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从前，在埃及街旁的一所房子里，住着一只名叫爱德华·图雷恩的瓷兔子。那小兔子很是自鸣得意，因为他被一个名叫阿比林的小女孩所拥有，被她深深地宠爱着。可是后来有一天，他被丢失了，从而踏上了奇幻的寻爱之旅——从海洋深处到渔夫的渔网，从垃圾堆的顶部到流浪汉营地的篝火旁，从一个病童的床前到孟斐斯的街道上……这就是《爱德华的奇妙之旅》，一只不懂爱的瓷兔子丢失爱、学会爱而又重新得到爱的故事。
今年年初，因韩剧《来自星星的你》的大热，作为“都叫兽”枕边书的《爱德华的奇妙之旅》也因此大受粉丝追捧。事实上，这本由三度夺得纽伯瑞大奖的美国小说家——凯特·迪卡米洛执笔的《爱德华的奇妙之旅》早就蜚声国际，2006年更荣获“波士顿全球号角书金奖”。这是一个“简单”的童话故事，没有紧凑的情节，也没有太多的渲染，但就是能让你从那一字一句间清清楚楚地体会到爱德华的那些等待有多煎熬，无能为力时有多悲伤，重逢时有多满足。
本文选自《爱德华的奇妙之旅》的第一章（译文参考自新蕾出版社2011年版），让我们来看看这是一只怎样的瓷兔子，让我们来到一切童话故事开始的地方——从前……
Once， in a house on Egypt Street， there lived a rabbit who was made almost entirely of china. He had china arms and china legs， china paws and a china head， a china torso[躯干] and a china nose. His arms and legs were jointed[结合] and joined by wire so that his china elbows[肘部] and china knees could be bent， giving him much freedom of movement.
His ears were made of real rabbit fur， and beneath[在……的下方] the fur， there were strong， bendable[可弯曲的] wires， which allowed the ears to be arranged into poses that reflected the rabbit’s mood—jaunty[洋洋得意的]， tired， full of ennui[无聊]. His tail， too， was made of real rabbit fur and was fluffy[毛茸茸的] and soft and well shaped.
The rabbit’s name was Edward Tulane， and he was tall. He measured almost three feet from the tip of his ears to the tip of his feet； his eyes were painted a penetrating[（目光）犀利的] and intelligent[聪明的] blue.
In all， Edward Tulane felt himself to be an exceptional[优越的] specimen[范例]. Only his whiskers[胡须] gave him pause. They were long and elegant[优雅的] （as they should be）， but they were of uncertain origin. Edward felt quite strongly that they were not the whiskers of a rabbit. Whom the whiskers had belonged to[属于] initially[最初]—what unsavory[令人讨厌的] animal—was a question that Edward could not bear to consider for too long. And so he did not. He preferred[偏爱]， as a rule， not to think unpleasant thoughts.
Edward’s mistress[女主人] was a ten-year-old， darkhaired girl named Abilene Tulane， who thought almost as highly of Edward as Edward thought of himself. Each morning after she dressed herself for school， Abilene dressed Edward.
The china rabbit was in possession of[拥有] an extraordinary wardrobe[衣橱] composed of[由……组成] handmade silk suits， custom shoes fashioned from the finest leather and designed specifically[特定的] for his rabbit feet， and a wide array[排列] of hats equipped[配备] with holes so that they could easily fit over Edward’s large and expressive[富有表现力的] ears. Each pair of wellcut pants had a small pocket for Edward’s gold pocket watch. Abilene wound[上发条] this watch for him each morning. “Now， Edward，” she said to him after she was done winding the watch， “when the big hand is on the twelve and the little hand is on the three， I will come home to you.”
She placed Edward on a chair in the dining room and positioned the chair so that Edward was looking out the window and could see the path that led up to the Tulane front door. Abilene balanced[使平衡的] the watch on his left leg. She kissed the tips of his ears， and then she left and Edward spent the day staring out at Egypt Street， listening to the tick[滴答声] of his watch and waiting.
Of all the seasons of the year， the rabbit most preferred winter， for the sun set early then and the dining-room windows became dark and Edward could see his own reflection in the glass. And what a reflection it was！ What an elegant figure he cut！ Edward never ceased to[停止] be amazed at his own fineness.
