Pippi Moves into Villa1) Villekulla
(excerpt)
Way out at the end of a tiny little town was an old overgrown2) garden,and in the garden was an old house,and in the house lived Pippi Longstocking.She was nine years old,and she lived there all alone.She had no mother and no father,and that was of course very nice because there was no one to tell her to go to bed just when she was having fun,and no one could make her take cod liver oil3) when she much preferred caramel4) candy.
Once upon a time Pippi had had a father of whom she was extremely fond.Naturally,she had had a mother too,but that was so long ago that Pippi didn't remember her at all.Her mother had died when Pippi was just a tiny baby and lay in a cradle and howled5) so that nobody could go anywhere near her.Pippi was sure that her mother was now in Heaven,watching her little girl through a peephole6) in the sky,and Pippi often waved up at her and called,“Don' t you worry about me.I'll always come out on top.”
Pippi had not forgotten her father.He was a sea captain who sailed on the great ocean,and Pippi had sailed with him in his ship until one day her father was blown overboard in a storm and disappeared.But Pippi was absolutely certain that he would come back.She would never believe that he had drowned;she was sure he had floated until he landed on an island inhabited by cannibals7) and went around with a golden crown on his head all day long.
“My papa is a cannibal king;it certainly isn't every child who has such a stylish8) papa,”Pippi used to say with satisfaction.“And as soon as my papa has built himself a boat he will come and get me,and I'll be a cannibal princess.Heighho,won' t that be exciting?”
Her father had bought the old house in the garden many years ago.He thought he would live there with Pippi when he grew old and couldn't sail the seas any longer.And then this annoying thing had to happen,that he was blown into the ocean,and while Pippi was waiting for him to come back she went straight home to Villa Villekulla.That was the name of the house.It stood there ready and waiting for her.One lovely summer evening she had said good-bye to all the sailors on her father's boat.They were all fond of Pippi,and she of them.
“So long,boys,”she said and kissed each one on the forehead.“Don't worry about me.I'll always come out on top.”
Two things she took with her from the ship:a little monkey whose name was Mr.Nilsson--he was a present from her father--and a big suitcase full of gold pieces.The sailors stood upon the deck and watched as long as they could see her.She walked straight ahead without looking back at all,with Mr.Nilsson on her shoulder and her suitcase in her hand.
“A remarkable child,”said one of the sailors as Pippi disappeared in the distance.
瑞典兒童文學(xué)大師 阿斯特麗德·林格倫
