劉莉霞

《哈利·波特》系列小說(shuō)作者、英國(guó)作家J.K.羅琳的新作The Ickabog是一本兒童讀物，從2020年5月26日至7月10日提供在線免費(fèi)閱讀，每周一至周五更新，每天更新一章，共計(jì)34個(gè)章節(jié)。這本新書為因新冠疫情而不得不待在家中的兒童及其家人帶來(lái)快樂(lè)。

Harry Potter fans of all ages now have the chance to find out what it would be like to have J.K. Rowling read them a bedtime story. Well， almost. Thats because the best-selling author has begun releasing chapters of The Ickabog， a story she wrote years ago to read to her own children each night.

The Ickabog tells the story of the mostly generous kingdom of Cornucopia， where an unreal monster—the Ickabog—lives “at the very northern-most tip of the country， in a dangerous place for humans to enter”.

Rowling began introducing The Ickabog on May 26， 2020 and intended to release it chapter by chapter—for free—every weekday until July 10 on her own dedicated website. While she wrote it as a read-aloud book， Rowling said that the story is also suitable for children to read to themselves. Dedicated adult fans will probably enjoy the“story about truth and the abuse of power”， too.

She wrote in a Twitter thread that she always intended to publish it， but she put it away after the last Harry Potter book was released， and then she focused instead on two novels for adults. But with the coronavirus lockdown across the world， she pulled out the Ickabog story， updated it and decided to share it.

In addition to offering a new tale from the masterful storyteller—Rowling was quick to note on Twitter that The Ickabog is not a spin-off of Harry Potter—the release comes with a super-fun element for her youngest fans： an illustration competition. Rowling has been inviting kids all over the world ages 7 to 12 to submit drawings and paintings that could be featured in a printed version of the book， scheduled to be published in November， 2020.

She wrote on Twitter that she will provide suggestions for drawings， “but nobody should feel limited by my ideas. Let your imaginations run wild！”

Rowling plans to donate all money from sales of The Ickabog to help those affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

1. What do we know about The Ickabog？

A. It belongs to Harry Potter series.

B. Its written years ago by Rowling.

C. Its only suitable for teens ages 7 to 12.

D. The Ickabog is the king of Cornucopia.

2. Who will be most probably fond of reading the new book？

A. Those who are generous.

B. Those who are disabled.

C. Those who like to find the truth.

D. Those who enjoy adventurous journeys.

3. Why did Rowling release The Ickabog？

A. She wanted to publish a new story.

B. A terrible disease attacked the world.

C. Her children asked her to write for them.

D. She wanted to make money from the sales.

4. What can we infer about the illustration competition？

A. All teenagers can take part in.

B. It will be closed by July 10.

C. Rowling offers advice in advance.

D. Rowling herself will be the judge.

Difficult sentence

Rowling has been inviting kids all over the world ages 7 to 12 to submit drawings and paintings that could be featured in a printed version of the book， scheduled to be published in November， 2020.

【翻譯】

【點(diǎn)石成金】本句為一個(gè)主從復(fù)合句，that引導(dǎo)一個(gè)限制性定語(yǔ)從句，scheduled to be published in November是過(guò)去分詞短語(yǔ)作后置定語(yǔ)。