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The Making of The Book Thief 死神的床边故事：《偷书贼》

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

Australian author Markus Zusak had published four books before he sat down to write his award-winning fifth novel, The Book Thief. All had been published in a relatively short amount of time, between 1999 and 2002, and generated a whirlwind of critical acclaim. But there was one story Zusak still longed to tell – a story he had heard time and again from his parents, who grew up in Austria and Germany during the Nazi era. Once more, he listened to his parents’ tale, and The Book Thief began to take shape.

澳洲作家马格斯．朱萨克出版了四本书之后，坐下来写了他获奖的第五部小说《偷书贼》。这四本书在1999年到2002年以相当短的时间相继出版，并迅速地获得了好评。但仍有个故事是朱萨克一直想说的，那便是他屡次从父母亲那里听来的故事。他的父母亲在纳粹时代的奥地利与德国长大，朱萨克再次听到父母亲的故事，于是《偷书贼》开始成形。

Thanks to his previous success, Zusak faced some lofty expectations forThe Book Thief, which was finally released in 2006. Still, he was undaunted. As he recounted in an interview, he has always sought to top himself with each new book he wrote. Why should this one be any different? So, he began by interviewing his parents to get all the little details of their story down on paper.

因为前几本书的成功，朱萨克面临了一些对《偷书贼》的高度期望。这部小说最后终于在2006年出版。一如往昔，朱萨克总是无所畏惧，他在访问中提到，每写一本新书，他总是努力超越自己，那这本书为什么不这么做呢？于是，朱萨克首先访谈他的父母亲，并将他们口述的所有小细节写在纸上。

They told him of the bombing of Munich in World War II, and his mother described how she’d witnessed Jews being marched through her small town. From these chilling, real-life tales, Zusak derived the backdrop for his fictional story, which would be told in the innovative and poetic style that has become his calling card.

他的父母亲告诉朱萨克第二次大战期间幕尼黑地区的大轰炸，还有母亲描述她如何目睹犹太人被强行带走穿过她居住的小镇。朱萨克从这些令人不寒而栗的真实故事中，衍生出小说的故事背景，这本小说以他出名的创新及充满诗意的风格来讲述。

Vocabulary

单词发音

generate [ˋdʒɛnə͵ret] v. 产生

critical acclaim [əˋklem] 评论家的赞赏

era [ˋɛrə] n. 时代；年代

take shape 成形 to start to develop a more clear or certain form

lofty [ˋlɔftɪ] adj. 高耸的; 崇高的

get down 记下, 写下

witness [ˋwɪtnɪs] v. 目击

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单词发音

whirlwind [ˋhwɝl͵wɪnd] adj. 旋风般的

long [lɔŋ] v. 渴望 [+to-v] to have an earnest, heartfelt desire, especially for something beyond reach

time and again 反复地, 再三地, 屡次,一再 repeatedly

undaunted [ʌnˋdɔntɪd] adj. 不屈服的；不畏惧的

recount [ˋri͵kaʊnt] v. 叙述，讲述 narrate or give a detailed account of

top [tɑp] v. 超过；胜过 to exceed or surpass

march [mɑrtʃ] v. 迫使……前进；把（人）强行带走 to make (a person or group) proceed

chilling [ˋtʃɪlɪŋ] adj. 令人寒心的；使人恐惧的

real-life [ˋriəl͵laɪf] adj. 真实的；现实的 actually happening or having happened; not fictional

derive [dɪˋraɪv] v. 衍生出，导出

backdrop [ˋbæk͵drɑp] n. 背景

poetic [poˋɛtɪk] adj. 充满诗意的

calling card 名片; 对某人有帮助的成就或特性  a quality or achievement that gives someone an advantage

课文朗读

课文讲解

The Book of Thief is set in Germany prior to and during World War II. While the setting might be a familiar one, the narrator, Death, brings a darkly intriguing new approach. Death tells the story of Liesel Meminger, a girl whom Death encounters, and her family as they struggle through many wartime hardships.