In the evening， Edward sat at the dining room table with the other members of the Tulane family： Abilene； her mother and father； and Abilene’s grandmother， who was called Pellegrina. True， Edward’s ears barely cleared the tabletop， and true also， he spent the duration[持续期间] of the meal staring straight ahead at nothing but the bright and blinding[炫目的，耀眼的] white of the tablecloth. But he was there， a rabbit at the table.
Abilene’s parents found it charming[迷人的，可爱的] that Abilene considered Edward real， and that she sometimes requested that a phrase or story be repeated because Edward had not heard it.
“Papa，” Abilene would say， “I’m afraid that Edward didn’t catch that last bit.”
Abilene’s father would then turn in the direction of Edward’s ears and speak slowly， repeating what he had just said for the benefit of the china rabbit. Edward pretended[假装]， out of courtesy[出于礼貌] to Abilene， to listen. But， in truth， he was not very interested in what people had to say. And also， he did not care for Abilene’s parents and their condescending[故意屈尊的] manner toward him. All adults， in fact， condescended to him.
Only Abilene’s grandmother spoke to him as Abilene did， as one equal[平等的] to another. Pellegrina was very old. She had a large， sharp nose and bright， black eyes that shone like dark stars. It was Pellegrina who was responsible[负责的] for Edward’s existence. It was she who had commissioned[委任] his making， she who had ordered his silk suits and his pocket watch， his jaunty hats and his bendable
ears， his fine leather shoes and his jointed arms and legs， all from a master craftsman[工匠] in her native France. It was Pellegrina who had given him as a gift to Abilene on her seventh birthday. And it was Pellegrina who came each night to tuck Abilene into[使盖好被子安睡] her bed and Edward into his.
“Will you tell us a story， Pellegrina？” Abilene asked her grandmother each night.
“Not tonight， lady，” said Pellegrina.
“When？” asked Abilene. “What night？”
“Soon，” said Pellegrina.“Soon there will be a story.”
And then she turned off the light， and Edward and Abilene lay in the dark of the bedroom.
“I love you， Edward，”Abilene said each night after Pellegrina had left. She said those words and then she waited， almost as if she expected Edward to say something in return.
Edward said nothing. He said nothing because， of course， he could not speak. He lay in his small bed next to Abilene’s large one. He stared up at the ceiling and listened to the sound of her breath entering and leaving her body， knowing that soon she would be asleep. Because Edward’s eyes were painted on and he could not close them， he was always awake.
Sometimes， if Abilene put him into his bed on his side instead of on his back， he could see through the cracks[裂缝] in the curtains and out into the dark night. On clear nights， the stars shone， and their pinprick[针孔] light comforted Edward in a way that he could not quite understand. Often， he stared at the stars all night until the dark finally gave way to dawn.
