獨來獨往的貓（簡體書）

《世界名著閱讀叢書：獨來獨往的貓（英文原著插圖·中文導讀）》又名《獻給孩子們的故事》，是20世紀初世界上*的童話集之一，作者吉卜林是英國作家、諾貝爾文學獎獲得者。《獨來獨往的貓》《跺腳的蝴蝶》《小幼象》《字母表是怎樣形成的》《鯨魚為什么長喉嚨》《豹子為什么長斑點》和《戲海的螃蟹》等12個膾炙人口的故事伴隨了一代又一代人的美麗童年、少年直至成年。該書一經出版，很快就成為當時*受關注和*暢銷的兒童文學作品，100多年來被翻譯成幾十種文字，在世界上廣為流傳。《世界名著閱讀叢書：獨來獨往的貓（英文原著插圖·中文導讀）》是教育部推薦的中小學生必讀書籍。

羅德亞德·吉卜林（Rudyard Kipling，1865-1936），英國詩人、散文家、小說家，諾貝爾文學獎獲得者。
1865年12月30日，吉卜林出生于印度孟買。他的父親當時在孟買藝術學校擔任建筑雕塑學教授。吉卜林在印度度過了美好的幼年時光，1871年和妹妹一起被送回英國寄養。1882年，中學畢業后，吉卜林離開英國返回印度，擔任印度拉合爾市《軍民報》副編輯，并開始文學創作。
1884年9月，吉卜林發表了他的首部短篇小說《百愁門》。1888年，出版了《山中的平凡故事》《三個士兵》《加茲比一家的故事》等七部引人注目的短篇小說集。吉卜林一生創作十分豐富，有長篇小說、短篇小說、詩歌、游記、兒童文學、隨筆、回憶錄等等。其中，兒童文學作品的成就*為突出，例如，《叢林之書》《叢林之書二集》《獻給孩子們的故事》《正是如此故事集》《勇敢的船長》《普克山的帕克》《獎賞和仙人》等，都是享譽世界的兒童文學作品。

章 鯨魚為什么長喉嚨
第二章 駱駝為什么長駝峰
第三章 犀牛為什么長厚皮
第四章 豹子為什么長斑點
第五章 小幼象
第六章 老袋鼠之舞
第七章 犰狳的來歷
第八章 封信是怎樣攜程的
第九章 字母表是怎樣形成的
第十章 戲海的螃蟹
第十一章 獨來獨往的貓
第十二章 跺腳的蝴蝶

'For goodness' sake,' said the Leopard at tea-time, 'let us wait till it gets dark. This daylight hunting is a perfect scandal.' So they waited till dark, and thethe Leopard heard something breathing sniffily ithe starlight that fell all stripy through the branches, and he jumped at the noise, and it smelt like Zebra, and it felt like Zebra, and whehe knocked it dowit kicked like Zebra, but he couldn't see it. So he said, 'Be quiet, O you persowithout any form. I am going to sit oyour head till morning, because there is something about you that I don't understand.'
Presently he heard a grunt and a crash and a scramble, and the Ethiopiacalled out, 'I've caught a thing that I can't see. It smells like Giraffe, and it kicks like Giraffe, but it hasn't any form.'
'Don't you trust it,' said the Leopard. 'Sit oits head till the morning - same as me. They haven't any form - any of'em.'
So they sat dowothem hard till bright morning-time, and theLeopard said, 'What have you at your end of the table, Brother'
The Ethiopiascratched his head and said, '1t ought to be 'sclusively a rich fulvous orange-tawny from head to heel, and it ought to be Giraffe; but it is covered all over with chestnut blotches. What have you at your end of the table, Brother'
And the Leopard scratched his head and said, 'It ought to be sclusively a delicate greyish-fawn, and it ought to be Zebra; but it is covered all over with black and purple stripes. What ithe world have you beedoing to yourself, Zebra Don't you know that if you were othe High Veldt I could see you temiles off You haven't any form.'
'Yes,' said the Zebra, 'but this isn't the High Veldt. Can't you see''I canow,' said the Leopard.'But I couldn't all yesterday. How is
it done'
'Let us up,' said the Zebra, 'and we will show you,They let the Zebra and the Giraffe get up; and Zebra moved away to some little thorn-bushes where the sunlight fell all stripy, and Giraffe moved off to some tallish trees where the shadows fell all blotchy. 'Now watch,' said the Zebra and the Giraffe. 'This is the way it's done. One - two - three! And where's your breakfast'
Leopard stared, and Ethiopiastared, but all they could see were stripy shadows and blotched shadows ithe forest, but never a sigof Zebra and Giraffe. They had just walked off and hiddethemselves ithe shadowy forest.
'Hi! Hi!' said the Ethiopian. 'That's a trick worth learning. Take a lessoby it, Leopard. You show up ithis dark place like a bar of soap ia coal-scuttle.'
'Ho! Ho!' said the Leopard. 'Would it surprise you very much to know that you show up ithis dark place like a mustard-plaster oa sack of coals'
'Well, calling names won't catch dinner,' said the Ethiopian. 'The long and the little of it is that we don't match our backgrounds. I'm going to take Baviaan's advice, He told me I ought to change; and as I've nothing to change except my skiI'm going to change that.'
'What to' said the Leopard, tremendously excited.
'To a nice working blackish-brownish colour, with a little purple iit, and touches of slaty-blue. It will be the very thing for hiding ihollows and behind trees.'
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