内容简介
This "gripping variation of Red Riding Hood . . . is an outstanding achievement that will be pored over again and again" (School Library Journal, starred review). "The illustrations seem to throb with the mystery and terror of the wolf."--The Horn Book, starred review. Winner of the 1990 Randolph Caldecott Medal. Full color.
作者简介
Ed Young was born on November 28, 1931 in Tianjin, China. When he was three years old, he and his family moved to Shanghai. His mother would ring a bell at mealtimes, and he would slide down the banister with his brothers and sisters. “I have never lost the child in me. My father would spin endless tales of his own to entertain our imaginations on summer nights lying on the flat roof of our house. I have never forgotten the images I saw in my mind.” From an early age, Ed loved to create stories and draw pictures and thought he could "disappear" into his own world, brought to life through his illustrations.
In 1951, Young came to America to study architecture. Instead, he grew more interested in art, and soon switched his major. Young’s first job was with a New York advertising agency where he spent his lunch breaks sketching animals at Central Park Zoo. During that time, he received a letter from his father which said, “A successful life and a happy life is one measured by how much you have accomplished for others and not one measured by how much you have done for yourself. “Young said, “I understood then that to realize my potential as an artist was subservient to my worth as a human being. To be truly successful, I needed to find a place where my work would also inspire others to fuller and happier lives. I wished to share with everyone my father’s words about success – work can, in fact, be the rooftop from which we launch ourselves to higher places.” In search of something more expansive, expressive, and timeless, Young discovered all this, and more, in children’s books.
精彩书评
"With forceful impressionistic paintings, Young artfully entices readers across the fairy-tale threshold into a story of three girls' fearless battle of wits with a famished wolf."
-- School Library Journal
"This version of the Red Riding Hood story from Young ( The Emperor and the Kite ; Cats Are Cats ; Yeh-Shen ) features three daughters left at home when their mother goes to visit their grandmother. Lon Po Po, the Granny Wolf, pretends to be the girls' grandmother, until clever Shang, the eldest daughter, suspects the greedy wolf's real identity. Tempting him with ginkgo nuts, the girls pull him in a basket to the top of the tree in which they are hiding, then let go of the rope--killing him. One of Young's most arresting illustrations accompanies his dedication: ``To all the wolves of the world for lending their good name as a tangible symbol for our darkness.'' Like ancient Oriental paintings, the illustrations are frequently