(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
I'm Doug Johnson. And I'm Shirley Griffith with PEOPLE IN AMERICA in VOA Special English. Today, we tell about Laura Ingalls Wilder who wrote the "Little House" books for children.
MOTHER: "Daisy, it's time!"
DAISY: "Mom !"
MOTHER: "Now, Daisy, that's enough music for tonight. You have to go to sleep."
DAISY: "But, Mom, it's still early!"
MOTHER: "Young lady, you have school tomorrow. You need your rest."
DAISY: "But I'm not sleepy! Besides, you promised to read me a story."
MOTHER: "O.K. But just for a little while."
DAISY: "Yeah! Please make it ‘The Little House on the Prairie.' I love that book. Please, please, please!"
MOTHER: "Alright, here goes."
"A long time ago, when all the grandfathers and grandmothers of today were little boys and girls or very small babies, or perhaps not even born, Pa and Ma and Mary and Laura and Baby Carrie left their little house in the Big Woods of Wisconsin. They drove away and left it lonely and empty in the clearing among the big trees, and they never saw that little house again."
Since the nineteen thirties, children have gone to sleep listening to the words of Laura Ingalls Wilder. She wrote nine "Little House" books that take place in the mid eighteen hundreds. They tell about a family who lived on the great flat land known as the prairie in the central part of the United States. They were known as pioneers.
The family moved from one small house to another. They carried all they owned in a wagon, pulled by a horse. They did not like to live and work in big cities. They enjoyed farming and raising animals. And they loved the open spaces of the prairie.
Laura Ingalls was born in eighteen sixty-seven in an area known as the "Big Woods" of Wisconsin. Her father was said to have a "restless spirit." He did not like to live in one place very long. The family moved from Wisconsin to Kansas, then to Minnesota, Iowa, and South Dakota.
Laura's father was always looking for a better job, or better land to settle on. Life for the Ingalls family was not easy. They were often cold and hungry. Laura remembered these times when she wrote her "Little House" books later in life.
When she was about sixteen, Laura began teaching school. Two years later, she married Almanzo Wilder. A year and a half after that, Laura gave birth to a baby girl. They named her Rose. They hoped to settle on a nice farm and raise a large family. But they experienced a series of bad luck.
For several years there was no rain. Their crops failed. Then Almanzo became very sick. Their home and barn were destroyed by fire. They had almost no money. For many years they moved from place to place and worked at many different jobs. Finally, Rose urged her mother to try writing for a living. And that is when the idea for the "Little House" books was born.
Laura Ingalls Wilder's first book is called "Little House in the Big Woods." It was published in nineteen thirty-two. It tells of her life when she was about five years old. She calls her mother and father "Ma" and "Pa". She also includes an older sister named Mary and a younger sister named Carrie in her stories. This first book tells how Laura helps her family on their small farm.
She learns how to grow crops and prepare for a cold winter. After working hard all day, Pa would play his fiddle, and sometimes they would sing and dance. Life was simple, but good.
The next book in the series is called "Farmer Boy." It tells the story of Almanzo Wilder growing up on a farm in New York State. It is different from the other "Little House" books because it is only about Almanzo.
Then, in nineteen thirty-five, Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote her most famous book, "Little House on the Prairie." It tells stories that are exciting, and sometimes scary, like this one.
"One dark night after the family had gone to bed, Laura thought she heard a strange sound outside. Suddenly, Jack, her dog, began to bark. He was afraid. And so was their horse, Patty. What could it be? Was someone trying to break in and rob them? They could not call for help. Their closest neighbors were far away. And then they heard a horrible sound."
Wolves were not the only problems the Ingalls family faced. In the next book, "On the Banks of Plum Creek," something unusual happens.
"Laura's father had planted a large crop of wheat. The weather had been good. The wheat was tall, and ready to be cut and sold. The money from the crop would make them feel rich. One day, Laura was in their little house when she saw something strange. It looked like the sky was getting dark. Her mother said a storm was coming. They walked out the door a short distance to see the storm. But there was no wind, and no thunder or lightning. They saw a huge cloud go across the sun. The cloud was dark, but seemed to have little golden lights inside. What could it be? Then...they heard it."
