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儿童英语读物 The Radio Mystery CHAPTER 4 A Mysterious Phone Call

时间:2017-11-09 05:22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)

“Your first day on the radio!” Jocelyn said, setting platters of eggs, sausage, and toast on the table. “Eat hearty1!”

“Mmmm!” Benny said, heaping his plate with food.

Jessie nibbled2 at her eggs. She was so excited, she had hardly slept the night before. Everyone except Gwen was sitting around the breakfast table. Jessie wondered why Gwen was late. This was an important day!

“I want to thank you children for doing the show this week,” Jocelyn said. “If you hadn’t volunteered, we would have had to cancel the program. The station would have lost a lot of money — and our listeners would be very disappointed!”

“Doing the show will be fun,” Henry said.

“And it gives us a good excuse to hang around the station looking for clues,” Violet added.

Jocelyn gave a ring with two keys on it to Henry. “You should have your own keys. The big one is for the front door of the station. The small one goes to this house.”

Gwen breezed into the dining room, her red hair streaming down her back. “I bet you guys never had a mystery like this before,” she said. “The ghost hasn’t left behind a single clue.”

“We’ve had some pretty tough mysteries,” Violet said. “But sooner or later, we always find clues.”

Sometimes Gwen acts like she doesn’t want us to solve the mystery, she thought.

“Good luck today. We’ll be listening to your program,” Grandfather said as the kids got ready to leave.

“It’ll be the best radio show ever!” Benny declared.

The Aldens and Gwen walked the short distance to the station. Inside, Avery waved hello from the control booth.

Frances St. Clair was in the breakroom, working at the table.

“Is that the script?” Gwen asked.

“I wrote half the night,” Frances said grumpily, “but it’s finished.” She passed out yellow-covered copies to Henry, Violet, Jessie, and Gwen.

Henry read the title on the front cover. “‘The Ghost Dog.’ Sounds great.”

“Since you can’t read that well,” Frances told Benny, “I’ve given you the part of the ghost dog.”

Benny was delighted. “Oh, boy! Is it a big dog or a little dog?” He yipped like Watch, their dog back home.

“The script says it’s a Labrador retriever,” Jessie said. “That’s a big dog.”

“Woof!” Benny deepened his voice.

“It looks like there are lots more sound effects in this play,” Gwen said, “so you can also be my assistant.”

Everyone read the play silently. The story was about three children who move into a house haunted by the ghost of a dog that had lived there long ago. Violet played the youngest sister. Jessie and Henry played thirteen-year-old twins.

When they had finished reading the script, Frances said, “We’ll do a run-through first. You’ll read from the scripts during the broadcast, but you’ll also be acting3.”

“What do you mean?” asked Jessie.

“I mean, I want you to read the lines without sounding like you’re reading them,” Frances answered. “Put lots of expression into your voice. Like this.” After clearing her throat, she read one of Violet’s lines. “‘What was that? It sounded like — a dog howling. But there is no dog!’”

Frances made her voice high and breathless. She sounded exactly like a scared child.

Henry nodded. “I get it.” He found one of his own lines and read it. “‘Look! The dog went right through the wall, just like the wall wasn’t there!’” He made his voice sound like he was astonished.

Jessie read one of her lines, too. She enjoyed acting and was very good.

“Now let’s hear Benny,” Frances said.

Benny practiced howling and barking.

“Good. Practice reading your parts to yourselves for a few minutes and then we’ll do the run-through,” said Frances.

Then they all headed to the soundstage, where Frances arranged three standing4 microphones and Gwen set up her box of sound effects props5.

Violet felt fluttering in her stomach, like butterflies. She had stage fright! “What if we make a mistake?” she said nervously6.

“Mistakes happen. Just keep going,” Frances said. “We’re broadcasting live, after all. Keep your place in the script and you’ll be fine.”

Gwen selected the tapes she needed for that day’s sound effects. She told Benny, “I’ll do some of the sound effects with props, but mostly I’ll use tapes. You can hit the PLAY button on the cassette player when I signal you.”

Henry, Jessie, and Violet read through the script, complete with sound effects, with only a few mistakes. Then it was airtime.

Frances counted down the seconds. The red ON AIR sign in the hall flashed on. They were on the radio!

Violet’s nervousness vanished as soon as she read her first line. Benny was so good in his part, she almost believed there was an invisible dog.

Henry was surprised at how fast twenty minutes passed. All too soon, Frances was announcing that the show would continue tomorrow. The red ON AIR light went off. They heard the familiar Earl’s Auto7 Sales jingle8 playing through the speakers.

“I can’t believe we just did a radio show!” Violet said as Gwen turned off the microphones. “I hope the listeners liked it.”

As Violet spoke9, the phones in the soundstage and Avery’s control booth lit up. Frances and Avery were busy answering one call after another.

Avery ran out of the control booth. “Kids love the program!”

“I wrote a hit show!” Frances crowed.

“Our actors deserve a lot of the credit,” Avery said. “You were terrific!”

Frances took the next call. Jessie watched her happy smile turn into an expression of concern. Something was wrong.

When Frances hung up, she said, “Well, not everyone is thrilled with our show.”

“Who was that?” Gwen asked.

“Earl Biggs,” Frances said.

“The guy whose car commercials come on after the show?” Benny asked.

Frances nodded. “Exactly. He listened to the show from his office next door,” she said. “He called to complain. He said he doesn’t want to sponsor a kiddie show. Kids don’t buy cars.”

