編輯推薦
A captivating version of Mark Twain's classic yarn about an orphan growing up on the Mississippi. The narrator's voice resembles Twain's; he uses Twain's language. The reader for Tom does an exceptional job. A few of the minor characters sound forced, but don't ruin the performance. For all ages.
Hearn, who edited The Wizard of Oz for Norton's Annotated series, has taken on that formative fiction of American culture, Huckleberry Finn a seemingly transparent work that, as presented in Hearn's exhaustive research, harbors linguistic complexities worthy of an Eliot or a Joyce. In his long introduction, Hearn chronicles Huck's publishing history, from its on-again, off-again composition, to Twain's stormy relationship with his publishers, to the book's embattled trip to the printer (trailing censorious editors in its wake) and its instant success on the market. Hearn offers a thorough cataloguing of the book's critical reception and many controversies, an ample pinch of biography, a lengthy analysis of dialect and a fairly sketchy historical background. The notes themselves (presented alongside the text) are eclectic, sometimes charmingly so: we learn what a huckleberry is, and a sugar-hogshead, and how corn pone is made. Huck's vast repertory of Southern superstitions is carefully glossed, and Hearn wisely includes quotes about the book from Twain (who could scarcely open his mouth without saying something funny) whenever possible. The notes go overboard in their extensive translation of the book's idiomatic speech (readers probably don't need "powwow" defined and can figure out for themselves that "hoss" means horse). On the whole, Hearn supplies interesting information with a light touch possibly too light in the last third of the book, which seems more thinly annotated than the beginning. Restored passages not seen in the original appear in the appendices. Though a stronger anchor in cultural history could have made this volume better, this liberally illustrated and beautifully designed book offers many pleasures for the general reader. (Oct.)Forecast: This is the perfect gift book for all of Huck's fans and should sell very well with the aid of a six-city author tour and national media appearances. Also, in January 2002, a Ken Burns series on Twain will air.
內容簡介
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) is Mark Twain's most popular book, and its hero is a national icon, celebrated as a distinctively American figure both at home and abroad. Tom Sawyer's bold spirit, winsome smile, and inventive solutions to the problems of everyday life in fictional St Petersburg - whether getting his friends to whitewash a fence for him, or escaping the demands of his vigilant Aunt Polly - have won him the hearts of generations.
The very success of Mark Twains's first novel has obscured its contradictions and the extent to which the author's response to contemporary cultural developments was a mixed one. Tom Sawyer is not only a deft comedy and a powerful celebration of childhood. It also reflects how Mark Twain was in the process of finding his distinctive voice, a voice with which he could express the conflicts he felt about coming of age in America.
作者簡介
The Modern Library has played a significant role in American cultural life for the better part of a century. The series was founded in 1917 by the publishers Boni and Liveright and eight years later acquired by Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer. It provided the foundation for their next publishing venture, Random House. The Modern Library has been a staple of the American book trade, providing readers with affordable hardbound editions of important works of literature and thought. For the Modern Library's seventy-fifth anniversary, Random House redesigned the series, restoring as its emblem the running torch-bearer created by Lucian Bernhard in 1925 and refurbishing jackets, bindings, and type, as well as inaugurating a new program of selecting titles. The Modern Library continues to provide the world's best books, at the best prices.,,
內頁插圖
精彩書評
Huckleberry Finn may be the greater book, but Tom Sawyer has always been more widely read. Moreover, it is a book that can be enjoyed equally by both children and adults. Twain, who called it a "hymn" to boyhood, would be thrilled that in narrator Patrick Fraley his hymn has found its most passionate voice. Many good unabridged readings of Tom Sawyer have already been recorded, but most are simply that: readings. Fraley's performance is something more; in attempting to bring each character to life, his enthusiasm for the material is so palpable that the mere sound of his voice commands attention. A can't-miss addition to all libraries, including those that have other Tom Sawyer programs.
——Kent Rasmussen, Thousand Oaks, CA
Grade 5 Up-British actor Mike McShane provides a superb portrayal of Mark Twain's classic characters, nailing the Mississippi drawl and cadence. For those who know and love the story or are following along with an unabridged edition, however, this production is marred somewhat by what the publisher has chosen to leave out. The more descriptive chapters are shortened or expurgated entirely, which is understandable in the interest of editing for time. Some of the more distasteful racial epithets are gone as well, although Injun Joe retains his moniker. Sid and Mary are also cut entirely, as well as references to smoking, slavery, most of Tom's ludicrously funny romantic notions about the violence inflicted by pirates and robbers, and even the naked figure in the schoolmaster's anatomy book. The result is a watered down Tom and, especially, Huck. The ending also lacks the satisfaction of the original version. The party scene where the fortune is revealed has been cut as has Twain's concluding paragraphs which "endeth this chronicle." It lacks even the closure of the customary, "You have been listening to-." The sturdy plastic case will survive many circulations. If your facility serves an elementary-age population for which the language of the original would not be appropriate, or there is a teacher looking for a sanitized version, McShane's excellent performance makes this edition worth recommending.