从前，在埃及街旁的一所房子里，居住着一只几乎完全用瓷制成的兔子。他长着瓷的胳膊、瓷的腿、瓷的爪子、瓷的头、瓷的躯干和瓷的鼻子。他的胳膊和腿被金属线连接起来，这样他的瓷胳膊肘儿和瓷膝盖便可以弯曲，使他得以活动自如。
他的耳朵是用真正的兔毛做成的，在那皮毛下面，是结实的、可弯曲的金属线，它使那双耳朵可以摆出各种姿势，反映小兔子（不同）情绪——洋洋得意、疲倦不堪或者无聊透顶。他的尾巴也是用真正的兔毛做的，毛茸茸的、软软的，做得很得体。
那只小兔子名叫爱德华·图雷恩。他的个子很高，从耳朵顶端到脚尖差不多有三英尺。他的眼睛被涂成蓝色，显得敏锐而机智。
总之，爱德华·图雷恩是个自命不凡的家伙。只有胡子使他颇为费解。那胡子又长又优雅（正如它们本该有的样子），可是它们的材料来源却不甚清楚。爱德华极为强烈地感觉到它们不是兔子的胡须。那胡须最初是属于谁的——是某个令人讨厌的动物——对这个问题爱德华无法细想。他也的确没有这样做。他通常不喜欢思考那些令人不快的事。
爱德华的主人是个十岁大的黑发女孩，叫阿比林·图雷恩。她对爱德华的评价很高，几乎就像爱德华对他自己的评价一样高。每天早晨，在阿比林为上学而给自己穿衣打扮后，她也会给爱德华打扮一番。
那小瓷兔拥有一个特别大的衣橱，里面装着一套套手工制作的丝绸礼服；用最精美的皮革按照他那兔子的脚型特别设计和定做的鞋子；一排排的帽子，帽子上面还留有小孔，以便适于戴在他那对又大又富有表现力的耳朵上。每条裁制考究的裤子上面都有一个小口袋，用来装爱德华的金怀表。阿比林每天早晨都会帮他给那怀表上好发条。
“好啦，爱德华，”她给那表上好弦后对他说，“当粗指针指到十二而细指针指到三时，我就会回家来陪你了。”
她把爱德华放到餐室的一把椅子上，调整好椅子的位置，让爱德华正好可以向窗外张望，并且可以看到那条通向图雷恩家前门的小路。阿比林把怀表稳稳地放在他的左腿上。她吻了吻他的耳尖，然后就离开了；而爱德华则整天盯着窗外的埃及街，听着他的怀表滴答作响，默默地等待着。
一年四季中，小兔子偏爱冬季。因为在冬季，太阳早早就落下去了，餐室的窗户都会变暗，爱德华就可以从那玻璃里看到自己的映像。那是怎样一种映像啊！他的投影是多么的优雅！爱德华每每对自己的风度翩翩感到惊讶不已。
晚上，爱德华和图雷恩家的其他成员一起坐在餐桌旁——阿比林、她的父母，还有阿比林的祖母，她叫佩勒格里娜。的确，爱德华的耳朵几乎够不着桌面，而且确实，在全部的用餐时间里，他一直两眼直勾勾地盯着前方，盯着那明亮而耀眼的白色桌布。不过他就那样待在那里——一只兔子坐在餐桌旁。 阿比林的父母觉得有趣的是，阿比林认为爱德华是只真兔子，而且她有时会因为怕爱德华没有听清而要求他们把一句话或一个故事重讲一遍。
“爸爸，”阿比林会说，“我恐怕爱德华没听清最后一句话呢。”
于是阿比林的父亲会转向爱德华，对着他的耳朵慢慢地说，为了让这只瓷兔子听明白而把刚刚说过的话再重复一遍。出于对阿比林的尊重，爱德华假装在聆听，实际上他对人们说的话并不十分感兴趣。他对阿比林的父母和他们对他高人一等的态度也并不关心。事实上，所有的成年人都对他很傲慢。
只有阿比林的祖母像阿比林一样对他讲话，以彼此平等的口吻对他讲话。佩勒格里娜已经非常老了。她长着一个又大又尖的鼻子，一双黑亮的眼睛像暗夜中的星星一样闪着光。正是佩勒格里娜让爱德华得以存在于这世上。正是她找人定做了他，她让人定制了他的一套套的丝绸礼服和他的怀表，他的漂亮帽子和他可弯曲的耳朵，他精致的皮鞋和他那有关节的胳膊和腿，所有这些都是出自她的祖国——法国的一位能工巧匠之手。正是佩勒格里娜在阿比林七岁生日时把他作为生日礼物送给了她。
而且正是佩勒格里娜每天晚上都来安顿阿比林上床睡觉，也安顿爱德华上床睡觉。
“给我们讲个故事好吗，佩勒格里娜？”阿比林每天都要她的祖母讲故事。
“今晚不讲了，小姐，”佩勒格里娜说。
“那什么时候讲呢？”阿比林问道，“哪天晚上？”
“很快，”佩勒格里娜说，“很快就会有一个故事了。”
然后她关掉灯，于是爱德华和阿比林躺在卧室的黑暗之中。
“我爱你，爱德华，”每天晚上，在佩勒格里娜走后，阿比林都会这么说。她说完这些话之后就等待着，好像期待着爱德华也对她说些什么一样。
爱德华什么也没有说。当然他什么也没有说是因为他不会说话。他躺在他那紧挨着阿比林的大床的小床上。他抬眼凝视着天花板，倾听着她的呼吸进出她的身体的声音，他知道她很快就要睡着了。因为爱德华的眼睛是画上去的，所以他无法闭上它们，他总是醒着的。
有时，如果阿比林把他侧身而不是仰面放在他的床上，他就可以从窗帘的缝隙中向外望见黑暗的夜空。在晴朗的夜晚，星光璀璨，它们像从针孔里照射进来的光线让爱德华感到一种莫名的安慰。他常常整夜整夜地凝视着星星，直到黑暗最终让位给黎明。
今年年初，因韩剧《来自星星的你》的大热，作为“都叫兽”枕边书的《爱德华的奇妙之旅》也因此大受粉丝追捧。事实上，这本由三度夺得纽伯瑞大奖的美国小说家——凯特·迪卡米洛执笔的《爱德华的奇妙之旅》早就蜚声国际，2006年更荣获“波士顿全球号角书金奖”。这是一个“简单”的童话故事，没有紧凑的情节，也没有太多的渲染，但就是能让你从那一字一句间清清楚楚地体会到爱德华的那些等待有多煎熬，无能为力时有多悲伤，重逢时有多满足。
本文选自《爱德华的奇妙之旅》的第一章（译文参考自新蕾出版社2011年版），让我们来看看这是一只怎样的瓷兔子，让我们来到一切童话故事开始的地方——从前……
Once， in a house on Egypt Street， there lived a rabbit who was made almost entirely of china. He had china arms and china legs， china paws and a china head， a china torso[躯干] and a china nose. His arms and legs were jointed[结合] and joined by wire so that his china elbows[肘部] and china knees could be bent， giving him much freedom of movement.
