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儿童英语读物 The Vanishing Passenger CHAPTER 9 The Road Less Traveled

时间:2017-11-22 05:45来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

At first the children thought Mr. Van Buren was going to be angry because they were looking for clues in his house. But as he came into the room, a smile spread across his face.

“Rita, my housekeeper1, told me what you kids were doing, so I figured I’d drop in and say hello.”

He came over and shook their hands, then leaned down to read the message again.

“Stinks, huh?” he mumbled2 to himself. “Boy, he’s got some nerve …” Then he looked back at the Aldens and folded his arms.

“So, we’ve lost our friend, have we?” The children were still too stunned3 by Mr. Van Buren’s tall, imposing4 figure to say much. Finally Henry said, “Yes, sir. You see—”

“Sir?” he said with a laugh. “Don’t call me that, young man. It makes me sound old! ‘Daniel’ will do fine.”

Henry looked at the others and shrugged5.

“Well, okay—Daniel.” Henry told Mr. Van Buren everything that had happened up to this point. Mr. Van Buren listened patiently, nodding and stroking his chin.

When Henry was finished, he said, “First of all, I have to tell you all that I’m very, very impressed with your detective skills. I’m guessing you kids do this a lot.”

Jessie chuckled6. “You have no idea.”

“Well, your experience shows.”

“Except that we still don’t know where Mr. Finch7 is,” Violet pointed8 out. “And we’re running out of time!”

Mr. Van Buren smiled. “Ah, you’d rather have Gil at your library than me, huh?”

The children were quick to say no, of course not, but Mr. Van Buren knew better.

“That’s okay, his books have always been a bit more popular than mine, the little rat. But that’ll change someday,” he said.

“For now, though,” Jessie said, “We should go find him.”

“And get Max back to his family!” Benny added.

Mr. Van Buren nodded. “That’s right,” he said. “Okay, everyone, I’ll do the driving. To the garage!”

The main road between Allerton and Greenfield was a three-lane highway bustling9 with cars and trucks moving at high speeds. Van Buren drove a big car that groaned10 like an old lawn mower11. The children, strapped12 into their seats, looked everywhere for signs of Mr. Finch as they bounced along.

“I was building that other car in my free time,” Van Buren told them, speaking loudly because of all the road noise. “It’s sort of my hobby, fixing up old cars. Then I sell them and give the money to charity.”

“That’s so nice!” Violet said.

Van Buren nodded. “I get to do something I enjoy, and people who really need money, get it. That way, everybody wins.”

“If Mr. Finch took the car in the first place,” Jessie said, “then it must run okay, right?”

“Well,” Van Buren replied, “I don’t want to bore you with technical details, but no. It’ll run for awhile, but then it’ll get too hot and conk out. He certainly won’t be able to make it to Greenfield. He’s got to be on the road somewhere, broken down.”

Jessie checked her watch again. It was nearly four o’clock. They only had a few hours left.

One hour was wasted zooming13 up and down the highway, looking for any signs of Van Buren’s car. The children called Ms. Connally to find out if perhaps Finch had somehow made it and was already there. He hadn’t.

By five-thirty, the Aldens began to lose hope.

“He’s not anywhere on this road,” Violet said. “We’ve been up and down twice already. There’s no way we could have missed him!”

Henry was still looking out the window, saying nothing. Then he suddenly turned around, his eyes wide. “Wait a minute!”

“Do you see him?” Benny asked.

“No, but I was just thinking … Mr. Finch probably left a few hours ago. The housekeeper said he wasn’t there when she got back.”

“So?” Jessie asked. She didn’t see where Henry was going with any of this. Neither did anyone else.

“So, why would Mr. Finch take this road? He wouldn’t need to hurry. He would’ve had plenty of time!”

A smile broke out on Jessie’s face. “Oh yeah …”

“And that got me thinking about something else in his books,” Henry went on. “Have you ever noticed how his characters always avoid main roads when they can?

How they always take back roads instead?” Mr. Van Buren nodded. “Ah yes, that’s right. And that reminds me of something else, too—I remember the first time Gil went down your way. He was visiting some old college friends who lived close to Greenfield. He decided14 to drive down instead of taking the train. The day after, he called and told me about this beautiful back road he’d discovered. He said it was so much prettier than the highway. All rolling hills and trees, which he likes. Quiet and beautiful.”

“That has to be where he is now!” Benny said. “Let’s go!”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 housekeeper 6q2zxl     
n.管理家务的主妇,女管家
参考例句:
  • A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
  • She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家,一家人吃得很省。
2 mumbled 3855fd60b1f055fa928ebec8bcf3f539     
含糊地说某事,叽咕,咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He mumbled something to me which I did not quite catch. 他对我叽咕了几句话,可我没太听清楚。
  • George mumbled incoherently to himself. 乔治语无伦次地喃喃自语。
3 stunned 735ec6d53723be15b1737edd89183ec2     
adj. 震惊的,惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
  • The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。
4 imposing 8q9zcB     
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的
参考例句:
  • The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
  • He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。
5 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》
6 chuckled 8ce1383c838073977a08258a1f3e30f8     
轻声地笑( chuckle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She chuckled at the memory. 想起这件事她就暗自发笑。
  • She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered his astonished look. 想起他那惊讶的表情,她就轻轻地暗自发笑。
7 finch TkRxS     
n.雀科鸣禽(如燕雀,金丝雀等)
参考例句:
  • This behaviour is commonly observed among several species of finch.这种行为常常可以在几种雀科鸣禽中看到。
  • In Australia,it is predominantly called the Gouldian Finch.在澳大利亚,它主要还是被称之为胡锦雀。
8 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
9 bustling LxgzEl     
adj.喧闹的
参考例句:
  • The market was bustling with life. 市场上生机勃勃。
  • This district is getting more and more prosperous and bustling. 这一带越来越繁华了。
10 groaned 1a076da0ddbd778a674301b2b29dff71     
v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 );发牢骚;抱怨;受苦
参考例句:
  • He groaned in anguish. 他痛苦地呻吟。
  • The cart groaned under the weight of the piano. 大车在钢琴的重压下嘎吱作响。 来自《简明英汉词典》
11 mower Bn9zgq     
n.割草机
参考例句:
  • We need a lawn mower to cut the grass.我们需要一台草坪修剪机来割草。
  • Your big lawn mower is just the job for the high grass.割高草时正需要你的大割草机。
12 strapped ec484d13545e19c0939d46e2d1eb24bc     
adj.用皮带捆住的,用皮带装饰的;身无分文的;缺钱;手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词);用皮带抽打;包扎;给…打绷带
参考例句:
  • Make sure that the child is strapped tightly into the buggy. 一定要把孩子牢牢地拴在婴儿车上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • The soldiers' great coats were strapped on their packs. 战士们的厚大衣扎捆在背包上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
13 zooming 2d7d75756aa4dd6b055c7703ff35c285     
adj.快速上升的v.(飞机、汽车等)急速移动( zoom的过去分词 );(价格、费用等)急升,猛涨
参考例句:
  • Zooming and panning are navigational tools for exploring 2D and 3D information. 缩放和平移是浏览二维和三维信息的导航工具。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
  • Panning and zooming, especially when paired together, create navigation difficulties for users. 对于用户来说,平移和缩放一起使用时,产生了更多的导航困难。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
14 decided lvqzZd     
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。
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