【饥饿游戏】02

So I learned to hold my tongue and to turn my

features into an indifferent mask so that no one could ever

read my thoughts. Do my work quietly in school. Make only

polite small talk in the public market. Discuss little more than

trades in the Hob, which is the black market where I make

most of my money. Even at home, where I am less pleasant, I

avoid discussing tricky¹ topics. Like the reaping, or food shortages,

or the Hunger Games. Prim² might begin to repeat my

words and then where would we be?

In the woods waits the only person with whom I can be

myself. Gale³. I can feel the muscles in my face relaxing, my

pace quickening as I climb the hills to our place, a rock ledge⁴

overlooking a valley. A thicket⁵ of berry bushes protects it from

unwanted eyes. The sight of him waiting there brings on a

smile. Gale says I never smile except in the woods.

“Hey, Catnip,” says Gale. My real name is Katniss, but when

I first told him, I had barely whispered it. So he thought I’d

said Catnip. Then when this crazy lynx started following me

around the woods looking for handouts⁶, it became his official

nickname for me. I finally had to kill the lynx because he

scared off game. I almost regretted it because he wasn’t bad

company. But I got a decent price for his pelt⁷.

“Look what I shot,” Gale holds up a loaf of bread with an arrow

stuck in it, and I laugh. It’s real bakery bread, not the flat,

dense⁸ loaves we make from our grain rations⁹. I take it in my

hands, pull out the arrow, and hold the puncture¹⁰ in the crust

to my nose, inhaling¹¹ the fragrance¹² that makes my mouth flood

with saliva¹³. Fine bread like this is for special occasions.

“Mm, still warm,” I say. He must have been at the bakery at

the crack of dawn to trade for it. “What did it cost you?”

“Just a squirrel. Think the old man was feeling sentimental¹⁴

this morning,” says Gale. “Even wished me luck.”

“Well, we all feel a little closer today, don’t we?” I say, not

even bothering to roll my eyes. “Prim left us a cheese.” I pull it

out.

His expression brightens at the treat. “Thank you, Prim.

We’ll have a real feast.” Suddenly he falls into a Capitol accent

as he mimics¹⁵ Effie Trinket, the maniacally¹⁶ upbeat woman who

arrives once a year to read out the names at the leaping. “I almost

forgot! Happy Hunger Games!” He plucks a few blackberries

from the bushes around us. “And may the odds¹⁷ —” He

tosses a berry in a high arc toward me.

I catch it in my mouth and break the delicate skin with my

teeth. The sweet tartness¹⁸ explodes across my tongue. “— be

ever in your favor!” I finish with equal verve. We have to joke

about it because the alternative is to be scared out of your

wits. Besides, the Capitol accent is so affected¹⁹, almost anything

sounds funny in it.

I watch as Gale pulls out his knife and slices the bread. He

could be my brother. Straight black hair, olive skin, we even

have the same gray eyes. But we’re not related, at least not

closely. Most of the families who work the mines resemble

one another this way.

That’s why my mother and Prim, with their light hair and

blue eyes, always look out of place. They are. My mother’s

parents were part of the small merchant class that caters²⁰ to

officials, Peacekeepers, and the occasional Seam customer.

They ran an apothecary²¹ shop in the nicer part of District 

Since almost no one can afford doctors, apothecaries²² are our

healers. My father got to know my mother because on his

hunts he would sometimes collect medicinal herbs and sell

them to her shop to be brewed²³ into remedies. She must have

really loved him to leave her home for the Seam. I try to remember

that when all I can see is the woman who sat by,

blank and unreachable, while her children turned to skin and

bones. I try to forgive her for my father’s sake. But to be honest,

I’m not the forgiving type.

Gale spreads the bread slices with the soft goat cheese,

carefully placing a basil leaf on each while I strip the bushes of

their berries. We settle back in a nook in the rocks. From this

place, we are invisible but have a clear view of the valley,

which is teeming²⁴ with summer life, greens to gather, roots to

dig, fish iridescent²⁵ in the sunlight. The day is glorious, with a

blue sky and soft breeze. The food’s wonderful, with the

cheese seeping²⁶ into the warm bread and the berries bursting

in our mouths. Everything would be perfect if this really was a

holiday, if all the day off meant was roaming the mountains

with Gale, hunting for tonight’s supper. But instead we have to

be standing²⁷ in the square at two o’clock waiting for the names

to be called out.

