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Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/40230
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

Other answers are correct that you should skip over exposition of all kinds. They're [consistent](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/38513/translating-worldbuilding-into-an-interesting-opening) [with](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/35807/how-to-open-a-novel) [answers to](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/38778/which-should-come-first-building-my-story-or-building-my-world/38790#38790) [other questions](https://writing.stackexchange.com/questions/796/how-does-one-deal-with-world-builders-syndrome/9928#9928) on this site. Furthermore, they're consistent with a lot of my own experience as a reader.

But any good writing teacher would promise you that once you understand the rules you're free to break them!  
I see three other approaches you could take:

- You could blaze ahead with a whole chapter of 3rd-person-omniscient exposition before your story actually begins. This probably isn't the best idea, but if you clearly label it as a prologue it might work. (or a [chorus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_chorus) if you break up the infodump into a few segments throughout the book.)
- You can include an appendix. These can be good fun, and there's lots of ways you can organize them. Several warnings from my own experience:
  - Not everyone will read them, so the story needs to make sense without them (or give clear indications about when the reader should look something up; a footnote would work).
  - On the other hand people who do read them may be annoyed to reread the same information within the story after spending the time to read the appendix.
  - My instinct is always to read a [codex](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex) straight from front to back. Am I going to want to read your appendix after I finish your story? Is that when you want me to read it?
  - You'll probably want to include a table of contents at the beginning; otherwise I won't know to look for an appendix at the end.
- [Fabricate](https://www.reddit.com/r/fantasywriters/comments/7xx3s0/try_using_epigraphs_instead_of_a_prologue/) one or more [epigraphs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epigraph_(literature)). These could be just a few lines, in keeping with the modern style, or these could be lengthy Victorian Gothic letters quoted in full. Careful design can help cue readers when they're safe to skip ahead to the action.

Original score: 5