儿童英语读物《神奇树屋》 第十一册 Lions at Lunchtime 03 Disaster

        "Come on, Jack¹!" Annie called. She was almost tothe river.

"Just a minute!" he shouted. He wanted to study thegiraffes and zebras.

He pulled out the Africa book and found a pictureof giraffes. He read:

The giraffe is the tallest animal in the world. Itslegs alone can be six feet tall, and its hooves can be asbig as dinner plates. The giraffe has a very powerfulkick, which makes it dangerous to attack. For thisreason, lions tend to avoid giraffes.

Jack pulled out his notebook and wrote:

Notes on Africa:

Lions avoid giraffesHe turned the page and read more:

Zebras live in family groups. As no two zebras haveexactly the same pattern of stripes, every baby zebramust learn its own mother's pattern.

Jack studied the zebras, trying to see their differentpatterns. But in the hazy² afternoon light, all thestripes made him dizzy.

He blinked to clear his head, then read more;Zebras are the first to cross the river because theyeat the coarsest grass. After they've thinned down thetop layer, the wildebeests arrive and eat the nextlayer. They prepare the grass for the gazelles, whocome last.

Wow, thought Jack. Each animal depends on theone that goes before.

He wrote:

Animals all connected.

Jack heard Annie shouting from the river bank.

"Jump, beasts! Jump! You can do Don't be afraid!

Come on!"He looked up. Annie herself was jumping as shecalled to the wildebeests.

Jack sighed. I'd better stop her .before there'strouble, he thought.

He put away the Africa book and his notebook.

Then he jogged toward the river. His pack was heavyand lumpy, bumping against his back. He'd forgottento take out the jar of peanut butter and the loaf ofbread.

Jack decided³ to leave them at the tree house. Heturned to go back.

But just then, Annie's shouting stopped. Jack lookedat the river.

She had vanished. "Annie?" he called. No answer.

Where was she?

"Annie!" Jack shouted.

She had completely disappeared. "Oh, man," saidJack.

Their trip had barely begun, and already disasterhad struck!

He forgot about the stuff in his pack. He just ran asfast as he could.

He wove his way between the grazing zebras andgiraffes as he raced to the river.

"Help!" called Annie.

1 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

2 hazy   

adj.有薄雾的，朦胧的；不肯定的，模糊的

参考例句：

• We couldn't see far because it was so hazy.雾气蒙蒙妨碍了我们的视线。
• I have a hazy memory of those early years.对那些早先的岁月我有着朦胧的记忆。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。