亚马逊畅销书《小马俱乐部历险记·英汉双语版》代序&第一章
【特别推荐：书虫苹果空中口语微信公号已经开始演播本书英文部分：纯正地道，声情并茂，抑扬顿挫，绘声绘色——真是极大的享受】
您能读懂多少?
——英汉双语版代序
亲爱的读者朋友，恭喜您选择了英汉双语版《小马俱乐部历险记》！
本书英文版不是简写本,而是一部未经改写、原汁原味的原著!但又真的是英语学习者阅读原版作品的最佳入门书！
在我学、用英语四十年的过程中，常常听到有学生问：怎样才能较快地学好英语？我也不止一次地听到外教回答：Read and read and read！这倒真是不刊之论，其实也是我自己学习英语的主要途径；而且，我也常常这样回答学生。( 文章阅读网：www.sanwen.net )
但是，读什么和怎么读却大有讲究。
一、读什么?
（一）in English VS on English。前者的内容可以是各种故事、人间百态、宇宙万物，但书的语言是英语；后者指谈论英语的书，例如语法、英语疑难解答之类的，这类书内容虽是英语，但书的语言可以是汉语、英语、俄语、日语等任何一种语言。读前者宜多而广，读后者宜少而精。
（二）娱乐性阅读 VS 功利性阅读。对于读者，尤其是对于初级阶段的学习者来说（一般而言，高中毕业以前都算初级），最好是读那种故事性强，语言平易、鲜活，容易读进去，读得津津有味、甚至着迷（一个人读得发笑、紧张、发呆、沉思）的书，尽管也有生词难句，但没打断阅读兴致就好；看似简单平实的语言往往表现力强，内涵丰富，使用频率高，也更考验写作功力，浅尝容易，吃透难，故阅读材料浅得深不得，轻松入门，循序渐进，这样才易于坚持，日积月累，在不知不觉中巩固课堂知识，迅速形成语感，获得英语思维能力。
（三）全书阅读 VS 碎片化阅读。对于前者，相关词汇和句型反复出现，且有语境，让您记忆深刻，还能灵活应用，也和应试丝毫不矛盾；后者题材广泛，材料之间关联很少，记忆不牢，自然谈不上运用。
（四）不同版本大比拼。市面上的英语阅读材料不外乎：全英文、英文+注释、英汉分段对照以及英汉全文双语版。几种版本都各有侧重，各有所长。全英文原汁原味，味道浓郁，但是不容易消化；英汉分段对照便于消化，但是味道混杂，口感不佳；英汉全文双语版呢，实际相当于两本书，还不如两本书分开对照方便，也不容易消化。英文注释版介于全英文和英汉分段对照之间，原味汤加了点别的，纯度稍差，但如果刚好是您需要的，则消化稍易。有没有都照顾到的完美版本呢？别急，答案就在下文。
（五）立体 VS 纯文本。所谓立体，就是文、图以及有声材料等相结合。
二、怎么读?
