外刊閱讀精選：中國人，讀什么？
本篇閱讀材料中國人，讀什么?選自《經濟學人》。如果大家覺得比較簡單，就當作泛讀材料了解了解，認識幾個新單詞或新表達方式也不錯。如果大家覺得這些材料理解上有難度，不妨當做挑戰(zhàn)自己的拔高訓練，希望大家都有進步^^
DIGITAL books are changing traditional publishing models everywhere. In America and Britain, the rise of electronic books is the cause. Chinas revolution is different.
I cant identify any popular literary trend that didnt originate online, says Jo Lusby of Penguin China. Although e-readers are still scarce, the internet has greatly affected reading habits. Chinese people increasingly read books on phones, tablets and laptops. People under 30, who are most likely to own such devices, are the most avid readers, says Eric Abrahamsen, a Beijing-based publishing consultant.
originate v. 發(fā)源;起源
scarce adj. 缺乏的，不足的;稀有的 adv. 僅僅;幾乎不
avid adj. 渴望的;熱心的
consultant n. 顧問;咨詢者
The result has been an outpouring of mass-market fiction, written on websites, not in print. Five years ago internet publishers were typically informal, back-room outfits, but Shanda, an online gaming company, seized the commercial opportunity and now owns most of the literary sites. It sells subscriptions by the chapter or book, by the week or month. Online novels start at around five yuan compared with 30 yuan for an average printed volume.
literary sites 文學網站
subscription n. 訂閱;認購;捐獻
Some of the newly popular online genres, such as romance, exist everywhere. Others could be termed fiction with Chinese characteristics: grave-robbing stories, for example; official corruption fables involving scheming cadres; and time-travel books where 2,000-year-old warriors pop into a contemporary Beijing disco.
grave-robbing stories 盜墓故事
scheming adj. 慣耍陰謀的;詭計多端的
pop into 匆匆走進
Some of this online material makes it into book form. Print sales, dominated by the countrys 580 state-owned publishing houses, are now worth 44 billion yuan . But growth has slowed from 10% a year in 2007 to around 5%, according to Yang Wei of OpenBook, a market-research firm. Like many online start-ups, Shanda is not yet making money out of web books, although revenues are growing.
The internet has also changed the way that books are promoted. China has relatively few bookshops so cultural networking sites such as Douban.com have proved good at targeting new readers. Few writers make much money, online or in print. The handful of stylish novelists who do have become celebrities. Guo Jingming, a 28-year-old with six novels in 2011s top 20 list, manages a group of young writers whose magazine Top Novel sells 400,000 copies a month. Han Han, a 29-year-old novelist turned racing-car driver, has a popular blog. Mr Han rose to fame cleverly tweaking the authorities without running foul of the censors. Todays edgy writers, such as Murong Xuecun, can steer around the censors with their online writing, then make necessary cuts in their print editions. Most authors give the censors no trouble. They know where the line is drawn.
本篇閱讀材料中國人，讀什么?選自《經濟學人》。如果大家覺得比較簡單，就當作泛讀材料了解了解，認識幾個新單詞或新表達方式也不錯。如果大家覺得這些材料理解上有難度，不妨當做挑戰(zhàn)自己的拔高訓練，希望大家都有進步^^
DIGITAL books are changing traditional publishing models everywhere. In America and Britain, the rise of electronic books is the cause. Chinas revolution is different.
I cant identify any popular literary trend that didnt originate online, says Jo Lusby of Penguin China. Although e-readers are still scarce, the internet has greatly affected reading habits. Chinese people increasingly read books on phones, tablets and laptops. People under 30, who are most likely to own such devices, are the most avid readers, says Eric Abrahamsen, a Beijing-based publishing consultant.
originate v. 發(fā)源;起源
scarce adj. 缺乏的，不足的;稀有的 adv. 僅僅;幾乎不
avid adj. 渴望的;熱心的
consultant n. 顧問;咨詢者
The result has been an outpouring of mass-market fiction, written on websites, not in print. Five years ago internet publishers were typically informal, back-room outfits, but Shanda, an online gaming company, seized the commercial opportunity and now owns most of the literary sites. It sells subscriptions by the chapter or book, by the week or month. Online novels start at around five yuan compared with 30 yuan for an average printed volume.
literary sites 文學網站
subscription n. 訂閱;認購;捐獻
Some of the newly popular online genres, such as romance, exist everywhere. Others could be termed fiction with Chinese characteristics: grave-robbing stories, for example; official corruption fables involving scheming cadres; and time-travel books where 2,000-year-old warriors pop into a contemporary Beijing disco.
grave-robbing stories 盜墓故事
scheming adj. 慣耍陰謀的;詭計多端的
pop into 匆匆走進
Some of this online material makes it into book form. Print sales, dominated by the countrys 580 state-owned publishing houses, are now worth 44 billion yuan . But growth has slowed from 10% a year in 2007 to around 5%, according to Yang Wei of OpenBook, a market-research firm. Like many online start-ups, Shanda is not yet making money out of web books, although revenues are growing.
The internet has also changed the way that books are promoted. China has relatively few bookshops so cultural networking sites such as Douban.com have proved good at targeting new readers. Few writers make much money, online or in print. The handful of stylish novelists who do have become celebrities. Guo Jingming, a 28-year-old with six novels in 2011s top 20 list, manages a group of young writers whose magazine Top Novel sells 400,000 copies a month. Han Han, a 29-year-old novelist turned racing-car driver, has a popular blog. Mr Han rose to fame cleverly tweaking the authorities without running foul of the censors. Todays edgy writers, such as Murong Xuecun, can steer around the censors with their online writing, then make necessary cuts in their print editions. Most authors give the censors no trouble. They know where the line is drawn.