“We could do it, you know,” Gale says quietly.

“What?” I ask.

“Leave the district. Run off. Live in the woods. You and I, we

could make it,” says Gale.

I don’t know how to respond. The idea is so preposterous²⁸.

“If we didn’t have so many kids,” he adds quickly.

They’re not our kids, of course. But they might as well be.

Gale’s two little brothers and a sister. Prim. And you may as

well throw in our mothers, too, because how would they live

without us? Who would fill those mouths that are always asking

for more? With both of us hunting daily, there are still

nights when game has to be swapped²⁹ for lard or shoelaces or

wool, still nights when we go to bed with our stomachs growling³⁰.

“I never want to have kids,” I say.

“I might. If I didn’t live here,” says Gale.

“But you do,” I say, irritated.

1 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。

2 prim   

adj.拘泥形式的，一本正经的；n.循规蹈矩，整洁；adv.循规蹈矩地，整洁地

参考例句：

• She's too prim to enjoy rude jokes!她太古板，不喜欢听粗野的笑话！
• He is prim and precise in manner.他的态度一本正经而严谨

3 gale   

n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等）

参考例句：

• We got our roof blown off in the gale last night.昨夜的大风把我们的房顶给掀掉了。
• According to the weather forecast,there will be a gale tomorrow.据气象台预报，明天有大风。

4 ledge   

n.壁架，架状突出物；岩架，岩礁

参考例句：

• They paid out the line to lower him to the ledge.他们放出绳子使他降到那块岩石的突出部分。
• Suddenly he struck his toe on a rocky ledge and fell.突然他的脚趾绊在一块突出的岩石上，摔倒了。

5 thicket   

n.灌木丛，树林

参考例句：

• A thicket makes good cover for animals to hide in.丛林是动物的良好隐蔽处。
• We were now at the margin of the thicket.我们现在已经来到了丛林的边缘。

6 handouts   

救济品( handout的名词复数 )； 施舍物； 印刷品； 讲义

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts. 士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Even after losing his job, he was too proud to accept handouts. 甚至在失去工作后，他仍然很骄傲，不愿接受施舍。

7 pelt   

v.投掷，剥皮，抨击，开火

参考例句：

• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。
• Crowds started to pelt police cars with stones.人群开始向警车扔石块。

8 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

9 rations   

定量( ration的名词复数 )； 配给量； 正常量； 合理的量

参考例句：

• They are provisioned with seven days' rations. 他们得到了7天的给养。
• The soldiers complained that they were getting short rations. 士兵们抱怨他们得到的配给不够数。

10 puncture   

n.刺孔，穿孔；v.刺穿，刺破

参考例句：

• Failure did not puncture my confidence.失败并没有挫伤我的信心。
• My bicycle had a puncture and needed patching up.我的自行车胎扎了个洞，需要修补。

11 inhaling   

v.吸入( inhale的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was treated for the effects of inhaling smoke. 他因吸入烟尘而接受治疗。 来自辞典例句
• The long-term effects of inhaling contaminated air is unknown. 长期吸入被污染空气的影响还无从知晓。 来自互联网

12 fragrance   

n.芬芳，香味，香气

参考例句：

• The apple blossoms filled the air with their fragrance.苹果花使空气充满香味。
• The fragrance of lavender filled the room.房间里充满了薰衣草的香味。

13 saliva   

n.唾液，口水

参考例句：

• He wiped a dribble of saliva from his chin.他擦掉了下巴上的几滴口水。
• Saliva dribbled from the baby's mouth.唾液从婴儿的嘴里流了出来。

14 sentimental   

adj.多愁善感的，感伤的

参考例句：

• She's a sentimental woman who believes marriage comes by destiny.她是多愁善感的人，她相信姻缘命中注定。
• We were deeply touched by the sentimental movie.我们深深被那感伤的电影所感动。