（一）首先通读英文。遇到生词、难句尽量猜测其意；切不可一见生词就停下翻词典，一见到难句就去看相应的译文；只要不会打断阅读兴致，就直接读下去。
（二）边猜边查。遇到的确影响重要理解的词，或者出现多次，读过几遍还是不懂或似是而非的词，再查词典；如果是电子书就更方便了，可以利用搜索功能把书中出现相同表述的地方都找出来，出现的全是鲜活的例句，先不查词典，或许已猜到了八九分，查过词典准确理解词义后再熟读原文，直到书中的大量句子可以脱口而出，这样您就可以巩固所学的词汇、句型、语法或惯用法。
（三）查了词典还是有不理解的地方，再请教老师或母语人士。当然，有参考译文更好！若译文和您想的意思不一致，要多想想；实在想不明白的再请教。也有可能译文并不正确，您在选书的时候就要慎重甄别！如果能和译者直接沟通交流呢？当然最好！
（四）翻译。把感兴趣的段落由英语译成中文，然后对照中文试着口头叙述或笔头写一下那个场景，比较一下，看看自己的表述是否正确、准确，最后看看作者是怎么遣词造句表现该场景的，还要揣摩作者为何要那样写。同样，有上乘的译文作为参考当然最好！
通过上述阅读、英汉互译和比较学习，坚持一年，您的基础知识、阅读能力和口语、写作能力都必然大有长进，实际能力提升了，考试成绩也会稳步提高，不信，您试试看？
如果您认同上述理念，又正苦于找不到合适的材料引您走上英语原版阅读的快车道，那么好消息来了——这本英汉双语版《小马俱乐部历险记》就是为您量身定做的！为什么呢？
（一）本书您一定能读进去，它被誉为澳洲女孩的成长圣经，充满了正能量——阳光、团结、友爱、勇敢、智慧、爱心、坚韧，而这些正能量，又是通过爱马、养马、骑马以及人与马的情感互动等一系列日常生活细节不动声色地辐射出来，通过一个小女生的眼睛与心灵的感知，用充满童真、平实朴素而又生动活泼的语言呈现出来的，因而有血有肉，真实自然，富于感染力。读了本书，您除了能走进澳大利亚小学生的生活、了解大量有关骑马与马儿的知识以外，更能走进一位异域孩子的内心世界，感受不同文化碰撞所带来的震撼和愉悦，与主人公一起成长，忧乐同心。不管是少年儿童还是成人，这本书都一定有吸引您的地方。
（二）本书语言鲜活，接地气，浅易生动。它是当代日记体小说，主人公是一个9—10岁的女孩，相当于我国3—4年级学生，她记下的是自己的心路历程，因而其写法“我手写我口，我手写我心”，心里怎么想、口里怎么说，笔下就怎么写，全书读起来一点儿刻意为文或雕琢痕迹也没有，描写的环境、景物当然也是主人公眼里所见之物，所见、所想、所写都完全符合该年龄段一般儿童的心理认知与表达程度。语言真切自然，叙景状物、心理刻画皆很真切；书中的句子口里说出来不算是文绉绉的遭人笑，笔下写出来也不算口水话，又能叙述清楚比较复杂的事情，表达明白比较微妙的心理活动。
本书作者是世界级的教育工作者，因而该书是面向全世界的少年儿童的，青少年必定要学习书中的语言表达，所以该书的英语既生动活泼，又规范地道。
（三）本书译文是老中青三代译者优势互补，通力合作的结果：除了主译、统稿是我以外，青年才女胡丽婷，英语教师，专业八级，已经出版过翻译作品5部，其中青春奇幻爱情小说《人鱼公司》纸质版即将问世；穆兰女士人到中年，翻译领域广阔，经验丰富，也是一位带着叛逆期孩子的母亲，其惊险悬疑推理小说《国家之子》在亚马逊一上架就一直处于小说新品排行榜前三名，而且多次夺冠！本书翻译过程中，译者和原作者保持充分的沟通，这个版本又承蒙穆兰女士精心校订，三易其稿，其间多次向澳洲朋友请教马术相关问题，三名译者也多次讨论，务求臻于至善。
本书已出全中文版，上架以来长居亚马逊儿童文学电子书排行榜前三，多次夺冠，完全没有英文阅读需求的读者也可以单独购买中文版；而热爱英语学习的同学们则可以阅读本书，领略原文之美，原文之妙，感受两种语言的差异以及在表情达意创造美感方面的异曲同工。
（四）本书承蒙穆兰女士精心排版，酌加注释，独具特色——中英文随时灵活切换，满足不同读者或同一读者不同阶段个性化的需求。指尖轻轻一触，各种阅读“版本”随时切换！您下载本书后，一打开，自然就会了，收放自如，切换随意！
怎么样，是不是很贴心？前文说到的“完美”版本就是这本书啦！
当然啦，KINDLE电子书都有的便捷，这本书也有哦！词典、搜索、标记、笔记、索引……再加上上述独有的特点，您一定会体会到，原来英语阅读可以如此简单、高效、有趣！
还有呢，这本书也非常适合做初学翻译者的实战演练场！英译汉也好、汉译英也好，战争是最好的军校！坚持译完全书试试？
最后，译者还荣幸地邀请到在澳洲读着本书长大的12岁亚裔小女孩，“书虫萍果空中口语”网课创办者Ines，以其甜美童声倾情演绎本书部分章节，在“书虫萍果空中口语”微信公众号配英汉双语图文连载。Ines从小受中西文化熏陶，古筝弹得好，还会钢琴和萨克斯，爱唱音乐剧，喜欢画画，她的“书虫萍果空中口语”独创了以英语为母语的青少年教同龄人学口语的教学方式，非常受中国小朋友欢迎。最最重要的，Ines从小非常熟悉马术俱乐部和“小马俱乐部”这套书。她说，本书就是对她们自家生活的真实写照！从某种意义上讲，她和她的姐妹们都是书中那位爱马女孩！怎么样，是不是很酷？
梨子的滋味，吃了才知；书籍也是一样的。
亲爱的读者朋友，再次恭喜您能读到这样的佳作。
您若喜爱本书，请告诉同学亲友；若有意见、问题或建议，请一定告诉我们（后附留言地址），以便进一步修改完善。
是为序。
汪德均（翻译家，汉译莉比·赫尔曼小说第一人）
———————————————————————
留言地址：
翻译家汪德均：新浪博客、散文网、微信公众号、天涯论坛；
译者汪德均：新浪微博、豆瓣；
汪德均：知乎
译者胡丽婷：邮件地址hu—irene@hotmail；知乎huhah
译者穆兰：新浪博客、新浪微博、微信公众号、豆瓣、天涯论坛、知乎
