[The zack files] Great-Grandpa's in the Litter Box

 이 책은 book level이 3점대인걸로 알고 있었다. 그리고 내용 사이에 그림이 없었기에 지레 겁먹고 도전하지 않고 있었던 책이었다. 하지만 막상 책을 펼치니 어휘가 생각보다 어렵지는 않아서 읽게 되었다. 체감 난이도는 a to z mysteries와 비슷하거나 그것보다는 약간 더 쉬운 것 같다. 다만 환생, 양심, 복화술 같은 단어는 사전이 필요할 듯 했다. 

내용 측면에서는 굉장히 재미있게 읽었다. 등장인물이 많은것도 아닌데 개성있는 고양이와 독특한 것에 관심이 많은 Zack 덕분에 내용이 지루하지 않았다. 아직 나의 실력이 부족하여 책의 내용을 100% 습득하지는 못한것 같지만 만약 그랬다면 더 재미있게 읽어을 수 있을것 같다. 벌써 2권의 내용이 기다려 진다. 역시 2권까지 빌려오길 잘했다!

Chapter1

 I’m ten years old and I guess you could say I’ve been interested in weird stuff all my life.

* all my life 평생

 

After years of begging my dad for a cat, he finally broke down and said yes.

* break down: 굴복하다.

 

I passed a cage with an old gray tomcat inside it. His fur was matted with dirt.

* tomcat = A male cat

 

And the tip had been chewed off of one of his ears.

 

The voice sounded raspy and strange.

* raspy 귀에 거슬리는

 

I went on to a cage where a little tuxedo kitten with a black body and white paws was talking a nap.

 

But our neighbor had agreed to cat-sit. And I wasn’t taking any chances of my dad changing his mind.

* chance = risk

+ I am not taking any chances. 나는 위험을 무릎 쓰지 않을 거야.

 

I turned around. That scruffy old gray tomcat was staring quite crossly at me.

* scruffy 지저분한, 단정치 못한

* crossly 비스듬히, 심술궂게

 

You’ll pardon me for hollering.

= 나를 용서해 주세요.

Holler 고함, 외침, 큰 소리를 지르다.

 

Maybe this was just a trick - somebody doing ventriloquism. I mean I told you I like weird stuff, but this was really far out, even for me.

* ventriloquism 입술을 움직이지 않고 말하는 능력. 그래서 당신의 목소리가 다른 사람으로부터 나오는 것 같이 보인다. 주로 다른 사람들을 즐겁게 하기 위해 쓰임.

 

The meowing and the smell are driving me right up the wall.

*drive somebody up the wall: make s1 extremely angry.

 

Like I said before, I’m pretty open-minded. I had nothing against talking cats. I just wasn’t sure I wanted to live with one.

*have sth against ab: if you sth against s1, you dislike them for a reason.

+ I’ve nothing against him – I just don’t have much in common with him.

 

“Yeah, a talking cat, how about that,” said the cat sarcastically. 빈정대듯이, 비꼬듯이

 

Especially with one as bossy as this one seemed. 거만한, 두목 노릇하는

 

“He has fleas and worms. Plus he never got the hang of using a litter box.” The tomcat gave me a long look. 그 수고양이는 나를 오래 쳐다보았다.

* get the hang of sth: 익숙해지다. 의 사용법을 알다. ~을 터득하다. = learn how to do wth, esp. when it is not simple or obvious.

 

I didn’t want to have to use this. But here goes: If you don’t adopt me, they’re going to put me to sleep. And I don’t mean tuck me in bed in my jammies either. I mean kill me. You really want that on your conscience, kid? 너 정말 양심상 그렇게 하기를 원하니 아가야?

* tuck 감싸다, 숨기다.

* jammies 파자마

* conscience 양심, 도덕심, (con 함께 + science 알고있는 것)

* on your conscience 양심상.

 

This cat was not only bossy, he also seemed to have problems with the truth.

 

Hey, you never heard of reincarnation?