15 mimics   

n.模仿名人言行的娱乐演员，滑稽剧演员( mimic的名词复数 )；善于模仿的人或物v.（尤指为了逗乐而）模仿( mimic的第三人称单数 )；酷似

参考例句：

• Methods:Models were generate by CT scan,Mimics software and Abaqus software. 方法：采用CT扫描，Mimics软件和Abaqus软件的CAD进行三维有限元模型的创建。 来自互联网
• Relaxing the mind and body mimics the effect that some blood-pressure pills would have. 放松身心会产生某些降压药才能产生的效果。 来自辞典例句

16 maniacally   

参考例句：

• He was maniacally obsessed with jealousy. 强烈的嫉妒心令他疯狂。 来自互联网

17 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

18 tartness   

n.酸，锋利

参考例句：

• But the antler hunting sword has a good quality.The rigidity,tartness and preservation are not bad. 不过那把鹿角猎刀得品质就很不错得说。硬度、锋利度和保持性都非常得不错。 来自互联网
• The bitter tartness that is associated with ginseng is not evident in this tea. 痛苦的锋利，它通常与人参显然没有在这个茶。 来自互联网

19 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

20 caters   

提供饮食及服务( cater的第三人称单数 )； 满足需要，适合

参考例句：

• That shop caters exclusively to the weaker sex. 那家商店专供妇女需要的商品。
• The boutique caters for a rather select clientele. 这家精品店为特定的顾客群服务。

21 apothecary   

n.药剂师

参考例句：

• I am an apothecary of that hospital.我是那家医院的一名药剂师。
• He was the usual cut and dry apothecary,of no particular age and color.他是那种再普通不过的行医者，说不出多大年纪，相貌也没什么值得一提的。

22 apothecaries   

n.药剂师，药店( apothecary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some of them crawl through the examination of the Apothecaries Hall. 有些人则勉勉强强通过了药剂师公会的考试。 来自辞典例句
• Apothecaries would not sugar their pills unless they were bitter. 好药不苦不会加糖衣。 来自互联网

23 brewed   

调制( brew的过去式和过去分词 )； 酝酿； 沏（茶）； 煮（咖啡）

参考例句：

• The beer is brewed in the Czech Republic. 这种啤酒是在捷克共和国酿造的。
• The boy brewed a cup of coffee for his mother. 这男孩给他妈妈冲了一杯咖啡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 teeming   

adj.丰富的v.充满( teem的现在分词 )；到处都是；（指水、雨等）暴降；倾注

参考例句：

• The rain was teeming down. 大雨倾盆而下。
• the teeming streets of the city 熙熙攘攘的城市街道

25 iridescent   

adj.彩虹色的，闪色的

参考例句：

• The iridescent bubbles were beautiful.这些闪着彩虹般颜色的大气泡很美。
• Male peacocks display their iridescent feathers for prospective female mates.雄性孔雀为了吸引雌性伴侣而展现了他们彩虹色的羽毛。

26 seeping   

v.（液体）渗( seep的现在分词 )；渗透；渗出；漏出

参考例句：

• Water had been slowly seeping away from the pond. 池塘里的水一直在慢慢渗漏。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Chueh-hui could feel the cold seeping into his bones. 觉慧开始觉得寒气透过衣服浸到身上来了。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）

27 standing   

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。

28 preposterous   

adj.荒谬的，可笑的

参考例句：

• The whole idea was preposterous.整个想法都荒唐透顶。
• It would be preposterous to shovel coal with a teaspoon.用茶匙铲煤是荒谬的。

29 swapped   

交换（工作）( swap的过去式和过去分词 )； 用…替换，把…换成，掉换（过来）

参考例句：

• I liked her coat and she liked mine, so we swapped. 我喜欢她的外套，她喜欢我的外套，于是我们就交换了。
• At half-time the manager swapped some of the players around. 经理在半场时把几名队员换下了场。

30 growling   

n.吠声, 咆哮声 v.怒吠, 咆哮, 吼

参考例句：

• We heard thunder growling in the distance. 我们听见远处有隆隆雷声。
• The lay about the deck growling together in talk. 他们在甲板上到处游荡，聚集在一起发牢骚。