有声连载朗读者Ines：微信公众号“书虫萍果空中口语”，荔枝FM账号“书虫萍果空中口语”
亚马逊畅销书《小马俱乐部历险记·英汉双语版》代序&第一章
Dedication
This story is dedicated to Linda, Glen and Alyce. Without their ongoing, friendship, support and generosity, many of the adventures in this series would never have happened.
献词
谨将本书献给琳达、格伦与艾丽斯;
没有她们坚持不懈的努力与长久的友谊、支持及慷慨大度，就没有本丛书里的一系列历险活动。
亚马逊畅销书《小马俱乐部历险记·英汉双语版》代序&第一章
Shelley…at pony club
雪莉在小马俱乐部
[i] Wednesday 2 January
[ii]Last night was the scariest night of my life! I overheard Mom and Dad talking. They were saying that if the rain keeps up, the creek is definitely going to flood. I knew that if it did, Sparkle wouldn’t be able to cross over to the big paddock to be near the other horses. If she wasn’t near them during the storm, she’d be really scared. And if she got spooked in the storm, then she could be seriously hurt.
[iii]Mom and Dad were in the kitchen cooking dinner and Nate was watching TV. So I decided to sneak out the front door. I went downstairs, got my gumboots and a raincoat and grabbed Sparkle’s halter and lead rope. I just had to go and find her!
[iv]It was absolutely pouring with rain and by that time, it was really dark. I wasn’t scared at all though because all I could think of was my baby.
[v]Mom and Dad have commented before on how brave I am. Our car was stuck up near the front gate once, because a huge tree had fallen across the drive in some gale force winds. And the next night, I walked all the way up there on my own in the pitch black darkness so I could get something out of the car. I can’t even remember what it was now. But it didn’t bother me at all. My brother Nate would never do that! He’s even too scared to go downstairs at night on his own. He’s such a chicken!
[vi]Luckily I had a torch with me when I went to look for Sparkle tonight though. Otherwise, I don’t think I would’ve been able to find her. She was standing under a tree and I heard her whinny when she saw me. I know she was glad that I was there.
[vii]I got the halter and lead rope on her and led her down to the creek to the spot where we usually cross. There was so much rain, I couldn’t see that well, even with Dad’s big torch. But then all of a sudden my gumboots filled up with water. The creek was definitely getting higher and I had to go really slowly across the rocks. Sparkle was walking along with me — lucky she’s such a bomb proof（本意:防爆的;引申意:强壮、顽强的）horse otherwise I don’t think I would’ve been able to get her to cross.