His ears were made of real rabbit fur， and beneath[在……的下方] the fur， there were strong， bendable[可弯曲的] wires， which allowed the ears to be arranged into poses that reflected the rabbit’s mood—jaunty[洋洋得意的]， tired， full of ennui[无聊]. His tail， too， was made of real rabbit fur and was fluffy[毛茸茸的] and soft and well shaped.
The rabbit’s name was Edward Tulane， and he was tall. He measured almost three feet from the tip of his ears to the tip of his feet； his eyes were painted a penetrating[（目光）犀利的] and intelligent[聪明的] blue.
In all， Edward Tulane felt himself to be an exceptional[优越的] specimen[范例]. Only his whiskers[胡须] gave him pause. They were long and elegant[优雅的] （as they should be）， but they were of uncertain origin. Edward felt quite strongly that they were not the whiskers of a rabbit. Whom the whiskers had belonged to[属于] initially[最初]—what unsavory[令人讨厌的] animal—was a question that Edward could not bear to consider for too long. And so he did not. He preferred[偏爱]， as a rule， not to think unpleasant thoughts.
Edward’s mistress[女主人] was a ten-year-old， darkhaired girl named Abilene Tulane， who thought almost as highly of Edward as Edward thought of himself. Each morning after she dressed herself for school， Abilene dressed Edward.
The china rabbit was in possession of[拥有] an extraordinary wardrobe[衣橱] composed of[由……组成] handmade silk suits， custom shoes fashioned from the finest leather and designed specifically[特定的] for his rabbit feet， and a wide array[排列] of hats equipped[配备] with holes so that they could easily fit over Edward’s large and expressive[富有表现力的] ears. Each pair of wellcut pants had a small pocket for Edward’s gold pocket watch. Abilene wound[上发条] this watch for him each morning. “Now， Edward，” she said to him after she was done winding the watch， “when the big hand is on the twelve and the little hand is on the three， I will come home to you.”
She placed Edward on a chair in the dining room and positioned the chair so that Edward was looking out the window and could see the path that led up to the Tulane front door. Abilene balanced[使平衡的] the watch on his left leg. She kissed the tips of his ears， and then she left and Edward spent the day staring out at Egypt Street， listening to the tick[滴答声] of his watch and waiting.
Of all the seasons of the year， the rabbit most preferred winter， for the sun set early then and the dining-room windows became dark and Edward could see his own reflection in the glass. And what a reflection it was！ What an elegant figure he cut！ Edward never ceased to[停止] be amazed at his own fineness.
In the evening， Edward sat at the dining room table with the other members of the Tulane family： Abilene； her mother and father； and Abilene’s grandmother， who was called Pellegrina. True， Edward’s ears barely cleared the tabletop， and true also， he spent the duration[持续期间] of the meal staring straight ahead at nothing but the bright and blinding[炫目的，耀眼的] white of the tablecloth. But he was there， a rabbit at the table.