《偷书贼》的场景设定在二次世界大战前至大战期间的德国，虽然故事场景可能令人觉得熟悉，但是叙事者──死神却带出了令人毛骨悚然且引人入胜的新叙事方式。死神说的是一个衪遇见的一位名叫莉赛尔．麦明葛的女孩和其家人在战争期间奋力求生度过困境的故事。

Liesel and her brother, Werner, are taken by their mother to live with foster parents, Hans and Rosa  Hubermann, because she can no longer take care of them. But on the way to the Hubermanns’ place,  Werner passes away, and Death watches his funeral. It is there that Liesel steals her first book, The Grave Digger’s Handbook.

因为莉赛尔的母亲无法再照顾莉赛尔和弟弟韦纳，便带着他们前往寄养父母家居住，寄养父母为汉斯．修伯曼和罗莎．修伯曼。但在前往休伯曼家的途中，韦纳过世了，而死神在一旁观看韦纳的丧礼。莉赛尔就是在丧礼中偷了她的第一本书《掘墓工人手册》。

Throughout the story, Liesel takes more books from various places, such as the library of the mayor’s wife, and from a Nazi book burning. Her foster parents treat her well, and she makes several friends. Her new family even helps out a Jewish man, during a time when such kindness was very dangerous.

故事中，莉赛尔从各地拿到更多书本，例如从镇长夫人的图书室、或是从纳粹党人焚毁书籍的地点。她的寄养父母对她不错，而莉赛尔也交了几位朋友。莉赛尔的新家庭甚至帮助一名犹太男子脱困，这种仁慈的行为在当时是件相当危险的事情。

Soon Liesel begins to write her own story, which she calls The Book Thief, based on her life. But Death visits her community often, taking more and more of her friends and acquaintances. Even as Death haunts those around her, Liesel survives, eventually living out the rest of her days far from Germany, in Sydney, Australia.

不久，莉赛尔开始写自己的故事，她将这个以自身生活为素材的故事取名为《偷书贼》。但是死神常常拜访莉赛尔居住的小区，带走越来越多她的朋友和认识的人。然而，就在死神常出现在莉赛尔周遭的人身边时，莉赛尔活了下来，她最后远离德国，在澳洲雪梨度过她的余生。

Vocabulary

单词发音

narrator [næˋretɚ] n. 叙述者，讲述者

intriguing [ɪn`trigɪŋ] adj.〔由于奇特﹑神秘或出人意料而〕引起好奇心的; 令人感兴趣的

hardship [ˋhɑrdʃɪp] n. 艰难，困苦

foster [ˋfɔstɚ] adj. 收养的; 寄养的

funeral [ˋfjunərəl] n. 丧葬

acquaintance [əˋkwentəns] n. 相识的人，熟人

live out  度过  to spend the rest or part of your life in a particular place or situation

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单词发音

set [sɛt] v. 为（小说，舞台等）设置背景 to arrange scenery

prior to 在...之前 before

setting [ˋsɛtɪŋ] n. 环境；背景

darkly [ˋdɑrklɪ] adv. 模糊地 vaguely; mysteriously

encounter [ɪnˋkaʊntɚ] v. 意外地遇见

struggle through something 挣扎地度过 to get through something in the best way possible

mayor [ˋmeɚ] n. 市长，镇长

foster parent 养父母 a person who acts as parent and guardian for a child in place of the child's natural parents but without legally adopting the child

help out 帮助...摆脱困难  to help someone do something; to help someone with a problem

Jewish [ˋdʒuɪʃ] adj. 犹太教的

课文朗读

课文讲解

Zusak’s writing style is such that the pages seem to fly by without the reader even being aware. He has an uncommon ability to build suspense and keep the plot believable, even when it contains unbelievable elements. As Zusak himself has said, writing is like pulling off a magic trick. A writer, much like a magician, must make his or her audience believe everything they read, even when they know the words are not true.