"One, two, then ten ... a hundred ... then thousands of grasshoppers began falling from the sky. Laura screamed as the insects landed on her clothes and crawled in her hair. The family quickly ran into the house. But the grasshoppers kept coming. They soon covered the roof of the house and the ground outside. Pa remembered the wheat crop and looked out the window. The grasshoppers were attacking the crops in the fields. He could even hear them as they chewed and chewed. Within a short time, there was nothing left. There would be no wheat crop this year. And there would be no money."
The next "Little House" book is called "By the Shores of Silver Lake." In this book, the Ingalls family moves to South Dakota. Pa takes a job in a small store owned by the railroad. Once again he builds a house for his family, and they hope that their traveling days are over.
"The Long Winter" is the next book in the series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. It tells about an old Native American man who warns that there will be seven months of heavy snow and wind.
The first blizzard comes in the middle of October, much sooner than usual. One storm follows another. For weeks, the Ingalls have only potatoes and bread to eat. They run out of wood to burn for heat. The blizzards are so bad that the children cannot even walk to school.
The next book in the series, "Little Town on the Prairie" was published in nineteen forty-one. In this book, the Ingalls family continues to move from place to place in the central prairie land of America. Laura grows older and becomes a school teacher.
In the next book, "These Happy Golden Years," Laura and Almanzo are married and move into their own home. The last book in the series is called "The First Four Years." It tells about Laura and Almanzo as they begin their life together.
The "Little House" books are all fiction. But they are closely based upon the memories of Laura Ingalls Wilder. When she was asked which parts of her stories were true, she often said: "I lived everything I wrote."
The writer and her husband finally settled at Rocky Ridge Farm in Mansfield, Missouri. Almanzo was ninety-two when he died in nineteen forty-nine. Laura died in nineteen fifty-seven, just after her ninetieth birthday.
The Wilder's Rocky Ridge Farm is now a museum. Thousands of people from around the world come to visit each year. The can see many of Laura's hand written pages for the "Little House" books. They can also see photographs of the family, and some of the clothes that Laura sewed while living on the prairie. Visitors can see tools and other things that Almanzo used to build their houses and farm the land. And they can see Pa's fiddle.
The "Little House" books continue to sell very well. They have been translated into forty-five languages. The books are written in a simple style that is easy for young people to understand. Many teachers in the United States and foreign countries use the books in their classrooms. They help students learn to read English, and to understand the history of pioneering life in America. And children around the world, just like Daisy, beg their parents for just one more story at bedtime.
MOTHER: "They were all happy that night. The fire was pleasant. Outside the sky was full of stars. Pa sat for a long time in the doorway and played his fiddle. He sang to Ma and Mary and Laura and to the starry night outside."
MOTHER: "Daisy? Daisy?"
DAISY: " ‘Night Mom."
重点解析
1.take place发生；举行
When these things take place, your initial reaction may be one of fear but DO NOT be afraid.
当这些事情发生的时候，你们的最初的反应可以是一种恐惧，但请不要害怕。
2.a series of 一系列的
To do this they pitted the groups against each other in a series of competitions.
为了达到这个目的，他们让两组人在一系列的竞赛中相互竞争。
3.break in打断；闯入
Yet thieves break in and steal the gold.
盗贼却得以闯入，偷走黄金。
4.run out of用完
If we run out of money, we can sell some of the products in Guangzhou.
如果我们的钱用完了， 可以在广州卖掉一些 产品。
5.from place to place各地
Cooking is different from place to place as a result of different cultures and living styles.
由于各地的文化背景和生活方式不同，各地的烹饪手法也不同。
6.call for要求；需要
At present there are some problems within the Party and among the people which call for solution.