“He doesn’t know the entire cast walked out yesterday,” Avery said. “I’ll tell him. And I’ll tell him we’re just doing a children’s mystery program this week. And that the listeners loved it. Let’s hope he isn’t mad enough to pull his advertising10.”

“He seems to be looking for excuses to cancel his account,” Frances said, leaving the room to answer another phone.

“Do you think it’s possible that Earl could be the ghost?” Jessie asked Gwen.

Gwen looked sharply at her. “What makes you think that?”

“Everyone is a suspect in a case like this,” Henry told her. “And Earl has a key, right? So he could sneak11 in and out without much trouble.”

Gwen scowled12. “I guess so.” She turned abruptly13 from the Aldens and picked up the garbage can. “This place is a mess,” she said. “I should clean.”

“May we help?” asked Violet.

Gwen shrugged14. “Sure. Gran can’t afford a cleaning crew, so everyone who works here takes turns emptying the trash, mopping, and dusting.”

“I’ll sweep the floor,” Jessie said.

“And I’ll empty the trash cans,” Benny offered.

“Thanks,” said Gwen. “The Dumpster is out the side door.”

Benny collected the trash in one wastebasket, then opened the door at the end of the hall. Benny didn’t have a key, so he propped15 the door open with a second wastebasket.

A large Dumpster stood at the edge of the parking lot. On the other side was Earl’s Auto Sales. The small cinder16 block building was surrounded by shiny cars.

As Benny watched, a man in a cowboy hat came out of the building. He walked over to one of the cars and slapped a SOLD sign under the windshield wiper.

When the man saw Benny, he crossed the parking lot.

“Don’t believe I know you,” he said in a gravelly voice. “I’m Earl Biggs.”

“I’m Benny Alden,” Benny replied.

The man’s fluffy17 gray eyebrows18 shot upward in surprise. “You must be one of the kids in the radio show.”

Benny nodded. “I was the ghost dog! My brother and sisters are in the play, too. It’s fun.”

“Well, the fun’s over,” Earl said. “You won’t be doing the show anymore. I need to talk to Avery.” He walked into the station through the propped-open door.

Benny emptied the wastebasket, then hurried back inside the station. He heard a phone ringing. Both Avery and Frances were already tied up on other calls.

Benny spied an extension in the break-room and picked up the receiver. Before he could say anything, he heard a man saying, “I must have an answer.”

Benny’s mouth dropped open in surprise. The gravelly voice sounded like Earl Biggs! Was he on another phone in the station?

Then another person spoke. “I need more time,” she said.

Benny recognized the other voice, too. It was Jocelyn Hawley. She sounded upset.

What was Earl Biggs demanding from her?


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 hearty Od1zn     
adj.热情友好的;衷心的;尽情的,纵情的
参考例句:
  • After work they made a hearty meal in the worker's canteen.工作完了,他们在工人食堂饱餐了一顿。
  • We accorded him a hearty welcome.我们给他热忱的欢迎。
2 nibbled e053ad3f854d401d3fe8e7fa82dc3325     
v.啃,一点一点地咬(吃)( nibble的过去式和过去分词 );啃出(洞),一点一点咬出(洞);慢慢减少;小口咬
参考例句:
  • She nibbled daintily at her cake. 她优雅地一点一点地吃着自己的蛋糕。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Several companies have nibbled at our offer. 若干公司表示对我们的出价有兴趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》
3 acting czRzoc     
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的
参考例句:
  • Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她,她只是假装的。
  • During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代,她的表演生涯黯然失色。
4 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。
5 props 50fe03ab7bf37089a7e88da9b31ffb3b     
小道具; 支柱( prop的名词复数 ); 支持者; 道具; (橄榄球中的)支柱前锋
参考例句:
  • Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
  • The government props up the prices of farm products to support farmers' incomes. 政府保持农产品价格不变以保障农民们的收入。
6 nervously tn6zFp     
adv.神情激动地,不安地
参考例句:
  • He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇,努力忍着不哭出来。
  • He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。
7 auto ZOnyW     
n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车
参考例句:
  • Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
  • The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。
8 jingle RaizA     
n.叮当声,韵律简单的诗句;v.使叮当作响,叮当响,押韵
参考例句:
  • The key fell on the ground with a jingle.钥匙叮当落地。
  • The knives and forks set up their regular jingle.刀叉发出常有的叮当声。
9 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。
10 advertising 1zjzi3     
n.广告业;广告活动 a.广告的;广告业务的
参考例句:
  • Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
  • The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。
11 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。
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 abruptly iINyJ     
adv.突然地,出其不意地
参考例句:
  • He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
  • I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。
14 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》
15 propped 557c00b5b2517b407d1d2ef6ba321b0e     
支撑,支持,维持( prop的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He sat propped up in the bed by pillows. 他靠着枕头坐在床上。
  • This fence should be propped up. 这栅栏该用东西支一支。
16 cinder xqhzt     
n.余烬,矿渣
参考例句:
  • The new technology for the preparation of superfine ferric oxide from pyrite cinder is studied.研究了用硫铁矿烧渣为原料,制取超细氧化铁红的新工艺。
  • The cinder contains useful iron,down from producing sulphuric acid by contact process.接触法制硫酸的矿渣中含有铁矿。
17 fluffy CQjzv     
adj.有绒毛的,空洞的
参考例句:
  • Newly hatched chicks are like fluffy balls.刚孵出的小鸡像绒毛球。
  • The steamed bread is very fluffy.馒头很暄。
18 eyebrows a0e6fb1330e9cfecfd1c7a4d00030ed5     
眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
  • His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。
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