* reincarnation: 죽은 사람의 영혼이 다른 사람의 몸으로 돌아온다는 믿음.

 

Chapter2

One minute I’m about to go home with a cute little black-and-white kitten, the next a big gray tomcat tells me he’s my dead great-grandfather.

 

Then he posed in what he must have thought was a cute pose.

그후에 그는 자세를 취했다. 그가 귀여운 자세라고 생각하는 점에서

 

 “You can’t tell me you’re going to walk out of here with a flea-bitten stranger who hasn’t been properly toilet-trained and leave your beloved great-grandfather rotting in a stinking little cage?

* flea-bitten 벼룩에 물린,

* toilet-trained 대소변을 가리게 된

* rot: 썩다. 수척해지다.

* stinking 악취를 풍기는, 냄새 고약한

 

“Now you’re talking sense, kid,”

이제야 이치에 맞는 말을 하는 구나 아가야.

 

Chapter3

When I arrived home, huffing and puffing, carrying my cardboard cat carrier, my dad met me at the door. Since my parents split up, I live part of the time with my dad and part with my mom.

* cardboard cat carrier 고양이를 옮기는 종이 상자

 

It looks like you’ve finally gotten yourself a kitty.

 

He’s well, for one thing, he talks.

* for one thing: 한가지는…

 

My dad smiled, deciding to go along with my little joke.

* go along with sb/sth: 누군가의 생각이나 의견에 동의하다. 혹은 지지하다.  

 

What does he say? 그가 뭐라고 말하는 데?

 

What I remembered was hearing Grandma Leah go on about her father, Julius, who was so nice he was practically a saint.

* go on about sth ~에 대한 이야기를 계속하다. 어떤 것에 대해 오랜 시간 지겹도록 이야기하다.

* saint = a very good, kind person

 

Maurice was the black sheep of the family. So far, Julius didn’t seem that saintly to me.

Maurice는 집안의 골칫덩어리였다. 지금까지 Julius(고양이)는 그렇게 성인답지는 않아. 나에게는.

* black sheep 골칫덩어리.

 

He’s not very talkative. 그는 말이 많지 않구나.

You should have heard him at the animal shelter.

 

Beef by-products in gravy.

* by-products 부산물.

* gravy 육즙

 

Let’s put it this way, kid. Either get me some herring with sour cream pronto, or I’m going to take a leak on your sofa.

이렇게 하자.

* take a leak 오줌을 누다.

* pronto 재빨리(스페인어)

 

You’re not serious about this.

Try me. 두고 봐. 날 시험해봐.

If you ask me, Great-Grandpa Julius was a lot crankier than I’d heard. But I was trying to be understanding. I guess dying and getting reincarnated as a cat could spoil a person’s mood.

* cranky 까다로운, 화를 잘 내는

 

Chapter4

But tomorrow, Zack, be sure the deli man doesn’t skimp on the sour cream.

* skimp: 절약하다. 인색하게 굴다.

 

Boy, this cat was pushy!

* pushy 뻔뻔스러운, 주제넘게 나서는

 

I only get three dollars a week allowance.

 

If Leah heard I was reincarnated and didn’t come to see her, she’d be crushed.

 

I’m willing to go along with a joke.

 

I went back to my room, where Great-Grandpa Julius was pawing through my collection of baseball cards.

*paw: 함부로 만지다. 거칠게 다루다. Touch s1 roughly with the hands, in an unpleasant sexual way

 

I followed Great-Grandpa Julius, who padded into the living room, where my dad was reading the newspaper.

* pad: 걷다. = walk w/o making a noise

 

What was the hardest part about changing from a person into a cat?

 

Then he cocked his head, opened his mouth, and said, “For me, I guess the hardest part was finding out there wasn’t a door you could lock behind you on the litter box.”

*cock: 특정한 방향 또는 위쪽으로 몸의 일부를 움직이다.

+ he cocked his head on one side with a slight frown.

 

Chapter5

Dad never let up for the two days before we left for Chicago, and all during the long ride to the airport.

* let up 그만두다. 완화하다.

