評論
打印
I was always a reader. As a kid, I walked to the library several times a week and stayed up late reading with a flashlight.
我一直都喜歡讀書。小時候，我每周都會去好幾次圖書館，拿著手電筒熬夜看書。
I checked out so many books and returned them so quickly the librarian once snapped,
我借的書很多，還的也快，有一次圖書管理員就怒了，
“Don’t take home so many books if you’re not going to read them all.”
“如果你不能讀完的話，就別帶這么多書回家。”
“But I did read them all,” I said. I was an English major in college and went on to get a master’s in literature.
我說，“但是我都看完了?！蔽以诖髮W主修英語，后來又獲得了文學碩士學位。
When I created my online dating profile, I made my screen name “missbibliophile52598.”
當我創(chuàng)建我的網(wǎng)上約會檔案時，我把我的網(wǎng)名設(shè)為“missbibliophile52598”。
Filling out the “favorite books” section, I let my taste in literature speak for me:
在填寫最愛的書時，我讓我的文學品味為我說話：
One Hundred Years of Solitude, A Moveable Feast, White Teeth, The Namesake, The Known World, The God of Small Things, How to Read the Air.
《百年孤獨》，《流動的盛宴》，《白牙》，《同名人》，《已知的世界》，《微物之神》，《如何閱讀空氣》。
But I realized it had been more than two years since I had read most of those titles.
但我意識到，我已經(jīng)有兩年多沒有讀過這些書了。
I had stopped reading gradually, the way one heals or dies. I tried to maintain my bookish persona.
我逐漸停止了閱讀，這是一種療傷或死亡的方式。我努力保持我書生氣的一面。
I joined book clubs that I never attended. I requested a library book everyone was reading, only to return it a week late, unread, with fines.
我加入了讀書俱樂部，但從未參加。我向圖書館借了一本所有人都在看的書，但沒讀過就還了，遲了一周還要交罰款。
I still loved the idea of reading. I treasured books and bookstores.
我仍然喜歡閱讀的想法。我視圖書和書店為珍寶。
Whenever I found one, I would linger between the shelves for hours
每當我發(fā)現(xiàn)喜歡的圖書時，我會在書架之間徘徊數(shù)小時，
as if catching up with old friends, picking out volumes I had read and buying new ones.
就好像和老朋友敘舊一樣，挑出我讀過的書，再買些新書。
But it was clear to me: I was becoming a person I did not know.
但我很明白：我成為了一個我不認識的人。
David was my first online date. His profile said he liked to read,
大衛(wèi)是我第一位網(wǎng)絡(luò)約會對象。他的資料上說他喜歡閱讀，
so I asked him about his last book. His face lit up and his fingers danced.
所以我向他詢問他上一本書。他的臉容光煥發(fā)，手指舞動起來。
David read much more than I did, about a book or two a week.
大衛(wèi)比我讀的書要多得多，他每周要讀一兩本書。
We seemed an unlikely couple: me, a five-foot-three black woman born to a Caribbean mother, and him, a six-foot-four white guy from Ohio.
我們似乎不太像是一對：我是一個五英尺三英寸的黑人婦女，母親是加勒比人。而他是身高六英尺四英寸的白人，來自俄亥俄州。
But as we got to know each other, our shared faith and mutual love of books bridged our gaps.
但是隨著我們增進對彼此的了解，我們共同的信仰和對書籍的熱愛架起了橋梁。
When we compared libraries, we had only four titles in common.
當我們對比書目時，我們只有個共同點。
David preferred history and nonfiction, whereas I gravitated toward fiction writers of color and immigrant narratives.
大衛(wèi)更喜歡歷史和非虛構(gòu)類作品，而我則傾向于有色人種和移民題材的小說。
On our seventh date, David and I visited the library. “I have a game,” he said, pulling two pens and Postits out of his bag.
第七次約會時，大衛(wèi)和我去了圖書館。他說，“我會一個游戲?！彼麖陌锬贸鰞芍ЧP和一張照片。
“Let’s find books we’ve read and leave reviews in them for the next person.” We wandered the aisles for an hour.
“讓我們找到我們讀過的書，并把評論留給下一個人。我們在過道里漫步了一個小時。
