our own bridge between the two sentences. That is more challenging!

There were two books nearer me than the others. I suppose I ought to take the one that was on top. . . a copy of Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë. Here are the sentences:

1. 'Generally thought? But what do you think?' (spoken by Mr. Rochester, asking what Jane thinks of gifts. She's just answered that they're generally thought to be pleasant things.)
2. 'I have none.' (spoken by Jane)

This is difficult. I'm so familiar with the dialogue in this book that it's hard for me to think of anything but what really comes next! (g) Well, here goes. . .

'Generally thought? But what do you think?'
'I haven't given them much thought, sir.'
'What? Not given much thought to the subject of presents, Miss Eyre? In my experience, many women think precious little of anything else!'
If by this speech he had hoped to draw from me an entreaty that he look more favorably upon womankind, I meant to disappoint him. But he immediately continued--
'What sort of misers are your parents, that you can claim ignorance of gifts?'
'I have none.'

That wasn't easy. I have renewed respect for dear C.B.! ;o)

The other book is Carry On, Jeeves, by P.G. Wodehouse, and here are the two sentences:

1. 'Rather! Bucks you up, you know!'
2. 'Your nephew's manservant?'

Um-hum. That pair of sentences almost seems to make sense-- in an odd sort of a way ;o)-- on their own. . .

Happy Thursday!