现在在我们党内和人民当中，也确实有一些问题需要得到解答。
参考译文
我是道格·约翰逊，我是雪莉·格里菲斯，这里是VOA慢速英语栏目《美国人物志》。今天我们讲述创作了儿童读物《小房子》的劳拉·英格尔斯·怀尔德的故事。
母亲：“黛西，时间到了！”
黛西：“妈妈！”
母亲：“黛西，今晚的音乐听够了。你该睡觉了。”
黛西：“但是妈妈，天色还早啊！”
母亲：“女士，你明天还要上学，你需要休息。”
黛西：“但是我还不困，你答应我要给我读一个故事的。”
母亲：“好吧，但是就读一会儿。”
黛西：“好啊！请读《草原上的小房子》这本书。我喜欢这本书，求求你了。”
母亲：“好的，要开始了。”
“很久以前，当今天所有的爷爷奶奶都是小男孩小女孩或者很小的婴儿，或者甚至还没有出生时，爸爸、妈妈、玛丽、劳拉和小嘉莉离开了他们在威斯康辛州大树林里的小房子。他们把车子开走了，把它孤零零地留在大树中间的空地上，他们再也没有见到那所小房子。”
自20世纪30年代以来，孩子们一直在听劳拉·英格尔斯·怀尔德的作品入睡。她写了九本发生在18世纪中期的《小房子》。他们讲述了一个家庭的故事，他们住在美国中部被称为大草原的平坦土地上。他们被称为先驱者。
这家人从一所小房子搬到另一所小房子。他们把所有的东西都放在马车上，由一匹马拉着。他们不喜欢在大城市生活和工作。他们喜欢耕作和饲养动物。他们喜欢大草原的开阔地带。
劳拉·英格尔斯于1867年出生在威斯康辛州一个被称为“大森林”的地区。据说她的父亲有一种“不安分的精神”。他不喜欢在一个地方住很长时间。他们一家从威斯康辛州搬到了堪萨斯州，然后又搬到了明尼苏达州、爱荷华州和南达科他州。
劳拉的父亲总是在寻找更好的工作，或者更好的土地定居。英格尔斯一家的生活并不容易。他们经常又冷又饿。劳拉还记得她晚年写《小房子》的时候。
大约16岁时，劳拉开始在学校教书。两年后，她嫁给了阿尔曼佐·怀尔德。一年半之后，劳拉生了一个女孩。他们给她起名叫罗斯。他们希望在一个漂亮的农场安顿下来，养育一个大家庭。但是他们的坏运气一个接一个。
好几年没有下雨。庄稼都没有收成。然后阿尔曼佐病得很重。他们的家和谷仓被火烧毁了。他们几乎没有钱。多年来，他们从一个地方搬到另一个地方，换了一个又一个的工作。最终，罗斯力劝母亲尝试以写作谋生。就是这个时候，她产生了创作《小房子》的想法。
劳拉·英格尔斯·怀尔德的第一本书叫《大森林中的小房子》。它于1932年出版。它讲述了她大约五岁时的生活。她叫她的父母“妈”和“爸”。她的故事中还包括一个叫玛丽的姐姐和一个叫凯莉的妹妹。第一本书讲述劳拉在他们的小农场如何帮助她的家人。
她学习如何种植庄稼，为寒冷的冬天做准备。辛苦工作一整天后，爸爸会拉小提琴，有时他们会唱歌跳舞。生活很简单，但很美好。
这个系列的下一本书叫做《农夫男孩》。它讲述了阿尔曼佐·怀尔德在纽约州的一个农场长大的故事。它不同于其他“小房子”的书，因为它只是关于阿尔曼佐。
然后，在1935年，劳拉英格尔斯怀尔德写了她最著名的书，《小房子在草原上》。它讲述的故事令人兴奋，有时也令人恐惧，就像这个故事。
“在一个漆黑的夜晚，一家人都上床睡觉了，劳拉觉得她听到外面有奇怪的声音。突然，她的狗杰克开始叫了起来。他很害怕。他们的马帕蒂也是。会是什么呢?有人想闯进来抢劫他们吗?他们无法呼救。他们最近的邻居离他们很远。然后他们听到了可怕的声音。”
