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儿童英语读物 The Garden Thief CHAPTER 6 The Lumpy Shapes

时间:2017-12-26 06:01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)

The following morning the children had breakfast at their usual time, in their usual place: at home.

Mrs. McGregor had made granola and served it with milk and fresh strawberries that Benny had brought home from Mr. Yee’s garden.

“These are delicious strawberries,” said Mrs. McGregor.

“Mr. Yee has two long rows of them,” said Benny, “and it’s my job to water them. He let me pick these yesterday.”

“I’m so glad you’re helping1 Mr. Yee,” said Mrs. McGregor. “When your grandfather comes home this afternoon, he’ll be very pleased that you’re helping his old friend.”

“What are we going to do today, Jessie?” Violet asked her sister.

“We’re going to harvest carrots and radishes,” Jessie answered. “Mr. Yee says we can bring some home to Mrs. McGregor.”

Mrs. McGregor was making toast for everybody. She looked confused. “How can you harvest full-grown carrots if they were baby carrots just two days ago?” she asked.

“Because Mr. Yee has spread his plantings two weeks apart,” Jessie explained. “He plants a section of carrots every two weeks, and a section of radishes, and lettuce2, and kale.”

“I see,” said Mrs. McGregor. “That way, not all of the vegetables are ready at the same time.”

“There’s something ready all season long,” said Henry. “Except for plants like tomatoes, which Mr. Yee put in all at the same time.”

“Are you going to work on the broken towers today?” Jessie asked her brother.

“Yes,” said Henry

“Who would do something mean like break tomato towers?” asked Violet. “Why would they do that?”

“The vandal must have a reason,” said Henry.

“What about the thief?” asked Jessie. “I don’t think the thief and the vandal are the same person.”

Her brothers and sister agreed with her.

The Aldens were still speculating about who might be the vandal and who might be the thief when Mr. Yee arrived. It was time to leave.

As before, Mrs. McGregor drove them all to the community gardens and dropped them off at the end, by Sections D and E. And as before, the children and Mr. Yee walked toward Section A, greeting all the gardeners they passed.

This morning, they did not see Taylor Harris standing3 at her garden gate, looking perplexed4. This morning, they saw two lumpy shapes on the ground, in front of Section A, Plot 1. One shape was long and low. The other shape was round and high.

“What in the world is that?” asked Mr. Yee, scratching underneath5 the cast of his broken arm. “It’s in front of Roger’s plot.”

“Look!” Benny pointed6 at something that sat between the two shapes. “It’s a Rex rabbit!”

As the Aldens and Mr. Yee got closer, they saw that the long low shape was a sleeping bag, with somebody inside it. The high round shape was a burlap bag. The Rex rabbit was sitting and scratching an ear with a hind7 leg.

Just then, Lucasta Kirk came around the far corner of Plot 1. She hobbled along slowly, dragging her broken leg, which was covered from toe to knee with a green trash bag.

“Why are you limping?” Mr. Yee asked her. “You are young, you should be healed by now.”

“I need my cast,” said Lucasta, picking up her rabbit.

“Did you let your rabbit out of its cage?” Benny asked her.

Lucasta frowned. “It hopped8 out when I went to put lettuce inside.”

The shape in the sleeping bag groaned9. It moved. Then it sat up.

Everybody could see that it was Roger Walski inside the sleeping bag.

“What’s going on here?” he asked, rubbing his eyes.

“What are you doing on the ground?” asked Mr. Yee.

“I’m guarding my plot,” Roger answered. “So that nothing else is stolen.”

“Is that your breakfast in the big bag?” asked Benny, pointing to the bag.

“Bag?” asked Roger, looking around. “What bag?” Then he saw the big burlap bag sitting on the ground. “What’s that? That wasn’t there when I went to sleep,” he said.

“That means somebody put the bag there after you fell asleep,” said Henry.

“And that means you are not much of a guard,” said Mr. Yee. “Not if somebody can sneak10 up in the middle of the night and deposit a big bag next to your head.”

Roger scowled12. “Never you mind,” he said to Mr. Yee. He crawled out of his sleeping bag. As Roger crawled out of the bag, a clipboard and pen fell out of the bag. Henry stooped to pick them up, but Roger shouted at him. “No! Leave that alone!” Roger quickly grabbled the clipboard and pen and shoved them far into the sleeping bag.

Henry wondered why Roger didn’t want him to see the clipboard. I wonder what’s on it, thought Henry.

And then Henry noticed a small tool kit13 alongside the sleeping bag. When Roger saw Henry looking at the tool kit, he shoved it into the sleeping bag, also.

Roger stood and stretched. Then he leaned down and cautiously opened the lumpy burlap bag. “Cucumbers!” he said in surprise. “The bag is full of cucumbers!” Roger removed a cucumber from the bag, inspected it, and bit into it. Everybody heard the loud, juicy crunch14 as he did so.

“Good,” Roger declared, “but they wouldn’t win a blue ribbon.”

Violet saw Lucasta’s rabbit sniff15 at the cucumber. The rabbit tried to jump out of Lucasta’s arms, but she held it close and didn’t allow it to escape.

Rabbits must like cucumbers, thought Violet.

Mr. Yee and Benny both took cucumbers out of the bag and bit into them.

“This is good,” said Benny.

“But not good enough for a blue ribbon,” said Roger.

“How can you tell?” asked Jessie.

Roger held out the half-eaten cucumber and pointed to its green skin. “The skin is too thick,” he said. “A thinner skin is better because it’s less bitter.”