grouped in panels. When the girls meet the wolf, e.g., the left panel focuses on their wary faces peering out from the darkness, the middle enlarges the evil wolf's eye and teeth, and the third is a vivid swirl of the blue clothes in which the wolf is disguised. The juxtaposition of abstract and realistic representations, the complicated play of color and shadow, and the depth of the artist's vision all help transform this simple fairy tale into an extraordinary and powerful book."
-- Publishers Weekly
前言/序言
冒险之森:迷雾中的守护者 一本关于勇气、智慧与家族传承的奇幻史诗 第一部:古老的低语与初临的阴影 在被时间遗忘的“翠玉山脉”深处,坐落着一个名叫“溪谷镇”的宁静村落。这里的居民世代与森林和谐共存,依靠古老的知识和对自然的敬畏维持着生活的秩序。故事从一个名叫林小月的年轻猎人开始。 小月并非天生的英雄,她只是一个敏锐、沉默,对家族传承抱有深深敬畏的孤儿。她的养父,老猎人阿桑,是镇上最后一位精通“聆听之术”的智者。阿桑坚信,山脉深处的迷雾并非简单的天气现象,而是古老力量苏醒的征兆。 故事的开端,笼罩在溪谷镇上空的是一种持续了三个季节的异常寂静。鸟鸣声稀疏,夜晚的星光被一种无形的“暗影”遮蔽。这种不安,直接指向了山脉中央那片被所有长辈严令禁止踏入的“回音谷”。 【核心冲突的萌芽】 第一章,小月在一次深入森林边缘的例行巡猎中,发现了一件非同寻常的物件:一块被打磨得光滑的黑曜石,上面刻着一圈扭曲的、类似藤蔓的符文。当她触碰它时,一股寒意瞬间穿透她的身体,她听到了一阵微弱但清晰的、如同婴儿啼哭又似风中哀嚎的“低语”。 回到家后,阿桑看到黑曜石,脸色骤变。他告诉小月,这并非凡物,而是“晦影石”——传说中,它能唤醒沉睡在山脉深处、渴望吞噬光明的“蚀骨兽”的媒介。阿桑急切地教导小月辨识草药、设置陷阱,并将家族世代相传的一把由白桦木制成的弓,交到了小月手中,并嘱咐她:“弓箭可以伤及肉体,但唯有‘真实之语’才能对抗那黑暗的低语。” 第二部:穿越迷雾与遗失的记忆 不久,灾难降临。 溪谷镇的牲畜开始莫名失踪,更可怕的是,几个在夜间外出的人再也没有回来。幸存者描述的凶手,模糊不清,只提到了“巨大的阴影”和“令人骨髓冰冷的笑声”。镇民陷入恐慌,迷信和猜疑开始在社区内蔓延。 小月决定深入回音谷,寻找真相,同时也为了寻找一个失踪的玩伴——一个天性活泼、对森林充满好奇的女孩,名叫青禾。青禾的失踪,直接激发了小月内心深处对“守护”的责任感。 【旅途中的伙伴与考验】 在回音谷的入口,小月遇到了两个意外的同伴: 1. 瘦猴阿彪: 一个精通攀爬和潜行的山贼后裔,他因偷窃了当地富商的稀有药材而被追捕。他虽然狡诈,但对小月展示出的勇气感到意外,并以他敏捷的身手和对山中密道的熟悉,成为了小月的向导。他的加入,为紧张的旅程增添了一丝必要的、略带戏谑的放松。 2. 柳婆婆(并非狼婆婆,而是药师): 一位隐居在山脚的白发老妪,她精通古代炼金术和植物学的知识。她没有直接加入队伍,而是向小月提供了一系列独特的保护药剂和用来驱散幻觉的香料。柳婆婆告诫小月:“黑暗会扭曲你的认知,让最亲近的人看起来像最可怕的敌人。记住,区分‘恐惧’和‘现实’是活下去的关键。” 在深入谷底的过程中,小月小队遭遇了环境的极大考验:扭曲的树木、会自行改变路径的溪流,以及不断引诱他们走向歧途的“魅影之声”。这些声音,模仿了他们最爱之人的呼唤,试图瓦解他们的意志。小月依靠阿桑教她的“聆听之术”——一种分辨声音真伪的冥想技巧,一次次地成功抵抗了幻觉的侵蚀。 第三部:迷宫深处的真相与选择 经过数日的艰苦跋涉,小月一行人终于抵达了回音谷的最深处——一个被巨大岩石群环绕的、充满硫磺气味的洞穴入口。这里的光线被完全吸收,任何火把都只能勉强照亮周围几尺之地。 在洞穴深处,他们找到了被困住的青禾。但青禾的状态极其反常,她眼神空洞,正被一个巨大的、类似“粘稠的黑雾团”的生物所包围。这个生物似乎没有固定的形态,但其核心散发着令人作呕的腐败气息。 【核心反派的揭示】 小月发现,这团黑雾并非她想象中的“野兽”,而是一种古老的、以“遗忘”和“绝望”为食的“噬魂灵”。它没有实体,却能通过附着在活物身上,吸取其生命中最美好的记忆和希望,最终让受害者变成行尸走肉,为它提供能量。 青禾之所以被它锁定,是因为她性格中过于强烈的“情感波动”,让她成为了最好的“食物”。更令人震惊的是,小月在噬魂灵的周围,发现了许多破碎的、但依然散发着微弱光芒的“记忆水晶”——那是失踪镇民的残存意识。 【高潮与“真实之语”的运用】 战斗在绝望中展开。阿彪利用他偷窃来的爆裂粉末,成功地炸开了洞穴的一部分岩石,短暂地引入了一丝外部的微光,削弱了噬魂灵的力量。 但要彻底驱逐它,必须使用阿桑教授的“真实之语”。这是一种基于对逝去亲人、对故土纯粹情感构建的言语咒术。小月意识到,那把白桦木弓并非为了射杀,而是为了在“说出真言”时,作为“聚焦器”。 小月深吸一口气,回忆起阿桑教她辨认林中植物的声音,回忆起青禾在阳光下无忧无虑的笑声,她对着噬魂灵,用尽全身力气,发出了她此生最坚定、最充满爱意的话语。 “你不能带走属于我们的一切!我们曾拥有光明,拥有爱,而这些记忆,比任何黑暗都要坚固!” 当“真实之语”触及噬魂灵的核心时,那团黑雾发出了刺耳的尖啸,并非痛苦,而是“不解”和“虚无”的反馈。记忆与爱构筑的坚实壁垒,正是它最无法理解和吞噬的力量。噬魂灵在光的短暂涌入和真言的冲击下,开始瓦解,最终化为一缕青烟,消散在空气中。 尾声:回归与重塑的希望 小月救出了青禾,虽然青禾因被侵蚀过久,心智需要漫长的恢复,但她活了下来。他们带着从洞穴中找到的、还未完全熄灭的记忆水晶,回到了溪谷镇。 镇民们终于明白,真正的威胁并非来自外部的野兽,而是潜伏在内心深处的“遗忘”与“绝望”。小月不再是那个沉默的孤儿,她成为了连接过去与未来的桥梁。阿桑欣慰地看着她,知道家族的传承找到了新的守护者。 溪谷镇开始重建,他们将回音谷的入口封存,不再恐惧迷雾,而是学会了如何守护自己内心的光亮。小月的故事,成为了新的传说,告诫着后代:勇气并非不知恐惧,而是即便心怀恐惧,依然选择守护心中最珍贵的事物。 而那把白桦木弓,被她悬挂在了镇子的中心广场,象征着永不屈服的希望。