年最值得一讀的好書之《章魚的靈魂》
Good books take readers on journeys in their minds. The announcement of this year’s US National Book Awards finalists has highlighted a number of modern literary gems.
一本好的書能帶領讀者徜徉心靈的海洋。今年美國國家圖書獎的入圍書目無疑是現代文學的瑰寶。
The books tackle a range of topics, from science to friendship to culture. Here are some standouts to add to your reading list.
圖書涵蓋了各種主題，從科學、友誼到文化。下面爲各位推薦其中幾本好書。
The Soul of an Octopus
《章魚的靈魂》
by Sy Montgomery
作者：賽餠哥馬利
Publisher: Atria Books
出版商：阿特里亞圖書
“A good book might illuminate something you knew little about, transform your world view, or move you in ways you didn’t think possible. The Soul of an Octopus delivers on all three,” the magazine New Scientist commented.
“一本好書能爲你開啓未知世界的大門，它能改變你的世界觀，亦或爲你打開曾以爲不可能的路。《章魚的靈魂》滿足了上面三個條件，“《新科學家》雜誌評價說。
After writing about birds, pigs and tigers, US naturalist Sy Montgomery decided to choose these polypod animals as the subject of her latest book, The Soul of an Octopus:A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness.
繼寫過鳥、豬和老虎後，美國博物學家賽餠哥馬利決定以多足動物爲自己新書的主題，新書名爲《章魚的靈魂：意識奇蹟的意外探險》。
“Here is a baggy, boneless body that can pour itself into the tiniest spaces, has venom like a snake, ink like an old fashioned pen, a beak like a parrot, can taste with their skin, and can change color and shape,” Montgomery explained to the National Geographic on why octopuses intrigue her.
蒙哥馬利在向《國家地理》雜誌解釋章魚是如何給自己靈感時說：“這是一個鬆鬆垮垮的無骨肉體，它能進入最小的空間，有蛇一樣的毒液，有老式鋼筆一樣的墨汁，有鳥一般的喙狀物，可以通過皮膚嘗味道，可以任意改變顏色和形狀。”
In the book, Montgomery explores the emotional world of the octopus. She uses different experiments to show that they possess consciousness as well as individual personalities.
書中，蒙哥馬利探尋了章魚的情感世界。她通過不同的實驗展示了章魚和人一樣也是有意識的。
For example, based on her research, she finds out that Octavia, an octopus caught in the wild, is friendly and good at multi-tasking. And Kali, who has been living at the New England Aquarium, is playful and loves exploring.
比如，在研究的基礎上，她發現一個從野外抓回來的，叫奧克塔維亞的章魚，十分友善並且擅於同時處理多個任務。而另一隻生活在新英格蘭水族館名爲卡莉的章魚，則頑皮而熱愛探索。
Montgomery is a good storyteller. Her skillful writing weaves facts together with personal narratives, which makes the book very informative but easy to read.
蒙哥馬利很會講故事。她用高超的寫作技巧把事實和個人敘述穿插起來，讓這本書簡單易懂又不失知識性。