朱萨克的写作风格是在读者甚至还没有察觉的时候，书页就似乎飞快翻过了的那一种。朱萨克有种不寻常的能力，他可以创造悬疑，甚至在情节出现不可思议的元素时，仍能保持其可信度。如同朱萨克曾说过，写作就像是完成魔术把戏。作家比较像是魔术师，必须要让读者相信他们阅读到的一切事物，就算他们知道这些文字叙述并非真实。

Despite some fantastical aspects, Zusak’s story also tackles real issues based on historical facts and first-person accounts of life in Nazi Germany. He skillfully depicts the lives of ordinary people living under the Nazi regime as the Holocaust rages on, and more and more people are herded off to the infamous concentration camps. As he dug deeper into records of the time, Zusak came across many stories of regular, everyday people doing extraordinary things for each other. These added beauty to a time period that is otherwise regarded as one of history’s ugliest and most regrettable chapters. Zusak knew he had to include them, and found his book expanding as a result.

尽管有一些想象的层面，朱萨克的故事也处理真实的议题，这些议题根据历史事实以及第一人称叙述的德国纳粹统治时的生活。他有技巧的描述一般人在纳粹统治下的生活，当时纳粹大肆屠杀犹太人，越来越多人被赶进恶名昭彰的集中营。当朱萨克深入探究这个时代的纪录时，他发现许多关于普通平民百姓为彼此做不平常的事的故事。这些故事为这个被认为是历史上最丑陋且最令人遗憾的其中一个篇章添加了美好。朱萨克知道他必须包含这些故事，于是他的书为此增加了篇幅。

With all the hype surrounding The Book Thief, Zusak’s fans are already looking forward to his next book, Bridge of Clay. This time, Zusak will tell the story of a boy who is building a bridge. Needless to say, as in all of Zusak’s works, something that sounds ordinary will likely be anything but.

由于《偷书贼》相关的宣传，朱萨克的书迷已经开始期待他的新书Bridge of Clay。这次朱萨克会讲一个造桥男孩的故事。不用说也知道，就像他所有的作品一样，看起来平凡的事物决不会是表面上那样。

－by Joe Henley

Vocabulary

单词发音

pull off 成功完成 to perform in spite of difficulties or obstacles; bring off

tackle [ˋtæk!] v. 着手对付（或处理）

issue [ˋɪʃjʊ] n. 问题；主题

depict [dɪˋpɪkt] v. 描述；描写

herd off 把……赶在一起 to gather, keep, or drive (animals) in a herd

regrettable [rɪˋgrɛtəb!] adj. 使人悔恨的；令人遗憾的；可惜的 causing or deserving regret; unfortunate

look forward to 期待  to think of (a future event) with pleasurable, eager anticipation

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单词发音

fly by 从…身边飞过, 飞逝 move by very quickly    

suspense [səˋspɛns] n. 悬疑

fantastical  [fæn`tæstɪk!] adj. 奇异的; 荒唐的; 虚构的 conceived or seemingly conceived by an unrestrained imagination; odd and remarkable; bizarre; grotesque

account [əˋkaʊnt] n. 描述；报导 a narrative or record of events

regime [rɪˋʒim] n. 政权；统治

Holocaust [ˋhɑlə͵kɔst] n. 大屠杀      

rage on 肆虐，激烈进行 to spread or prevail forcefully

infamous [ˋɪnfəməs] adj. 臭名昭著的 having an exceedingly bad reputation; notorious

concentration [͵kɑnsɛnˋtreʃən] camp 集中营

come across 偶然碰见 to meet or find by chance

extraordinary [ɪkˋstrɔrdn͵ɛrɪ] adj. 特别的；非凡的 very unusual, remarkable, or surprising

regard [rɪˋgɑrd] v. 认为

expand [ɪkˋspænd] v. 扩大；扩充 to increase the size, volume, quantity, or scope of; enlarge

hype [haɪp] n.〔传媒的〕大肆宣传 intensive or exaggerated publicity or promotion

anything but 根本不, 绝对不  not; used to emphasize that something is the opposite of what you might expect

The Book Thief Official Trailer #1 (2013) - Geoffrey Rush, Emily Watson Movie HD