狼不是英格尔一家面临的唯一问题。在下一本书《梅溪岸边》中，不寻常的事情发生了。
“劳拉的父亲种了一大片小麦。天气一直很好。麦子长得很高，可以割下来卖了。从农作物中获得的钱会让他们变得富有。一天，劳拉在他们的小房子里看到了一些奇怪的东西。看起来天在变黑。他母亲说，暴风雨要来了。他们走出门外不远去看这场暴风雨。但是，外面没有风，没有雷声或闪电。他们看到一片巨大的乌云穿过太阳。云彩是黑色的，但是它里面好像有一些金光。它会是什么呢？然后...他们听到了声音。”
“一只两只，然后十只，成百上千只草蜢开始从天空中降落。当这些昆虫落到劳拉的衣服上，在她的头发里爬动时，她喊了出来。一家人赶快跑进房子里面。但是草蜢不断增多。草蜢很快覆盖了房顶和门外的地面。爸爸想起了小麦，向窗外望去。草蜢在攻击着田里的庄稼。他甚至能听到他们咀嚼庄稼的声音。时间不长，田里就没什么东西了。今年小麦不会有收成。也不会有收入。”
下一本《小房子》的书名是《银湖岸边》。在这本书中，英格尔斯一家搬到了南达科他州。爸爸在铁路所属的一家小商店里找了份工作。他再一次为他的家人建造了一座房子，他们希望他们的旅行日子结束了。
《漫长的冬天》是劳拉·英格尔斯·怀尔德的下一本书。它讲的是一个美国土著老人警告说，未来将有七个月的大雪和大风的故事。
第一场暴风雪于十月中旬降临，比往常来的更早。暴风雨接踵而至。数周来，英格尔斯一家只能以土豆和面包为食。他们燃烧供暖的木头也用完了。暴风雪太大了，孩子们甚至不能走路上学。
该系列的下一本书，《草原上的小镇》于1941年出版。在这本书中，英格尔斯一家继续从一个地方搬到美国中部大草原上的另一个地方。劳拉长大后成为了一名教师。在下一本书《幸福的金色岁月》中，劳拉和阿尔曼佐结婚了，搬进了自己的家。这个系列的最后一本书叫做《头四年》。它讲述了劳拉和阿尔曼佐在一起后的生活。
《小房子》的书都是虚构的。但它们都是基于劳拉·英格尔斯·怀尔德的记忆。当被问及她的故事中哪些部分是真实的时，她经常说：“我写的一切东西我都经历过。”
这位作家和她的丈夫最终定居在密苏里州曼斯菲尔德的洛基里奇农场。阿尔曼佐于1949年去世，享年92岁。劳拉在1957年去世，就在她90岁生日之后。
怀尔德的洛基岭农场现在是一个博物馆。每年有成千上万的人从世界各地来参观。他们可以看到许多《小房子》的手写稿。他们还可以看到这家人的照片，以及劳拉在大草原上缝制的一些衣服。参观者可以看到阿尔曼佐用来建造房屋和耕种土地的工具和其他东西。他们可以看到爸爸的小提琴。
《小房子》系列图书现在的销量依然很好。他们已被翻译成45种语言。这些书写得很简单，年轻人很容易理解。许多美国和外国的老师在他们的课程里使用这些书。他们帮助学生学习阅读英语，了解美国开拓生活的历史。世界各地的孩子们，就像黛西一样，都会在睡前向他们的父母讨一个故事。
母亲：“那天晚上，他们都很开心。炉火很旺，窗外满天繁星。爸爸在门口坐了很长时间，拉着小提琴。他为妈妈、玛丽、劳拉和外面的星空唱歌。”
母亲：“黛西，黛西？”
黛西：“晚安，妈妈。”
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