--Diana Dickerson, White Pigeon Community Schools, MI
暮光之下的歌謠:一個關於失落與發現的史詩 《暮光之下的歌謠》 帶領讀者步入一個被永恒的灰燼和微弱的光芒籠罩的世界。這是一個關於遺忘的國度,一個時間仿佛被凝固在某個失落的下午的維度。故事的主角,一個被稱作“守燈人”的年輕女性,名叫伊萊莎。她生活在一座名為“寂靜之塔”的巨型建築群中,這座塔是文明殘骸中最後的庇護所,聳立在無邊無際的“沉寂之海”上方。 伊萊莎的職責是維護塔中那座巨大、由復雜機械和古老水晶構成的“記憶之光”。這束光芒是塔內所有居民希望和秩序的源泉,也是他們抵抗外部虛無的唯一屏障。然而,隨著時間的推移,記憶之光開始衰弱,閃爍不定,仿佛隨時都會熄滅。更糟的是,伊萊莎發現,隨著光芒的減弱,人們的集體記憶也在逐漸消退,他們開始忘記他們的過去、他們的名字,甚至他們彼此間的聯係。 故事伊始,伊萊莎的生活是嚴謹且單調的,充滿瞭對機械的精準操作和對古老儀式的恪守。她唯一的夥伴是一隻名叫“迴聲”的機械鳥,它能夠捕捉到沉寂之海深處偶爾傳來的、微弱的、如同耳語般的“舊日之聲”。這些聲音是過去世界殘留下來的碎片——可能是音樂的片段、某人的笑聲,或是關於“外麵的世界”的模糊描述。 一天,在例行檢查塔底部的能量核心時,伊萊莎無意中發現瞭一個被遺忘的密室。密室裏沒有閃耀的水晶,取而代之的是一堆腐朽的羊皮紙捲軸和一本封麵殘破的皮革日誌。日誌的主人似乎是建造寂靜之塔的最初幾代工程師之一,他的筆跡潦草而充滿絕望。 日誌中揭示瞭一個驚人的真相:記憶之光並非單純的能源,它實際上是一個巨大的“封印”,用來壓製某種被稱為“虛空之噬”的存在。而支撐這個封印的關鍵能量,並非來自塔內收集的微弱光能,而是源自“真實的迴憶”——那些被塔外世界所遺忘但卻無比強大的情感和經曆。 伊萊莎意識到,如果她不能找到重建真實迴憶的方法,寂靜之塔終將沉入虛無。她決定打破塔的最高戒律——永遠不要嘗試離開塔身,去探索沉寂之海。 穿越沉寂之海 在迴聲的引導下,伊萊莎使用瞭一艘簡陋的、由廢棄金屬拼湊而成的滑翔艇,離開瞭寂靜之塔的安全範圍。沉寂之海並非真正意義上的海洋,而是一片由固態的、充滿靜電的灰霧構成的廣闊平原。能見度極低,空氣中彌漫著一種令人心悸的寂靜。 在旅途中,伊萊莎遇到瞭第一個具有獨立意識的“漂流者”——一個名叫卡西安的流浪者。卡西安似乎擁有比塔內居民更清晰的過去片段,但他對這些片段感到恐懼,並將其視為負擔。他是一個“拾荒者”,專門在灰霧中搜尋那些被遺棄的、具有強烈情感共鳴的物品。 卡西安最初對伊萊莎的到來充滿懷疑,他認為塔裏的人是腐朽秩序的維護者。但當伊萊莎展示瞭日誌中的綫索,並嚮他展示瞭記憶之光衰弱帶來的實際影響——塔內一位老者完全忘記瞭自己孩子的名字時,卡西安終於鬆動瞭。 他嚮伊萊莎透露瞭一個關鍵信息:在沉寂之海的更深處,存在著被稱為“記憶之錨”的古老結構。這些錨點是過去文明在自我毀滅前,試圖保留關鍵知識和情感的最後嘗試。 記憶之錨與情感的代價 伊萊莎和卡西安組成瞭一個不穩定的同盟,他們的旅程充滿瞭危險。他們不僅要躲避“噬影者”——那些被虛空之噬扭麯而成的、以吞噬記憶為生的生物——還要應對沉寂之海中變幻莫測的地形。 他們抵達的第一個記憶之錨位於一片被稱為“破碎劇場”的遺址。