by Peggy Parish, Fritz Siebel (Illustrator)
Amelia Bedelia is a housekeeper who takes her instructions quite literally.
Reading the list of chores that her employer has left her, Amelia begins with "Dust the furniture." How odd, Amelia thinks to herself.
"At my house we undust the furniture." Nonetheless, she dutifully locates the "Dusting Powder" in the bathroom, and proceeds to sprinkle it all over the living-room furniture and floor.
Next she is asked to "Draw the drapes when the sun comes in." So of course, Amelia sits down with a sketchpad and gives it her best shot.
Children love reading about the antics of silly Amelia Bedelia for myriad reasons. It's an early reader book, so children in primary grades can take satisfaction in reading the book on their own.
But, even more thrilling, children who are 6 and older can successfully interpret the figurative meaning behind most adult idioms.
Being told to "keep an eye on the cat," for example, might compel some preschoolers to stick their eyeballs on a cat's face, eliciting peals of laughter from know-it-all grownups. But older children know better, and they love the fact that they know better.
Young readers will find this bumblingly charming, eager-to-please housekeeper as irresistible as Amelia Bedelia's employers do.
*
한국어도 마찬가지겠지만, 영어는 한 단어에 여러가지 뜻을 더 많이 내포되어있는 것 같아요.
'아멜리아 베델리아' 책은 그런 점을 꼬집어서 만든 책이랍니다.
예를 들어 Draw에는 우리가 알고 있는 '그리다'라는 뜻도 있지만, '걷다(묶다)'라는 뜻도 있거든요.
그래서 '아멜리아'는 커튼을 묶는 대신에 커튼을 그리지요.
암튼... 읽으면서도 저도 아멜리아를 충분히 이해할수 있었어요. ^^
저의 영어선생님의 여자친구가 가장 좋아하는 캐릭터라고 하더군요.
그럴만해요. 엉뚱하지만 무척 사랑스러운 캐릭터거든요.