Abilene’s parents found it charming[迷人的，可爱的] that Abilene considered Edward real， and that she sometimes requested that a phrase or story be repeated because Edward had not heard it.
“Papa，” Abilene would say， “I’m afraid that Edward didn’t catch that last bit.”
Abilene’s father would then turn in the direction of Edward’s ears and speak slowly， repeating what he had just said for the benefit of the china rabbit. Edward pretended[假装]， out of courtesy[出于礼貌] to Abilene， to listen. But， in truth， he was not very interested in what people had to say. And also， he did not care for Abilene’s parents and their condescending[故意屈尊的] manner toward him. All adults， in fact， condescended to him.
Only Abilene’s grandmother spoke to him as Abilene did， as one equal[平等的] to another. Pellegrina was very old. She had a large， sharp nose and bright， black eyes that shone like dark stars. It was Pellegrina who was responsible[负责的] for Edward’s existence. It was she who had commissioned[委任] his making， she who had ordered his silk suits and his pocket watch， his jaunty hats and his bendable
ears， his fine leather shoes and his jointed arms and legs， all from a master craftsman[工匠] in her native France. It was Pellegrina who had given him as a gift to Abilene on her seventh birthday. And it was Pellegrina who came each night to tuck Abilene into[使盖好被子安睡] her bed and Edward into his.
“Will you tell us a story， Pellegrina？” Abilene asked her grandmother each night.
“Not tonight， lady，” said Pellegrina.
“When？” asked Abilene. “What night？”
“Soon，” said Pellegrina.“Soon there will be a story.”
And then she turned off the light， and Edward and Abilene lay in the dark of the bedroom.
“I love you， Edward，”Abilene said each night after Pellegrina had left. She said those words and then she waited， almost as if she expected Edward to say something in return.
Edward said nothing. He said nothing because， of course， he could not speak. He lay in his small bed next to Abilene’s large one. He stared up at the ceiling and listened to the sound of her breath entering and leaving her body， knowing that soon she would be asleep. Because Edward’s eyes were painted on and he could not close them， he was always awake.