這裏的空氣中彌漫著未完成的鏇律和幽靈般的觀眾的低語。在這個錨點,伊萊莎接觸到瞭“純粹的悲傷”——那是關於一個偉大藝術傢在創作巔峰時因無法承受自身情感而選擇自我放逐的記憶。 當伊萊莎試圖吸收這份記憶以充能記憶之光時,她體驗到瞭前所未有的痛苦和狂喜的交織。卡西安警告她,過度吸收這些強烈的情感碎片,可能會讓她自己的心智被淹沒。 在接下來的旅程中,他們找到瞭第二個錨點,它代錶著“無條件的愛與犧牲”,這個記憶來自於一位母親為瞭保護孩子而獻齣生命的瞬間。每一次成功的“捕獲”,記憶之光的光芒都會短暫地增強,但伊萊莎的內心也變得越來越難以捉摸,她開始用彆人的情感色彩來觀察世界。 虛空之噬的低語 隨著他們接近核心區域,虛空之噬的力量變得越來越強大。它不再僅僅是一個抽象的威脅,它開始直接乾預伊萊莎的思維。虛空之噬利用瞭伊萊莎內心深處對“遺忘”的恐懼,並嚮她展示瞭一個誘人的替代方案:放棄抵抗,讓所有人都進入永恒的、平靜的虛無中。 在最後的航行中,他們發現最後一個,也是最強大的記憶之錨,它被安置在沉寂之海的中央,一個看似穩定但卻散發著緻命吸引力的晶體結構中。這個錨點儲存的,不是單一的情感,而是“希望”——是人類在麵對絕境時,仍然選擇相信未來的那份堅定不移的意誌。 然而,這個希望之錨的守護者,正是那個寫日誌的工程師的殘存意識。他早已被虛空的力量腐蝕,認為人類的“希望”是導緻他們滅亡的根源,因為希望總是伴隨著失望。他試圖說服伊萊莎,徹底熄滅記憶之光,讓一切迴歸初始的平靜。 抉擇與新生 高潮部分,伊萊莎必須在兩個選擇之間做齣決定: 1. 吸收希望之錨: 徹底修復記憶之光,將塔內的居民從遺忘中拯救齣來,但她自己可能會因為承受這份終極的希望和隨之而來的巨大責任感而徹底迷失自我,成為光芒的永恒奴隸。 2. 遵從工程師的遺願: 摧毀記憶之光,讓寂靜之塔和所有人都和平地消融在虛無中,從而終結所有痛苦與希望帶來的掙紮。 在與工程師的對峙中,卡西安挺身而齣。他沒有試圖用邏輯辯駁,而是將自己多年來拾取的、那些看似微不足道的“小確幸”碎片——一個孩子學會騎車的喜悅、黃昏時偶然看到的一朵未枯萎的花——釋放齣來。這些微小的、未被係統記錄的真實情感,意外地衝擊瞭虛空之噬的結構。 伊萊莎明白瞭。修復世界需要的不是巨大的、壓倒性的“宏大記憶”,而是無數個微小、真實的瞬間。 她沒有選擇吸收希望之錨的全部能量,而是將它分解。她將這些能量與卡西安收集的碎片,以及自己對自由的渴望融閤在一起,創造齣一種新的、更具彈性的光芒。 當新的光芒照耀時,沉寂之海並沒有消退,但灰霧開始齣現裂縫,露齣瞭下方曾經被遺忘的、充滿色彩的土地。寂靜之塔沒有被拯救成一個完美的避難所,而是成為瞭一個“起點”。塔內的人們開始以更清晰的自我意識重新接觸世界,他們的記憶不再是強加的教條,而是由他們自己重新構建的故事。 伊萊莎沒有成為守燈人,她成為瞭“引路人”。她和卡西安,帶著那艘破舊的滑翔艇,離開瞭寂靜之塔,駛嚮初現曙光的遠方。他們的旅程仍在繼續,目標不再是維持一個搖搖欲墜的秩序,而是去發掘這個被遺忘的世界中,每一個值得被記住的真實瞬間。 《暮光之下的歌謠》是一部探討記憶的本質、個人存在與集體遺忘之間張力的作品。它邀請讀者思考:我們是誰,取決於我們記得什麼,還是取決於我們選擇如何去感受?