(1). Still in Books and Arts; Book Review;Short stories; Of moose and men
文艺;书评;短篇故事;驼鹿和人;
(2). Light Lifting. By Alexander MacLeod.
《轻量级举重》亚历山大·麦克劳德。
(3). 1:A good novel woos its readers, tantalizes them with glimpses of flesh and gradually lures them into a world from which they later emerge changed.
2:Short stories, by contrast, rely on instant attraction and immediate gratification.
3:If they are good they leave one hungry for the next encounter.
4:More often, though, they leave the reader slightly jarred, looking for greater fulfilment.
1:上乘小说总是招致读者追捧,运用肉体吸引读者,使读者沉浸在完全迥异的世界。
2:对比而言,短篇小说依靠即时吸引力和直接的满足感。
3:小说如是能吸引读者,读者渴望遭遇下一次火花碰撞。
4:短篇小说时常使读者动摇,以获得更大的满足。
(4). Alexander MacLeod does not. His brilliant debut collection, “Light Lifting”, is engrossing, thrilling and ultimately satisfying; each story has the weight of a novel. The young Canadian writer is already winning plaudits in his own country. He can expect acclaim far beyond.
而亚历山大·麦克劳德却不。 他的新诗集《轻量级举重》,引人入胜,惊心动魄,读者能从中获得满足。每一篇故事都是重量级的小说。这位年轻的加拿大作家已在他的家乡赢得满堂喝彩。他有望在千里之外赢得掌声。
(5). These seven stories grip partly because they are long enough to immerse the reader totally. A good storyteller knows far more about his characters and settings than he shares with his audience. Mr MacLeod passes this test: though he plunges the reader into fully formed worlds, he leaves out just the right amount.
七个故事扣人心弦,部分原因是他们足以使读者沉浸其中而无法自拔。一个擅长讲故事的人不只是分享他的故事,而是对人物和背景也运筹帷幄。麦克劳德经得起考验;使读者沉浸在完全刻画的世界,而他却实时的抽身离开。
(6). But it is the beautiful writing that really carries this book. The choice of words is spare, simple and unaffected, and the rhythm is perfect: despite the sadness that overlays many pieces, they flow with the comforting lull of a bedtime story.
正是这些优美措辞成就了这本小说。小说用词犀利简炼,纯朴而不矫揉造作。还有那完美的旋律;除了字里行间流露出的伤感,小说洋溢着鼓舞人心的动听故事。
(7). 1: The first story, “Miracle Mile”, is the best.
2: It mesmerizes from its opening: “This was the day after Mike Tyson bit off Evander Holyfield’s ear.”
3: Narrated by a competitive runner, it captures the minutiae of pre-race nerves—the “hiss” of a coach’s hydraulic door ; the temperature “just inching its way over toward cool”—as well as the “miraculous desperation” that is winning.
1:第一个故事,“长跑奇迹”是最成功的故事。
2:开场就吸引读者:“迈克尔·泰森咬掉霍利菲尔德耳朵那一天”。
3:故事以竞跑着的口吻叙述,捕捉赛前种种细节:液压门的嘶嘶声。酷爽天气中掠过一丝丝热浪,不可思议的绝望也随之而来。
(8). 1: These are unflinching tales not of heroism, so much, but of survival.
2: The most experimental piece, “Wonder about Parents”, snatches scenes from different homes.
3: One family launches a crusade against headlice the “size of a poppy seed”, raking out hair night after night, “kids scratched raw”.
4: Another drives cross-country through a snowstorm with their sick four-month-old daughter; the Christmas tree in the hospital bears a sign: “These gifts are empty boxes. Please refrain from opening.”
1:小说也不乏坚定的非英雄主义人物,得以幸存。
2:最具挑战性的章节“父母的迷惘”从不同家庭中捕捉场景。
3:一个家庭展开对罂粟种子大的头虱的围剿行动,夜以继日的梳理头发,“孩子们刮伤了头皮”。
4:另一家在暴风雪中驱车穿过田野,车上是四岁的生病的女儿。医院的圣诞树象征:“这些礼物只是空盒子,请抑制打开的欲望。”
(9). Other stories capture the consequences of a single moment when the ordinary tips into the extraordinary: in the title story a secondary schooler gets embroiled in a bar brawl on the last day of a summer job; in “Adult Beginner I”, after a woman nearly drowns in the ocean, fear becomes “a biological fact” in her life.
另一个故事通过记录某个时刻,从寻常中挖掘不寻常。在暑期工作的最后一天中等学校学者卷入酒吧斗殴 ;在”成年人的初学者1”中,一和女人即将在海中溺水身亡,恐惧成为她人生中”生理现象”。
(10). Much fiction is narrated by outsiders, but in Mr MacLeod’s imagination being an outlier depends on the context. In “The Loop”, for example, a cycle courier stands out as an able-bodied, right-minded youth among the fat, elderly and invalid people to whom he delivers medication.
众多小说是局外人叙述,但在麦克劳德的小说是靠上下文来决定叙述的。例如在“环“这个故事中描写身体强壮,刚直不阿的年轻人和一群体型肥胖的残疾老人,而后者引发读者思索。
(11). Not every story in “Light Lifting” is perfect. A couple could be tighter; the male characters are better formed than the female ones. But these are small niggles in a stunning work. Mr MacLeod’s next contribution will be eagerly anticipated.
《轻量级举重》中并不是每个故事都那么完美无缺。男性人物形象比女性更容易塑造。在繁琐细节中展现宏伟主题。读者急切盼望麦克劳德下一个创作。