真正的小熊維尼森林在哪裡?那些小說裡沒說的事。
經典文學雋永卻不一定平易近人。本書以親切詼諧的小巧短文,訴說老師也不知道的內幕。
美國最著名女詩人艾蜜莉‧狄金生的詩集為何差點無法問世?小熊維尼的百畝森林在哪裡?《蘿莉塔》作者死後託夢所為何事?《暮光之城》愛德華擄獲無數少女芳心,可知十八世紀歐洲就已為吸血鬼瘋狂?讀者將從這些親民的小故事,輕鬆理解經典的誕生過程。(文/ 野獸姨姨)
Bibliophiles, grab your glasses! Here is a compendium of interesting- and often scandalous-facts and quips about the literary world. Featuring authors and tomes of yesteryear and yesterday,
from Tolkien's Middle-earth to Jeffrey Eugenides's Middlesex, I Used to Knew That: Literature includes sections such as:
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You Don't Say: Commonly-used words and phrases that were coined or popularized in classic words of fiction-sometimes with very different meanings.
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Gruesomely Ever After: The original endings of some of the world's most cherished fairy tales-Snow White, The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, and more.
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Hip to be Square: Banned works of fiction and the controversy surrounding them.
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Anthropomorphized Characters: The real-life stories and inspirations behind beloved "leading creatures."
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Time to Make the Doughnuts: Odd jobs of famous authors.
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Parental Guidance Suggested: Dahl's short stories, Seuss's political cartoons; the lesser-known, and sometimes shocking, adult writings of beloved children's authors.
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The Long Con: Shocking (and sometimes shockingly long-lived) literary hoaxes: Frey, JT Leroy, The Education of Little Tree, The Day After Roswell, etc.
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Science Fiction, Science Fact: If alien monoliths are ever found on the moon, the safer bet is that they would be translucent crystal; Sir Arthur C. Clarke is celebrated for making
accurate predictions of various technologies, years ahead of their time. A look at which of his predictions held true and the same feats of other authors.
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Screen Test: The truth about great works of fiction and the odd challenges that had to be surmounted to bring them to the silver screen.
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The Secret Life of Kilgore Trout: True facts about fake characters (and the writers who created them).