Reading Good Books
Devote some of your leisure, I repeat, to cultivating a love of reading good books. Fortunate indeed are those who contrive to make themselves genuine book-lovers. For book lovers have some noteworthy advantages over other people. They need never know lonely hours so long as they have books around them, and the better the books the more delightful the company(1). From good books, moreover, they draw much besides entertainment. They gain mental food such as few companions can supply(2). Even while resting from their labors they are, through the books they read, equipping themselves to perform those labors more efficiently. This(3) albeit they may not be deliberately reading to improve their mind. All unconsciously the ideas they derive from the printed pages(4) are stored up, to be worked over(5) by the imagination for their future profit.
注释:
(1) the better the books the more delightful the company:
书越好，与书作伴就越快活。
(2) They gain mental food such as few companions can supply: 他们从中获得的那种精神食粮，从其他地方是很难得到的。此次 such as 相当于such mental food as。
(3) This: 指上句； albeit： 连词，含义是 although it be（尽管，虽然），用于书面语。
(4) the printed pages：书本。
(5) to be worked over：以便加以研究。
Additional words and their definitions:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Latin dvovre, dvt-, to vow : d-, de- + vovre, to vow.] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- de·votement n. These verbs mean to give to a particular end and especially to a higher purpose. Devote implies faithfulness and loyalty: Nurses devote themselves to the care of the sick.
lei·sure (lzhr, lzhr)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Medieval Latin cultvre, cultvt-, from cultvus, tilled, from Latin cultus, past participle of colere, to till; see kwel-1 in Indo-European roots.] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- culti·vata·ble adj.
Antonyms
noteworthi·ly adv.
al·be·it conjunction ȯl-ˈbē-ət, al- Definition of ALBEIT Examples of ALBEIT She appeared on the show, albeit briefly. It was an amazing computer, albeit expensive. … living a modest life as an editor wasn't as appealing as living in the grand style, albeit as someone else's valet. —Leslie Bennetts, Vanity Fair, Sept. 2000 As created during the Depression by a promoter named Leo Seltzer, roller derby was the first sport in which men and women competed on the same team, albeit on a separate-but-equal basis, alternating periods on the track. —Frank Deford, New York Times Magazine, 4 Jan. 1998 … customers seemed generally cheery, albeit some were more cautious than others … —Cynthia Clark, Publishers Weekly, 26 Jan. 1998 But suppose the life were in many ways a mess, albeit a fascinating, courageous, picturesque and emotionally intense mess … —Diane Ackerman, New York Times Book Review, 23 Aug. 1987 |
汉译：阅读好书
我再说一遍，把你的一部分空闲时光用来培养阅读好书的爱好吧。那些设法把自己培养成为真正爱好读书的人，确实是幸运的。因为爱读书的人比之别人有着明显的好处。只要手头有书，他们就从来不知寂寞。书越好，读来越是津津有味。他们从好书中不但得到乐趣，而且受到很多教益。他们从中获得的那种精神食粮，从其他地方是很难得到的。即使是在工作休息时，通过读书，他们的工作效率也能更加提高，尽管他们未必有意识地想到读书是为了提高才智。在全然不知不觉中，他们从书中吸取的知识积累起来，经过想象力的加工，对将来大有用处。（唐力行 译）
作者简介：
下面框框里是大家的英译总汇：
I say it once more, use some of your leisure time to cultivate reading as your hobby. Those who strive to be good readers are indeed very fortunate. The people who love to read obviously hold many advantages over others. With a book in the hand, they never feel lonely. The better the book is, the more likely they will be absorbed in it. Not only they find joy in the books, but also they could benefit greatly from them. The spiritual food they obtain from the books cannot be acquired easily from anywhere else. Reading during the break time can help people increase their efficiency, even though they may not be aware that reading is meant to increase their knowledge and wisdom. Without any conscious effort, they accumulate the knowledge absorbed from the books and process it through their imagination, which will greatly benefit them in future.
Let me reiterate: spend some of your spare time nourishing a hobby of reading good books. Those who’ve managed to become true book-lovers are fortunate because they have obvious advantages over others. They don’t ever feel lonely with books at hand. The better a book is, the more rewarding is the reading. Not only they enjoy reading a good book, also they benefit from it. The spiritual nourishment they gained from reading is hard to find in other places. They work more efficiently through reading during the breaks, though they might not be reading with an aim to enrich their brain. Without being totally aware of it, they accumulated their knowledge extracted from books, processed with their imagination, which turns out to be very useful in their future. 同学小薇
I say it again, use some of your spare time to develop reading as a hobby. Those people who try to make themselves as reading lovers are truly very fortunate because reading lovers has obvious advantages over others. They never feel lonely as long as they have books around. The better the book is, the more satisfied they are. They get not only entertainment, but also knowledge and lessons. Food for thought they get from books is difficult to obtain anywhere else. Reading during the work breaks also can improve working efficiency, although people may not consciously think that reading is to improve intelligence. Without any notice, the knowledge accumulated from books, after processing of imagination, will benefits their future dramatically.
Let me repeat again, please spend part of you spare time on training yourself the habbit of reading good books. Those, who trained themselves as true lover for readings, are lucky. Book readers get significant benefit over others.They do not feel lonely as long as there is a book in front of them. The better the books, the more invovled they are. They get not only pleasure but also knowledge from the books. The mental food they get from the books is very diffcult to get from other places. Even during working break, through reading, they can improve their working efficency much more, though they do not mean to improve their intelligent on purpose. The knowledge they get unconsciously from the books accumulates, and processed by imagination, bring benefit to the future.
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