[viii]Just as we were about half way, I felt the lead rope pull really hard! I looked back to see what had happened and realized Sparkle had slipped into the deeper part of the creek! My heart was thumping so hard, I could feel it pounding against my chest. But all I could think about was saving her. I was standing on the trail of rocks where we always cross and I could feel the water really pulling me — it was so strong! I had to grip so hard to keep myself from being washed in.
[ix]I called out — Sparkle! Sparkle! — She was neighing and neighing but all I could do was pull on the lead rope. I was so scared! Then all of a sudden she managed to scramble back up onto the rocks. I have no idea how she did that — but I’m so glad she did! I was so desperate to get her across the creek that I just kept on going. I knew that she trusted me and would follow me anywhere!
[x]We kept going and finally made it to the other side. Then we had to climb the hill. It was really muddy and slippery and we kept sliding down — it was so hard to make our way up. I fell over but she kept going and that helped to pull me to my feet. I’m glad I was able to get up otherwise she would’ve dragged me through the mud. We got to the top and I took off her halter and lead rope then let her go. Straight away, she raced into the paddock looking for the other horses. I knew once she found them, she’d be ok.
[xi]Then I had to get back down the hill. I had to hang onto tree branches so I didn’t go sliding down into the creek. I knew that I was totally covered in mud, but I didn’t care. The creek was rising and I just wanted to get back home. It was such a struggle to keep my boots on and push against the force of all the rushing water.
[xii]I felt so glad when I finally made it to the other side! I rushed back across the grass and one of my boots came off as I was running. So I had to go back and find it. When I made it back to the house, I left my muddy boots and raincoat downstairs. Then I sneaked back in the front door and into my room to get changed. Just then, I could hear Mom calling me for dinner.
[xiii]When she saw me, she said she’d been wandering around the house looking for me. She asked why my hair was all wet. Then I started to cry. I just couldn’t help it! When she asked me what was wrong, I had to tell her. And she just stood there staring at me. She thought I’d been in my room the whole time.
Mom and Dad both said they were in shock thinking about what could have happened. They said that Sparkle could have dragged me into the creek or fallen on top of me or anything. They said that I could have been washed away and drowned! They said that they wouldn’t have known where to look for me because they had no idea I’d even left the house.
