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儿童英语读物 The Mystery of the Hidden Painting CHAPTER 1 Birthday Plans

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The Alden children, Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny, ran out of their grandfather’s house, laughing. They raced each other to the nearby garden with a fountain in the middle near where their boxcar stood.

Henry, who was fourteen and the oldest, reached the boxcar first and pulled open the door. Jessie and Violet got there next, at the same time. They turned and watched six-year-old Benny, puffing1 in the hot August sun, catch up with them.

“It’s not fair,” Benny said. “I’m always going to be the youngest and never win a race with you.”

“Someday you’ll beat even Henry,” Violet said reassuringly2. Though she was only ten she often seemed more considerate than many older people.

The children climbed into the boxcar, followed by their dog, Watch, and looked around.

“Whew,” Benny said, “it’s so dirty.”

Henry got the broom Jessie had made when they had all lived in the boxcar, and started sweeping3 the floor. “We haven’t been in here for a while. That’s why it’s so dusty. But I like it anyway.”

Jessie smiled and spoke4 in the voice she used when she wanted to sound older than twelve. “Remember when we ran away and lived here after mother and father died? I think I can remember every day. Remember how we hid from Grandfather?”

“Yes,” Benny said, “because we thought he was mean and we wouldn’t like living with him.”

“And look how wonderful and kind he is,” Violet said. “And how happy we are with him.”

“That’s why we’re here,” Henry said. “Because we love him and want to plan a wonderful party for his birthday next month. We have a lot of work to do.”

“Let’s get started then,” Jessie said. “It’s awfully5 hot in here.”

“Wait,” Benny interrupted. “First let’s eat. I’m—”

“Hungry,” Violet finished for him. She reached for the basket she had brought with her. “Mrs. McGregor packed a little snack for us.”

Jessie went to the shelf that held the dishes they had found and used when they lived in the boxcar. She took four cups.

But Violet said, “We only need three. I brought Benny’s cup from the house. I couldn’t forget Benny’s cup.”

Benny took a cracked pink cup from the basket and held it out. Henry lifted out spice cookies and a carton of milk and filled Benny’s cup. Jessie took peaches and plums and put them in a bowl. Then she piled bananas on top of the fresh fruit.

The boxcar was exactly the same as it had been when the children had lived in it, except that Mrs. McGregor had given the children four plump, brightly colored cushions so they could sit on them on the floor. Now they got comfortable and chewed on the delicious cookies.

“Well,” Jessie asked, “what should we do for Grandfather’s party?”

“We have to have a cake and ice cream,” Benny said positively6. “You can’t have a birthday party without a cake.”

“I’ll help Mrs. McGregor bake the cake,” Jessie said.

“No! I’ll do that,” Benny shouted.

Violet laughed. “I knew you’d say that. Well, I’ll play the violin for Grandfather. I’ll be glad to do that. I’ll have to think about what to play.”

“And I’ll decorate the dining room,” Jessie said.

“I think I’ll write a poem,” Henry said. “We were studying poetry in school at the end of the term. I’ll be able to put what I learned to good use.”

“We have to buy him a present, too,” Violet said. “What should it be?”

“Model cars,” Benny said.

The other children laughed. Henry said, “I saw Grandfather looking at a sweater in Barlow’s Men’s Shop last week. I think he liked it. We could all chip in, and I’ll buy it.”

“I don’t have much money,” Benny said, thoughtfully. “I won’t be able to pay my share.”

“We’ll work all that out, Benny. Don’t worry,” Jessie said, patting his shoulder.

Violet suddenly jumped up. “I know. Let’s dress up for the party.”

“You mean I have to wear a tie?” Benny asked mournfully.

“No,” Violet said. “I mean dress up in costume. There are all kinds of old clothes in the attic7. We could use those. It will be like a masquerade. Grandfather would love it. I know it.”

“That’s a wonderful idea,” Jessie said eagerly.

Henry made a face. “I don’t know. Dressing8 up is sort of childish. Don’t you think?”

“No!” Violet and Jessie said at the same time.

“Come on,” Jessie grabbed Henry’s hand. “Let’s go up to the attic right now. I know you’ll like dressing up.”

They ran back to the house and into the front hall. Watch raced in after them. Mrs. McGregor came out of the kitchen with flour on her hands and nose. “What’s all the excitement about? Where are you all off to in such a hurry?”

“We’re going up to the attic so we can find dress up clothes for Grandfather’s party,” Violet said, catching9 her breath.

“What party? What’s this all about?” Mrs. McGregor asked.

“We’ll tell you later,” Jessie shouted as they all ran for the stairs.

“Open the windows up there. It must be a hundred degrees in that attic,” Mrs. McGregor called after them.

Upstairs, Jessie pulled open a window. “Whew! Mrs. McGregor was right. It’s really hot in here.”

