Хорнби, "Долгое падение"
Впервые прочел книгу на английском, "A Long Way Down" Ника Хорнби. Отличная, и было легко читать; там такие например диалоги:
- I didn't see an angel, - said Maureen. - When did you see an angel?
- No one saw an angel, - I explained. - Jess is proposing that we invent a spiritual experience for financial gain.
- That's terrible.
- It's not really "inventing", is it? - said Jess.
- No? In what sense did we actually see an angel?
- What do you call it in poems?
- I'm sorry?
- You know, in poems. And in English literature. Sometimes you say something is like something and sometimes you say something is something. You know, my love is like a fuck-bloody rose or whatever.
- Similes and metaphors.
- Yeah, exactly. Shakespeare invented them, didn't he? That's why he was a genius.
- No.
- Who was it, then?
- Never mind.
- So why was Shakespeare a genius? What did he do?
- Another time.
- OK. Anyway. So which is the one where you say something is something, like "You are a prick" even if you're not actually a prick. As in a penis. Obviously.
Maureen looked close to tears.
- Oh, for God's sake, Jess, - I said.
- Sorry. Sorry. I didn't know if we had the same swearing rules if it was only for discussion about grammar and that.
- We do.
- Right. Sorry, Maureen. OK, "You are a pig" when you're not a pig.
- Metaphor.
- Exactly. We didn't literally see an angel. But we sort of did metaphorically.
- We sort of metaphorically saw an angel. - repeated JJ.
- I didn't see an angel, - said Maureen. - When did you see an angel?
- No one saw an angel, - I explained. - Jess is proposing that we invent a spiritual experience for financial gain.
- That's terrible.
- It's not really "inventing", is it? - said Jess.
- No? In what sense did we actually see an angel?
- What do you call it in poems?
- I'm sorry?
- You know, in poems. And in English literature. Sometimes you say something is like something and sometimes you say something is something. You know, my love is like a fuck-bloody rose or whatever.
- Similes and metaphors.
- Yeah, exactly. Shakespeare invented them, didn't he? That's why he was a genius.
- No.
- Who was it, then?
- Never mind.
- So why was Shakespeare a genius? What did he do?
- Another time.
- OK. Anyway. So which is the one where you say something is something, like "You are a prick" even if you're not actually a prick. As in a penis. Obviously.
Maureen looked close to tears.
- Oh, for God's sake, Jess, - I said.
- Sorry. Sorry. I didn't know if we had the same swearing rules if it was only for discussion about grammar and that.
- We do.
- Right. Sorry, Maureen. OK, "You are a pig" when you're not a pig.
- Metaphor.
- Exactly. We didn't literally see an angel. But we sort of did metaphorically.
- We sort of metaphorically saw an angel. - repeated JJ.