Sometimes， if Abilene put him into his bed on his side instead of on his back， he could see through the cracks[裂缝] in the curtains and out into the dark night. On clear nights， the stars shone， and their pinprick[针孔] light comforted Edward in a way that he could not quite understand. Often， he stared at the stars all night until the dark finally gave way to dawn.
从前，在埃及街旁的一所房子里，居住着一只几乎完全用瓷制成的兔子。他长着瓷的胳膊、瓷的腿、瓷的爪子、瓷的头、瓷的躯干和瓷的鼻子。他的胳膊和腿被金属线连接起来，这样他的瓷胳膊肘儿和瓷膝盖便可以弯曲，使他得以活动自如。
他的耳朵是用真正的兔毛做成的，在那皮毛下面，是结实的、可弯曲的金属线，它使那双耳朵可以摆出各种姿势，反映小兔子（不同）情绪——洋洋得意、疲倦不堪或者无聊透顶。他的尾巴也是用真正的兔毛做的，毛茸茸的、软软的，做得很得体。
那只小兔子名叫爱德华·图雷恩。他的个子很高，从耳朵顶端到脚尖差不多有三英尺。他的眼睛被涂成蓝色，显得敏锐而机智。
总之，爱德华·图雷恩是个自命不凡的家伙。只有胡子使他颇为费解。那胡子又长又优雅（正如它们本该有的样子），可是它们的材料来源却不甚清楚。爱德华极为强烈地感觉到它们不是兔子的胡须。那胡须最初是属于谁的——是某个令人讨厌的动物——对这个问题爱德华无法细想。他也的确没有这样做。他通常不喜欢思考那些令人不快的事。
爱德华的主人是个十岁大的黑发女孩，叫阿比林·图雷恩。她对爱德华的评价很高，几乎就像爱德华对他自己的评价一样高。每天早晨，在阿比林为上学而给自己穿衣打扮后，她也会给爱德华打扮一番。
那小瓷兔拥有一个特别大的衣橱，里面装着一套套手工制作的丝绸礼服；用最精美的皮革按照他那兔子的脚型特别设计和定做的鞋子；一排排的帽子，帽子上面还留有小孔，以便适于戴在他那对又大又富有表现力的耳朵上。每条裁制考究的裤子上面都有一个小口袋，用来装爱德华的金怀表。阿比林每天早晨都会帮他给那怀表上好发条。
“好啦，爱德华，”她给那表上好弦后对他说，“当粗指针指到十二而细指针指到三时，我就会回家来陪你了。”
她把爱德华放到餐室的一把椅子上，调整好椅子的位置，让爱德华正好可以向窗外张望，并且可以看到那条通向图雷恩家前门的小路。阿比林把怀表稳稳地放在他的左腿上。她吻了吻他的耳尖，然后就离开了；而爱德华则整天盯着窗外的埃及街，听着他的怀表滴答作响，默默地等待着。
一年四季中，小兔子偏爱冬季。因为在冬季，太阳早早就落下去了，餐室的窗户都会变暗，爱德华就可以从那玻璃里看到自己的映像。那是怎样一种映像啊！他的投影是多么的优雅！爱德华每每对自己的风度翩翩感到惊讶不已。
晚上，爱德华和图雷恩家的其他成员一起坐在餐桌旁——阿比林、她的父母，还有阿比林的祖母，她叫佩勒格里娜。的确，爱德华的耳朵几乎够不着桌面，而且确实，在全部的用餐时间里，他一直两眼直勾勾地盯着前方，盯着那明亮而耀眼的白色桌布。不过他就那样待在那里——一只兔子坐在餐桌旁。 阿比林的父母觉得有趣的是，阿比林认为爱德华是只真兔子，而且她有时会因为怕爱德华没有听清而要求他们把一句话或一个故事重讲一遍。
“爸爸，”阿比林会说，“我恐怕爱德华没听清最后一句话呢。”
于是阿比林的父亲会转向爱德华，对着他的耳朵慢慢地说，为了让这只瓷兔子听明白而把刚刚说过的话再重复一遍。出于对阿比林的尊重，爱德华假装在聆听，实际上他对人们说的话并不十分感兴趣。他对阿比林的父母和他们对他高人一等的态度也并不关心。事实上，所有的成年人都对他很傲慢。
只有阿比林的祖母像阿比林一样对他讲话，以彼此平等的口吻对他讲话。佩勒格里娜已经非常老了。她长着一个又大又尖的鼻子，一双黑亮的眼睛像暗夜中的星星一样闪着光。正是佩勒格里娜让爱德华得以存在于这世上。正是她找人定做了他，她让人定制了他的一套套的丝绸礼服和他的怀表，他的漂亮帽子和他可弯曲的耳朵，他精致的皮鞋和他那有关节的胳膊和腿，所有这些都是出自她的祖国——法国的一位能工巧匠之手。正是佩勒格里娜在阿比林七岁生日时把他作为生日礼物送给了她。
而且正是佩勒格里娜每天晚上都来安顿阿比林上床睡觉，也安顿爱德华上床睡觉。
“给我们讲个故事好吗，佩勒格里娜？”阿比林每天都要她的祖母讲故事。
“今晚不讲了，小姐，”佩勒格里娜说。
“那什么时候讲呢？”阿比林问道，“哪天晚上？”
“很快，”佩勒格里娜说，“很快就会有一个故事了。”
然后她关掉灯，于是爱德华和阿比林躺在卧室的黑暗之中。
“我爱你，爱德华，”每天晚上，在佩勒格里娜走后，阿比林都会这么说。她说完这些话之后就等待着，好像期待着爱德华也对她说些什么一样。
爱德华什么也没有说。当然他什么也没有说是因为他不会说话。他躺在他那紧挨着阿比林的大床的小床上。他抬眼凝视着天花板，倾听着她的呼吸进出她的身体的声音，他知道她很快就要睡着了。因为爱德华的眼睛是画上去的，所以他无法闭上它们，他总是醒着的。
有时，如果阿比林把他侧身而不是仰面放在他的床上，他就可以从窗帘的缝隙中向外望见黑暗的夜空。在晴朗的夜晚，星光璀璨，它们像从针孔里照射进来的光线让爱德华感到一种莫名的安慰。他常常整夜整夜地凝视着星星，直到黑暗最终让位给黎明。