A River Runs Through It

诺曼·麦克林恩Shanghai Translation Publishing House2023

Rating 4.1
Chapters
6
ISBN
9787532792825

Tags

Literature Foreign Literature Film SourceLumberjackBrotherhoodNovellasNovellaNovella CollectionTrue ExperienceAmericaAmerican LiteratureMontana

Summary

A River Runs Through It is an autobiographical collection of novellas written by Norman Maclean, a professor of literature at the University of Chicago, when he was in his seventies. Published by the University of Chicago Press in 1976, it was nominated for the 1977 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The Shanghai Translation Publishing House edition includes three works: "A River Runs Through It," "Logging and Pimping and 'Your Pal, Jim,'" and "USFS 1919: The Ranger, the Cook, and a Hole in the Sky."

The title novella, "A River Runs Through It," is the most famous. Set in the small mountain town of Missoula, Montana, in the home of a Presbyterian minister, where religion, literature, and fly fishing shape daily life, it follows Norman and his younger brother Paul as they learn the art of fly fishing from their father. Paul is extraordinarily gifted and grows up by the river. The brothers' paths later diverge: the elder leaves home to study and becomes a university professor, while the younger, hard-edged by nature, gradually drifts away from a stable life and dies young. Years later, the aged Norman returns to the banks of the Big Blackfoot River, where, amid the rhythm of the cast and the sound of flowing water, he remembers his father, his brother, and those afternoons, setting down in restrained prose an irreparable grief and the theme that "we may not fully understand those we love, but we can still love them with all our hearts."

The other two pieces draw on the author's own early experiences as a logger and a forest ranger, depicting the rough lives and characters of a logging camp and the wilderness years of the Forest Service in language both poetic and rugged, bearing a distinct flavor of the American West. In 1992, Robert Redford adapted the book into a film starring Brad Pitt, which won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography.

Editor's review

一本薄薄的集子，却常被读者放在梭罗、海明威的旁边来谈。麦克林恩一生研究莎士比亚与浪漫派诗歌，七十多岁才动笔写下少年时代的大泥腿河，文风简净、节奏从容，像一根被反复抛出的鱼线，落点精准而余味悠长。 上海译文版由复旦大学陆谷孙教授与赵挺合作翻译。陆谷孙是《英汉大词典》的主编，也是散文家，晚年倾力译此书，译文干净、克制，保留了原文清冽的河水气息；正文前有导演罗伯特·雷德福的序，可作观影与阅读之间的一个入口。 这本书最好读的地方不在于讲了什么曲折故事，而在于它如何面对“无法理解却依然深爱”的家人。亲情、遗憾、技艺与自然交织，篇幅不长，却适合在不同年纪重读。

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Reading tips

  1. 先读主打篇《大河恋》，读完停顿一会儿，再读另两篇伐木与护林故事，感受作者不同的人生阶段。
  2. 建议把书和1992年电影对照着看：电影重在画面与河流，小说重在叙述者的沉默与回忆。
  3. 书中飞蝇钓术语较多，可略过技术细节，抓住抛竿、收线所对应的情感节奏。
  4. 适合在安静的长段完整时间里慢慢读，不追求进度，留出体会结尾的空间。

About the publisher

Shanghai Translation Publishing House China · Founded in 1978

Shanghai Translation Publishing House is a Chinese publisher oriented mainly toward translation and publishing. Its publications cover foreign literature, world classics and classic works, as well as social culture, folk literature and classical poetry. The database contains 2,618 titles, including Never Let Me Go, Les Misérables (2 volumes), Don Quixote (illustrated collector's edition), The Complete Comedies of Molière (4 volumes), The Complete Novels of Kafka (3 volumes), The Collected Works of Dostoevsky (9-volume set), Reason and Persons, and Oedipus Rex (Translation Classics). Its author resources include foreign writers such as Kazuo Ishiguro, Victor Hugo, Cervantes and Molière, as well as translators such as Zheng Kelu, Sun Jiameng, Li Jianwu and Zhang Kun. The publisher has brands such as "Translation Classics Selections" and "Translation Documentary," and emphasizes translated works in foreign literature and the humanities and social sciences, while also publishing bilingual dictionaries and foreign-language educational books. Public information is limited; the above is based on the book information in the database.

Contents

  1. Foreword
  2. Acknowledgments
  3. A River Runs Through It
  4. Logging and Pimping and "Your Pal, Jim"
  5. USFS 1919: The Ranger, the Cook, and a Hole in the Sky
  6. Translator's Afterword

FAQ

这本书是一部长篇小说吗？ 不是。《大河恋》是中篇故事集，上海译文版收录三篇：“大河恋”“伐木兼拉皮条的‘搭档吉姆’”和“美国林业局1919”。三篇都以作者本人经历为基础，主打篇为自传性回忆，另两篇写伐木营地与林务局的往事。
没看过电影，读起来会有障碍吗？ 不会。小说文本独立完整，电影只是让河流与兄弟形象更具画面感。不过电影中标志性的河流镜头与皮特的表演，能帮助读者更好代入蒙大拿山林的气息，读完再补看影片也很合适。
上海译文版和其他中文版有什么差别？ 上海译文版由陆谷孙、赵挺翻译，2023年10月出版，正文前有导演罗伯特·雷德福的序；中信出版社2018年另有“25周年特别纪念版”，由李雪顺翻译，收录内容与篇目编排有所不同，买书时注意区分版本。
这本书字数多吗？读得快吗？ 全书篇幅不长，属精炼的中短篇合集，可在一两个安静的下午读完。但语言密度较高、情绪含蓄，更适合慢读、重读，过快翻阅容易错过叙述里那些看似平常却关键的细节。

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About the author

诺曼·麦克林恩 Author

Public information about Norman Maclean is currently limited, and beyond his representative work A River Runs Through It, few details of his life are recorded in our database. Based on the available information, his writing aligns with classic works, and his books are often classified in that category. A River Runs Through It is set against rivers and rural life, with a calm and restrained tone that pays close attention to natural scenery and everyday experience, revealing an understanding of the relationship between people and the land through quiet narration. This subject matter and style give his writing a lasting readability, suited to readers who prefer quiet storytelling and nature writing. Although our database contains only one of his works, A River Runs Through It already reflects his careful observation and plain language, and leaves one attentive to his literary profile.