美国国家公共电台 NPR This 'Broken Ornament' Led To Christmas Magic

 

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Some of the best stories begin at home. That's where Tony DiTerlizzi got the idea for his latest book. The Caldicott-winning author and illustrator perhaps best known for "The Spiderwick Chronicles" took a big leap into the unknown for his first Christmas book. It's called "The Broken Ornament¹," and it all began a few years back when his family was getting their house ready for the holiday. NPR's Lynn Neary picks up the story from there.

LYNN NEARY, BYLINE²: Decorating the tree is a beloved annual tradition for the DiTerlizzi family. They gather in their library listening to Christmas music...

(SOUNDBITE OF VINCE GUARALDI TRIO'S "LINUS AND LUCY")

NEARY: ...And sipping³ hot chocolate while they all hang ornaments⁴ on the tree. Sophia DiTerlizzi was just 8 years old when her mom brought home a new box of ornaments. She and her dad remember what happened next.

SOPHIA DITERLIZZI: I went to hang one up, and then it broke.

(SOUNDBITE OF ORNAMENT SHATTERING)

TONY DITERLIZZI: That sound is unmistakable in that kind of pooh (ph), that popping, loud explosion.

SOPHIA: I mean, I was scared because it was right by my feet. And it just, like, shattered, and the glass sprayed everywhere.

T. DITERLIZZI: And I could see the look on her face. She looked a little bit braced⁵ for, oh, gosh, what's going to happen? She felt bad.

SOPHIA: And then my dad said that every time an ornament breaks, a Christmas fairy is born.

NEARY: Her dad says he doesn't know where that thought came from. It just popped into his head. But his wife, Angela, was watching and listening to the whole exchange.

T. DITERLIZZI: And she had these giant eyes, and she's looking at me. And she goes, that's your next book. And I'm like, no, no, no, no. Come on, come on. "Charlie Brown Christmas" is playing, and we got hot cocoa. And we'll clean that ornament up later. She's like, no, no no. That's your next book.

NEARY: DiTerlizzi wasn't sure. But then he posted a photo of the broken ornament on Instagram with the story about the fairy. He got a huge response, which made him think people would like the book.

T. DITERLIZZI: As an author, you look for those universal experiences as the basis for a story. If people can enter your story through a very universal experience, then you can send them into flights of fancy or fantastic worlds and stuff, which is obviously what I like to do.

NEARY: So in the book, Sophia morphs into a little boy named Jack⁶ who wants more of everything at Christmas. In his eagerness to decorate, he breaks an ornament that meant a lot to his mother. The fairy who emerges from the broken ornament helps him understand what's really important about Christmas. Her name is Tinsel. And she's based on Angela DiTerlizzi, who helped her husband with the book.

ANGELA DITERLIZZI: What was she going to be? Who was Tinsel? And I think as soon as we started having conversations about who she was, we realized that she was actually pretty sassy. And I would kind of voice her, and Tony said, you're Tinsel (laughter).

NEARY: In this excerpt⁷ read by all three DiTerlizzis, Jack sees Tinsel for the first time.

(SOUNDBITE OF PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY'S "DANCE OF THE SUGAR PLUM FAIRY")

SOPHIA: (Reading) Are you my fairy godmother?

T. DITERLIZZI: (Reading) Jack asked. A bubbly voice replied...

A. DITERLIZZI: (Reading) Godmother? Oh, no. They don't trust me with a wand. Call me Tinsel.

SOPHIA: (Reading) So do you grant wishes?

T. DITERLIZZI: (Reading) Jack leaned in close.

A. DITERLIZZI: (Reading) What is it that you wish for?

T. DITERLIZZI: (Reading) Tinsel replied. A smile curled in the corner of her mouth like a candy cane⁸.

SOPHIA: (Reading) I want the best Christmas ever.

(SOUNDBITE OF PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY'S "DANCE OF THE SUGAR PLUM FAIRY")

NEARY: Tony DiTerlizzi's illustrations grow more fantastic and lush as Tinsel fills Jack's living room with Christmas trees and elves, reindeer⁹, snowmen, nutcracker soldiers and more. DiTerlizzi says creating "The Broken Ornament" was really hard.

T. DITERLIZZI: It was tricky¹⁰ because there's so many classics that we know and love. But there's really none about a Christmas fairy. Like, holy cow, maybe we might have found a little thing that's different.

NEARY: Above all, there was one person DiTerlizzi hoped to please - Sophia, who's now 11.

SOPHIA: I really like it. And I like that it was inspired by me, but it doesn't incorporate me in it. I really like that it has a different family but the same story.

NEARY: And, yes, Sophia does have her own favorite ornament. But it's made of felt and doesn't break. Lynn Neary, NPR News, Washington.

(SOUNDBITE OF VINCE GUARALDI TRIO'S "LINUS AND LUCY")

1 ornament   

v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物

参考例句：

• The flowers were put on the table for ornament.花放在桌子上做装饰用。
• She wears a crystal ornament on her chest.她的前胸戴了一个水晶饰品。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 sipping   

v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• She sat in the sun, idly sipping a cool drink. 她坐在阳光下懒洋洋地抿着冷饮。
• She sat there, sipping at her tea. 她坐在那儿抿着茶。

4 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 braced   

adj.拉牢的v.支住( brace的过去式和过去分词 )；撑牢；使自己站稳；振作起来

参考例句：

• They braced up the old house with balks of timber. 他们用梁木加固旧房子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The house has a wooden frame which is braced with brick. 这幢房子是木结构的砖瓦房。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

7 excerpt   

n.摘录，选录，节录

参考例句：

• This is an excerpt from a novel.这是一部小说的摘录。
• Can you excerpt something from the newspaper? 你能从报纸上选录些东西吗？

8 cane   

n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的

参考例句：

• This sugar cane is quite a sweet and juicy.这甘蔗既甜又多汁。
• English schoolmasters used to cane the boys as a punishment.英国小学老师过去常用教鞭打男学生作为惩罚。

9 reindeer   

n.驯鹿

参考例句：

• The herd of reindeer was being trailed by a pack of wolves.那群驯鹿被一只狼群寻踪追赶上来。
• The life of the Reindeer men was a frontier life.驯鹿时代人的生活是一种边区生活。

10 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。