Violet was already poking10 around. She found an old, big straw hat and tried it on. She ran to a standing11 mirror and giggled12 at her image.

“It’s just right for you,” Jessie cried. “It’s lavender. Your favorite color.”

Henry found a velvet13 coat and slipped into it. “How about this?”

Benny had opened a trunk and was pulling out old toys—blocks and balls and a jump rope and a jack-in-the-box. “I like it up here. I’m glad we came.”

Jessie was now standing silently in a corner with her back to her brothers and sister. Violet looked at her. “What did you find, Jessie?”

Slowly, Jessie turned around. In her hands she had a small painting in a carved gold frame. “Look, how beautiful this is,” she said.

Violet put down the hat and moved toward Jessie. “Ooh, you’re right, she is beautiful,” she gasped14. “I don’t think I’d ever get tired of looking at it.”

The painting was of a lovely young woman in an evening gown. Around her throat was a necklace of sparkling blue sapphires15 that matched her eyes. The woman was staring out of the picture with wide eyes, and she had a small smile on her red lips. She looked very happy.

“Who do you suppose she is?” Benny asked.

Henry moved closer to the painting. “She looks like the pictures Grandfather has shown us of Grandmother.”

“But those pictures were of an older lady,” Jessie said.

“Well,” Violet said thoughtfully, “this could have been painted when Grandmother was much younger.”

“But if this is Grandmother, why is the picture hidden away up here?” Henry wondered.

Benny shrugged16. “Why don’t we ask Grandfather. He’ll know. Grandfather always knows everything.”

Jessie laughed. “Benny, you always get right to the point.”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 puffing b3a737211571a681caa80669a39d25d3     
v.使喷出( puff的现在分词 );喷着汽(或烟)移动;吹嘘;吹捧
参考例句:
  • He was puffing hard when he jumped on to the bus. 他跳上公共汽车时喘息不已。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • My father sat puffing contentedly on his pipe. 父亲坐着心满意足地抽着烟斗。 来自《简明英汉词典》
2 reassuringly YTqxW     
ad.安心,可靠
参考例句:
  • He patted her knee reassuringly. 他轻拍她的膝盖让她放心。
  • The doctor smiled reassuringly. 医生笑了笑,让人心里很踏实。
3 sweeping ihCzZ4     
adj.范围广大的,一扫无遗的
参考例句:
  • The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
  • Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗?
4 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
5 awfully MPkym     
adv.可怕地,非常地,极端地
参考例句:
  • Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
  • I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。
6 positively vPTxw     
adv.明确地,断然,坚决地;实在,确实
参考例句:
  • She was positively glowing with happiness.她满脸幸福。
  • The weather was positively poisonous.这天气着实讨厌。
7 attic Hv4zZ     
n.顶楼,屋顶室
参考例句:
  • Leakiness in the roof caused a damp attic.屋漏使顶楼潮湿。
  • What's to be done with all this stuff in the attic?顶楼上的材料怎么处理?
8 dressing 1uOzJG     
n.(食物)调料;包扎伤口的用品,敷料
参考例句:
  • Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
  • The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。
9 catching cwVztY     
adj.易传染的,有魅力的,迷人的,接住
参考例句:
  • There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
  • Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。
10 poking poking     
n. 刺,戳,袋 vt. 拨开,刺,戳 vi. 戳,刺,捅,搜索,伸出,行动散慢
参考例句:
  • He was poking at the rubbish with his stick. 他正用手杖拨动垃圾。
  • He spent his weekends poking around dusty old bookshops. 他周末都泡在布满尘埃的旧书店里。
11 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
12 giggled 72ecd6e6dbf913b285d28ec3ba1edb12     
v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The girls giggled at the joke. 女孩子们让这笑话逗得咯咯笑。
  • The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 velvet 5gqyO     
n.丝绒,天鹅绒;adj.丝绒制的,柔软的
参考例句:
  • This material feels like velvet.这料子摸起来像丝绒。
  • The new settlers wore the finest silk and velvet clothing.新来的移民穿着最华丽的丝绸和天鹅绒衣服。
14 gasped e6af294d8a7477229d6749fa9e8f5b80     
v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 );喘息;倒抽气;很想要
参考例句:
  • She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
  • People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
15 sapphires 1ef1ba0a30d3a449deb9835f6fd3c316     
n.蓝宝石,钢玉宝石( sapphire的名词复数 );蔚蓝色
参考例句:
  • Again there was that moment of splintered sapphires before the lids, dropping like scales, extinguished it. 她眼眶中又闪烁出蓝宝石的光彩,接着眼睑象鱼鳞般地垂落下来,双目又黯然失色了。 来自辞典例句
  • She also sported a somewhat gawdy gold watch set with diamonds and sapphires. 她还收到一块镶着钻石和蓝宝石的金表。 来自辞典例句
16 shrugged 497904474a48f991a3d1961b0476ebce     
vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀,什么也没说。
  • She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩,装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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