阿斯特麗德·林格倫(Astrid Lindgren,1907~2002),瑞典20世紀(jì)享譽(yù)世界的女作家,1907年11月14日生于瑞典南部斯莫蘭?。?/span>Smaland)的一個(gè)佃農(nóng)家庭。父親名叫塞繆爾·奧古斯特·埃里克松(Samuel August Ericsson);全家生活在小城維默比(Vimmerby)附近的內(nèi)斯(Nas)農(nóng)場(chǎng)。小阿斯特麗德住在一棟老式的紅房子里,屋子周圍是蘋果園。她十分喜愛(ài)讀書(shū),尤其熱愛(ài)那些以小女孩為主角的書(shū)籍。但她并不想當(dāng)作家,甚至害怕那樣一種寫作生涯。
1926年阿斯特麗德到首都斯德哥爾摩(Stockholm)謀生。接受文秘培訓(xùn)后,她在皇家汽車俱樂(lè)部(Royal Automobile Club)供職。1931年她與斯圖爾·林格倫(Sture Lindgren)結(jié)婚,1952年起孀居。2002年1月28日,她在斯德哥爾摩的家中逝世。
阿斯特麗德·林格倫的一生是漫長(zhǎng)而輝煌的一生。她成名于長(zhǎng)篇兒童小說(shuō)《長(zhǎng)襪子皮皮》(Pippi Longstocking,1945)的出版。成名之后,她一邊勤奮創(chuàng)作,一邊長(zhǎng)期擔(dān)任拉本與肖格倫出版公司(Raben&Sjogren)兒童部編輯。一生中她創(chuàng)作出版了100多本書(shū),獲得過(guò)包括安徒生獎(jiǎng)(Hans Christian Andersen Medal)在內(nèi)的許多國(guó)際文學(xué)大獎(jiǎng),還被一些國(guó)外的大學(xué)授予榮譽(yù)博士頭銜。1999年她當(dāng)選20世紀(jì)最受歡迎的瑞典人。目前,她的肖像已印上郵票,在瑞典發(fā)行;她的作品早已風(fēng)靡世界,被譯成至少60種文字。
用一顆童心、一腔愛(ài)心和一生歲月,阿斯特麗德·林格倫構(gòu)筑起一個(gè)充滿魅力的兒童世界。她作品中的小主人公往往有著鮮明的面貌和性格,或頑皮,或任性,或勇敢,但都善良可愛(ài),渴望獨(dú)立并具反抗精神。她最受喜愛(ài)的作品有《長(zhǎng)襪子皮皮》、《米歐,我的米歐》(Mio,My Son,1954)、《小飛人卡爾松》(Karlsson-on-the-Roof,1955)、《淘氣包艾米爾》(Emil in the Soup Tureen,1963)和《獅心兄弟》(The Broth-ers Lionheart,1973)等等。這些作品和作品中的人物已經(jīng)成為無(wú)數(shù)孩子心目中的寶貝和偶像,成為無(wú)數(shù)成人記憶中難忘的閱讀體驗(yàn)。
《長(zhǎng)襪子皮皮》系列兒童故事是阿斯特麗德·林格倫的代表作。寫作緣起于作者在女兒卡林(Karin)患病時(shí)給她編的故事。長(zhǎng)襪子皮皮的名字是卡林順口說(shuō)出來(lái)的。故事中的皮皮是一個(gè)9歲孤女,關(guān)于她的一切是那么稀奇古怪:她無(wú)父無(wú)母,獨(dú)居老屋,身邊帶著一只小猴;她無(wú)憂無(wú)慮,不愁吃穿,擁有一袋金幣;她不守規(guī)矩,喜歡冒險(xiǎn),力氣大得能舉起一匹馬;她火紅的頭發(fā)扎成兩條硬梆梆的小辮子,土豆似的鼻子上長(zhǎng)滿雀斑,腳穿一雙超大鞋,一只襪子黑色另一只襪子棕色。皮皮在一些家長(zhǎng)眼里可能是野孩子的形象,但在孩子們心中代表著自由、勇敢和快樂(lè),贏得了喜愛(ài)。
下文選自《長(zhǎng)襪子皮皮》的開(kāi)頭部分,采用Florence Lamborn的英文翻譯。
皮皮住進(jìn)維爾庫(kù)拉別墅
在小鎮(zhèn)一端的路的盡頭是一個(gè)草木叢生的古老花園,花園里有一所老屋,房屋里住著長(zhǎng)襪子皮皮。她有9歲了,一直是一個(gè)人住。她沒(méi)有母親也沒(méi)有父親,這當(dāng)然好極了,因?yàn)樵谒娴瞄_(kāi)心時(shí),沒(méi)人告訴她去上床睡覺(jué),當(dāng)她非常想吃卡拉梅爾糖時(shí),沒(méi)人讓她吃魚(yú)肝油。
以前皮皮有過(guò)一個(gè)父親,她很喜歡他。當(dāng)然她也有一個(gè)母親,但時(shí)間太久,皮皮已經(jīng)根本記不住她了。皮皮還是個(gè)嬰兒時(shí),她的母親就去世了,她被放在搖籃里,并啼哭著,以至任何人都不能來(lái)到接近她的地方。皮皮肯定她的母親現(xiàn)在住在天堂里,在天空中通過(guò)一個(gè)小孔望著她,皮皮經(jīng)常向她招手,并向她喊,“別擔(dān)心我。我會(huì)一直好極了。”
皮皮沒(méi)有忘記她的父親。他是一名航行在大海上的船長(zhǎng),皮皮以前在船上同他一起航行,直到有一天他被風(fēng)暴從甲板上吹走,消失在海中。可是皮皮堅(jiān)信他會(huì)回來(lái)的。她決不相信他會(huì)被淹死;她認(rèn)為他一直漂著,直到在一個(gè)居住著食人族的島上登陸,并在那里整日戴著金冠自在地終日周游。
“我爸爸是食人族的國(guó)王;當(dāng)然不是每個(gè)孩子都有這樣一個(gè)受人歡迎的爸爸。”皮皮一直驕傲地這樣說(shuō)。
“一旦我爸爸自己造了一只船,他就會(huì)回來(lái)接我,我就會(huì)成為食人族的公主。哎呀,那不是太刺激了嗎?”
她的父親許多年前買下這所位于花園中的老屋。他想當(dāng)他老了不能再航海了,就和皮皮一起住在那里??墒呛髞?lái)這件惱人的事就發(fā)生了,他被吹進(jìn)海里,皮皮直接回到維爾庫(kù)拉別墅(這是那所房屋的名稱)家中等候他回來(lái)。別墅靜靜站在那里等著她。在一個(gè)怡人的夏夜里,她告別了父親船上所有船員們。他們都非常喜歡皮皮,皮皮也喜歡他們。
她說(shuō),“再見(jiàn),孩子們,”并吻了每個(gè)人的前額。“你們不必?fù)?dān)心我,我會(huì)一直很好。”
她從船上帶回兩件東西:一只叫做尼爾森先生的小猴--這是他父親給她的禮物,以及一只盛滿金幣的大箱子。水手們站在甲板上一直望著她,直到看不見(jiàn)為止。她提著箱子,威爾遜先生伏在她的肩膀上,一直向前走去,從沒(méi)有回頭。
當(dāng)皮皮消失在遠(yuǎn)方時(shí),一名水手說(shuō),“這是個(gè)不一般的孩子。”
NOTE 注釋:
villa [5vilE] n. 別墅
overgrown [5EuvE5^rEun] adj. 簇葉從生的
cod liver oil [kCd 5livE Cil] 魚(yú)肝油
caramel [5kArEmel] n. 卡拉梅爾糖
howl [haul] v. 嚎叫, 怒吼
peephole [5pi:phEJl] n. 窺視孔
cannibal [5kAnibEl] n. 食人者
stylish [5staIlIF] adj. 時(shí)髦的,受歡迎的