众所周知，学好语言除了“课本+习题”外，还需大量阅读课外读物，例如小说、故事等。然而，调查发现，经常性自主阅读英文课外读物的学生只有2%！这一方面是由于学生没有合适的课外读物可读，另一方面是因为一边看书一边查阅生词或译文，学生的阅读兴趣难以维持。“英语趣味阅读系列”精选了适合青少年学生心理、认知特点和知识架构的英文故事500多则，丛书共四册，难度依次递进，内容各有侧重，分为童话故事、民间故事、情感故事、幽默故事四大类。所选故事趣味性强、语言地道、情节生动、真挚感人。《英语趣味阅读系列：四十箱财宝》在保持原文原汁原昧的前提下对影响故事整体理解的难点部分进行了改写或添加了简明的汉语注释，语言难度逐册提高，力求让所有中学生、大学生在“无词典、无词表、无译文”的状态下一口气看完每一个完整的故事。本丛书的编写方式不仅降低了学生对于汉语的依赖性，而且为阅读的连续性创造了条件。一口气看完本丛书中一个个动人故事也是学生真实体验“欣赏与自我欣赏”的一个新奇历程，即在欣赏优美英语故事的同时，不知不觉开始欣赏自己英语水平的提高。总之，本丛书在提高学生阅读兴趣、养成英语阅读习惯、增强英语阅读信心、扩展英语文化知识、培养英语敏捷思维等方面将起到积极的推动作用。
1. The Beggar and His Gifts
2. The Magic Ring
3. The Rich Man and the Beggar
4. The Cricket
5. Men and Women of Stone
6. The Golden Fish
7. The Donkey and the Lap Dog
8. The Town of Fools
9. The Wolf and the Crane
10. Fortune and the Poor Man
11. The Goose That Could Lay Golden Eggs
12. A Mouse Chose a Son-in-Law
13. The Wisdom of a Poor Man
14. The Ungrateful Man
15. New Arrruals at the Zoo
16. The Hedgehog and the Hare
17. The Boastful Mouse
18. The Farmer， the Snake and the Fox
19. The Six Srllies
20. The Golden Touch
21. The BoV and the Wolf
22. A Faithful Dog
23. A Dollar for a Donkey
24. The Iron Pot ancr the Pottey Pot
25. To Be Wise， Strong， and Good
26. Riding a Tiger
27. The Biggest Voice
28. Apple Tree
29. The Krng’s Banquet
30. The Bell of Justice
31. Damon and Pythias
32. The Sky Is Falling Down
33. The King and the Goose Boy
34. What Was the Tiger Afrard of？
35. The Dwarf and the Fish-Bone
36. Muhammad and Hrs Dogs
37. Foolish Jack
38. Opossums Like to Roll Over
39. Lazy Eliza
40. The Boy Who Drew Cats
41. The Frog Went to Heaven
42. The Master of Masters
43. The Gourd Children
44. The Miser
45. The Woman and the Mustard Seed
……
参考文献
Once there was a king and queen who were never happy，because they had no children.Every day，the queen would sit and sigh， until the king would ask，“What is wrong，my dear？”
“Oh，you know，she would say，and sigh again.“If only we had children.I could hug them when they were good， and scold them when they were bad.What fun it would be！”
Then the king too would sigh and agree with the queen.one day，the queen was sitting and sighing in the garden， when the gardener‘s wife came by.
“What is wrong，Your Majesty？” she asked.
“Oh，you know， said the queen， and sighed again.“If only we had children.”
“Well，”said the woman，“perhaps I have sometlung that can help.”
From her pocket she took a little bag， and from the bag she took a seed.She placed it in the queen’s hand.It was shaped like a baby，curled in sleep.
“ Plant this seed tonight，when the full moon is at its highest，”said the woman.“Water it with your right hand.But don’t water it with your left， or you’ll be sorry！”
That night， when the full moon was at its highest， the queen went out to the garden and planted the seed.She got some water with her right hand and poured it over.But she forgot what the gardener swife.
said，and she watered it with her left hand，too.Early next monung，the queen ran back to the garden.There， in place of the seed， she found a tall tree with two long branches.On each branch was a blossom .The blossom on the right was golden yellow，and very lovely.The blossom on the left was flaming red， and very strange.
As the queen watched，the petals fell from the yellow blossom，and the fruit began to grow.It grew into a lovely little girl with a princess's gown and shining golden hair.
The child cried，“Pick me， Mama， I’m ripe！
The queen rushed to pick the child from the tree.“Am I your Mama？” said the queen.“How wonderful！I shall call you Fair Hair.Just then， the red petals fell，and another child began to grow.But this one was a dirty mess， with tangled red hair that stuck out all over.Her clothes were rags.She carried a wooden ladle，and she sat on a baby goat.
The child called，“Pick me，Mama，I’m ripe！
The queen rushed to pick her.“Am I your Mama？”said the queen.
“How temble！I shall call you Mop Top.“
“Mop Top！Mop Top！”shouted the cluld.With her wooden ladle，she bopped her goat’s bottom， and the goat ran round and round the tree.
So now the queen had the children she wished for.Fair Hair was as good as gold，so the queen could hug her as much as she liked.And Mop Top was always up to mischief，so the queen could scold her as much as she liked.
As for the two sisters，they loved each other dearly and were never apart.One day，the girls were playing in a cow pasture .When they sat down to eat their food， suddenly，from the nearby woods came a temble ruckus .
“What’s that？”said Fair Hair.
“ Troll girls！”answered Mop Top.
Just then， many troll girls burst from the woods， shouting and screeching ugly troll words.They had very big ears and longer noses.They came to Fair Hair，took her food and played catch with it.“Keep your head down！said Mop Top to Fair Hair.“I’ll take care of tlus！
Mop Top bopped her goat’s bottom， and raced right among the troll girls.Then she bopped those troll girls’ bottoms.Bop！Bop！Bop！One after another，those troll girls went jumping and crying back into the woods.
Meanwhile，Fair Hair just had to peek.She lifted her head a bit.Whisk！A troll girl took Fair Hair’s head right off！ Then the troll girl cut the head off a cow，put it on Fair Hair，and ran away with Fair Hair's head.
……
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