“That is correct,” said Mr. Yee as he finished eating his cucumber. “This is a good tasting cucumber, but not quite good enough for first prize in a contest.”

“Well,” said Roger as he took several cucumbers out of the bag, “I’m going to take some of these home to eat. Everybody else is welcome to take some, too.”

“Thank you,” said Jessie. “We’ll take some home to Mrs. McGregor.”

“And I will take some, also,” said Mr. Yee as he reached into the bag.

“What about you, Lucasta?” asked Roger. “Do you want the rest of these cucumbers for your rabbits?”

Lucasta stroked her Rex rabbit and shook her head. “No,” she replied.

Roger Walski looked surprised. “No?” he asked. “Why not?”

“My rabbits are prize-winning rabbits,” said Lucasta. “They deserve only prize-winning vegetables. They need to eat the very best in order to have the shiniest fur and brightest eyes.”

Mr. Yee nodded his head slowly. “That is why you raised beautiful vegetables in your garden but did not enter them in the fair—you fed them to your rabbits instead.”

“My rabbits are going to win first prize again this year,” said Lucasta. “They win every year. That’s important.”

Lucasta turned and hobbled away, heading toward the barn across the road.

“I don’t understand why her leg seems to be hurting,” said Mr. Yee, looking puzzled. “Yesterday she had her cast off. Her leg should be healed by now.”

Just then Henry remembered that he never got a chance to give Roger yesterday’s message from Alex Kirk.

“Roger,” said Henry, “Alex asked me to give you a message. He said, ‘My father still says no.’”

“Is that so?” said Roger with a scowl11. He bent16 down and rummaged17 in his sleeping bag. Finally he pulled out the clipboard and pen and held them to his chest. “We’ll see about that,” he said.

The children and Mr. Yee watched as Roger Walski walked away from them. They watched him walk up to Section B and talk to a gardener.


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
2 lettuce C9GzQ     
n.莴苣;生菜
参考例句:
  • Get some lettuce and tomatoes so I can make a salad.买些莴苣和西红柿,我好做色拉。
  • The lettuce is crisp and cold.莴苣松脆爽口。
3 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。
4 perplexed A3Rz0     
adj.不知所措的
参考例句:
  • The farmer felt the cow,went away,returned,sorely perplexed,always afraid of being cheated.那农民摸摸那头牛,走了又回来,犹豫不决,总怕上当受骗。
  • The child was perplexed by the intricate plot of the story.这孩子被那头绪纷繁的故事弄得迷惑不解。
5 underneath VKRz2     
adj.在...下面,在...底下;adv.在下面
参考例句:
  • Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
  • She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣,里面套着一条连衣裙。
6 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。
7 hind Cyoya     
adj.后面的,后部的
参考例句:
  • The animal is able to stand up on its hind limbs.这种动物能够用后肢站立。
  • Don't hind her in her studies.不要在学业上扯她后腿。
8 hopped 91b136feb9c3ae690a1c2672986faa1c     
跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 ); 单足蹦跳; 齐足(或双足)跳行; 摘葎草花
参考例句:
  • He hopped onto a car and wanted to drive to town. 他跳上汽车想开向市区。
  • He hopped into a car and drove to town. 他跳进汽车,向市区开去。
9 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》
10 sneak vr2yk     
vt.潜行(隐藏,填石缝);偷偷摸摸做;n.潜行;adj.暗中进行
参考例句:
  • He raised his spear and sneak forward.他提起长矛悄悄地前进。
  • I saw him sneak away from us.我看见他悄悄地从我们身边走开。
11 scowl HDNyX     
vi.(at)生气地皱眉,沉下脸,怒视;n.怒容
参考例句:
  • I wonder why he is wearing an angry scowl.我不知道他为何面带怒容。
  • The boss manifested his disgust with a scowl.老板面带怒色,清楚表示出他的厌恶之感。
12 scowled b83aa6db95e414d3ef876bc7fd16d80d     
怒视,生气地皱眉( scowl的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He scowled his displeasure. 他满脸嗔色。
  • The teacher scowled at his noisy class. 老师对他那喧闹的课堂板着脸。
13 kit D2Rxp     
n.用具包,成套工具;随身携带物
参考例句:
  • The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
  • The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。
14 crunch uOgzM     
n.关键时刻;艰难局面;v.发出碎裂声
参考例句:
  • If it comes to the crunch they'll support us.关键时刻他们是会支持我们的。
  • People who crunch nuts at the movies can be very annoying.看电影时嘎吱作声地嚼干果的人会使人十分讨厌。
15 sniff PF7zs     
vi.嗅…味道;抽鼻涕;对嗤之以鼻,蔑视
参考例句:
  • The police used dogs to sniff out the criminals in their hiding - place.警察使用警犬查出了罪犯的藏身地点。
  • When Munchie meets a dog on the beach, they sniff each other for a while.当麦奇在海滩上碰到另一条狗的时候,他们会彼此嗅一会儿。
16 bent QQ8yD     
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的
参考例句:
  • He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
  • We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。
17 rummaged c663802f2e8e229431fff6cdb444b548     
翻找,搜寻( rummage的过去式和过去分词 ); 已经海关检查
参考例句:
  • I rummaged through all the boxes but still could not find it. 几个箱子都翻腾遍了也没有找到。
  • The customs officers rummaged the ship suspected to have contraband goods. 海关人员仔细搜查了一艘有走私嫌疑的海轮。
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