[xiv]Now I’m worried that Sparkle might have hurt her back when she slipped over.
[xv]I can’t stop writing tonight. So much has happened and I just have to write about it all. Mom says that writing things down really helps when you’re upset.
[xvi]It all feels like a really bad dream — I can’t believe it happened. Just last night, I was having so much fun with my friends and tonight Sparkle and I could have drowned. I think that Mom and Dad are still in shock as well! At least they didn’t get angry at me. I think they understand how I was feeling. And I think they’re just glad that I’m safe!
亚马逊畅销书《小马俱乐部历险记·英汉双语版》代序&第一章
I don’t know what I’d do without her!
没有了她，我还真不知道该咋办！
[i] 1月2日，星期三
[ii] 昨晚是我一生中最恐怖的夜晚！我无意中听到了爸妈说的话。他们说要是这雨一直下个不停，门前的小溪肯定要涨大水。我很清楚，如果小溪真的涨了大水就变成小河，火花就不可能过河去大围场里和别的马儿们待在一起；如果暴风雨来临时她不能与别的马儿待在一起，就真的会受到惊吓；如果她真的在暴风雨中受到了惊吓，她的身心都有可能会受到严重的伤害！
[iii] 爸爸妈妈当时都在厨房里做晚饭，哥哥奈特在看电视；于是我决定从前门溜出去。我下了楼，穿上长筒雨靴和雨衣，一把抓起火花的缰绳和牵马索。我非要去找她不可！
[iv] 当时绝对是瓢泼大雨，天色漆黑一团！不过，我一点儿也不害怕，因为当时我心里只有我的宝贝马儿。
[v] 爸爸妈妈曾经夸我“很勇敢！”有一次，一棵大树被狂风刮倒，横在我家的车道上，把我家的小车堵在了前门附近；可就在第二天晚上，我却独自一人在一团漆黑中摸过去，从车里拿了一样东西回来，其实我至今也记不得那是什么，当时却根本就没觉得有什么犯难。要是奈特的话，他才不敢呢！就连晚上独自一人下楼也不敢。他呀，就是这么个胆小鬼！
[vi] 幸好我带上了一把手电筒才出的门，要不然，根本就找不到火花。她当时正站在一棵树下，一看见我就发出嘶鸣声。我知道，她一见到我就高兴得不得了。
[vii] 我给她套上缰绳，系好牵马索，牵着她走下小河，从我们平时过沟的地方走过去。雨下得好大啊，即便是拿着爸爸那只大电筒，也看不清路面。突然，我的长筒靴里灌满了水！溪水明显地在不断上涨，我们只能缓慢地踩着那些大石头过河。火花和我一起走——多亏火花强悍无比、“刀枪不入”的身板，要不然，我恐怕没法带着她趟过小溪。
[viii] 大约刚好到了溪流中间，我突然感到牵马索拉得很紧！回头一看，才意识到火花滑落进了深水处！我的心跳顿时加剧，甚至可以感觉到胸腔子里砰砰直响！管不了那么多，我依然一个劲儿地想着怎样才能救她。我站在石块搭就的小路上（我们平时都是这样踩着石头过沟的），溪水猛力把我往下推——冲力好大啊！我只得紧紧抓住牵马索才没被冲下去。
[ix] 我大声叫喊——火花！火花！她当时也不断地用叫声回应我，可是我只能拉住牵马索，毫无别的办法！当时可真把我给吓坏了！就在那时，突然间，她终于设法后退着站上了那几块大石头。天晓得她是如何做到的——可我太为她高兴了！我不顾一切，决意要带着她趟过溪流，所以硬着头皮，只管继续向前！我深知她信任我，无论我走向哪儿，她都会跟着我走！
[x] 我们不停地向岸边挪动，最后终于踩上了对岸。接着必须爬上山去。山路泥泞不堪并且滑溜溜的，我们都止不住往下滑——上坡怎么就这样难呀！我滑倒在地，但她继续前进，扯着我站了起来。幸好我站了起来，要不然，她会拽着我拖过稀泥到了山顶，我解下她的缰绳和牵马索让她自己走。她毫不犹豫地冲进围场，寻找别的马儿去了。我知道，她一旦找到了同伴，就一定会没事儿的！
[xi] 然后我还得回到山下。我下坡时不得不抓住那些树枝，免得滑进溪水里去。我全身都裹满了稀泥，可我并不在乎。虽然溪水正不断上涨，可我只想回家。我拼命挣扎着不让靴子脱落，还要用力抵挡着奔涌而来的急流。
[xii] 当我终于踏上了对岸时，那个高兴劲儿呀，真是没法说！我急匆匆地跑过草地，把靴子都跑掉了一只；又只得返回去找到它。最后终于到了家，脱下满是稀泥的靴子和雨衣，丢在楼下，然后悄悄地溜入前门，进自己的房间把衣服换了。刚好就听见妈妈叫我吃晚饭了。
[xiii] 妈妈一见我就说，她先前一直在房子周围到处找过我，又问我的头发怎么湿透了。我一下子就哭了起来，怎么也忍不住！然后她问我出什么事儿了，我只得全都告诉了她。然后她站在那儿，只是直瞪瞪地盯着我——她还以为我一直都在自己的房间里待着呢。爸爸妈妈都说，一想到可能发生的情况，他们就吓懵了；说火花有可能把我拖下溪水里，或是倒下来压在我身上；还说我有可能被溪水冲走甚至淹死——总而言之，任何情况都可能发生！还说他们根本想不起要出去找我，因为他们根本就不知道我已去小围场转移火花。
[xiv] 不过此刻我倒担心起火花来了：她有可能在滑倒时背部受了伤。
[xv] 今晚写起来就停不住，事情太多了，必须全都记下来。妈妈常说，烦操不安时写日记真的有效。
[xvi] 这一切简直像是一场噩梦——我简直不敢相信这是真的。就在昨天晚上，我都还和朋友们嘻哈打笑地待在一起，可今晚我和火花却差点儿把命都丢了！我看，爸妈到这会儿都还心有余悸！不过还好，至少他们没有对我发火。他们明白我的感受，而且我觉得他们此刻高兴还来不及呢——因为我到底还是平安地回来了！