 

But some things you just don’t stop craving, even after you’re dead.

그러나 어떤 것은 네가 죽은 이후에도 갈망을 멈출 수 없지. 심지어 네가 죽은 이후에도.

 

How long have you been a cat? 너는 얼마나 오랫동안 고양이었어?

How old do I look? 내가 얼마나 늙은 것 같아? = 몇 살로 보여?

 

Say, you wouldn’t by any chance happen to have a little schnapps on you?

* by any chance 혹시

* schnapps: a clear, strong alcoholic drink.

* liquor: strong alcoholic drink 도수 높은 술

 

I’m a dignified old geezer, for Pete’s sake.

* dignified: 품위 있는, 위엄 있는 = controlled, serious, and calm, and therefore deserving respect

* geezer: 남성, 주로 특정 방면에서 평범하지 않거나 나이가 많은

* for Pete’s sake: I am surprised or annoyed by this. = for goodness’ sake 젠장할!

+ For goodness’ sake, don’t tell anyone else about this!

 

In this life you’re a stray cat. 길 잃은 고양이

Mostly that was about eating sweaters.

 

Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.

그걸 비판하지 마. 트집잡지 마.

 

I remember one fine cashmere turtleneck. It was almost as tasty as a corned beef on rye.

* corned beef 소금으로 절인 후 부드럽게 삶아 통조림한 쇠고기

* on rye 호밀 빵 위의

 

And that was all about eating cheese, I suppose.

 

How did you have time to be all those things?

 

You could die, do a stretch as a caterpillar, then a moth, then a mouse, and you could still be back by a week from Thursday.

* stretch 부분, 과거, 제한된 시간

 

I had quite a lot of leisure time on my hands.

 

In preparation for takeoff, please make sure your seat belts are securely fastened and that your seat backs and tray tables are in the upright and locked position.

*flight attendant: 승무원

* In preparation for takeoff 이륙에 대비하여

* securely 단단히, 안정적으로

* your seat backs 당신의 의자 등받이

* tray tables 접이식 탁자들

 

Hey, cookie, what are you doing after the flight? 거기 아가씨, 비행 후에는 뭐하시는가?

 

The flight attendant thought my dad said that, because she gave him a dirty look.

* give sb a dirty look: ~를 째려보다. Look at s1 in a disapproving way

+ he gave me a really dirty look.

 

Then we buckled up.

 

Chapter6

Grandma Leah is in her eighties. Do you really think it’s safe to tell a woman in her eighties that her dead father is now a cat?

 

Grandma Leah is a very peppy, open-minded person. 기운이 넘치는, 많은 energy와 activity를 가진 사람.

 

Special in the way that he is not only a cat, he is also a member of our family.

 

In other words, you love him so much you feel he’s a member of our family?

 

Tell the cat I said that we never called my father by the name of Daddy. Ask it what we called my real father.

 

Then he quickly recovered his composure. 그리고 그는 재빨리 그의 평정을 되찾았다.

* composure 평정, 침착

+ lose my composure 평정을 잃다.

 

He waved his paw dismissively.

* dismissive 거만한, 오만한

 

Chapter7

“Is what Grandma Leah says true?” I demanded of the large gray tomcat. “Are you my grandpa’s no-good father, Maurice?”

Grandma Leah가 말하는게 사실이야? 나는 큰 회색 수고양이에게 심문했다.

 

Hold your horses, sonny. First of all, where does she get off calling me a no-good?

흥분을 멈추고 다시 생각해. 멈추고 그들의 의견 또는 주장에 대해 다시 생각해봐.

가장 먼저, 그녀가 나를 쓸모 없는 인간이라고 부르는 말을 한 거야?

Where do I get off? I’ll tell you where I get off. You took thirty thousand dollars of my father’s money to work on your crazy inventions.

내가 어디서 이야기 할까?

* thirty thousand dollars = 3천만원

 

+ Hold your horses, Bill! Let’s think about this for a moment.

 

A hairpiece for bald eagles was one. Then there was the dog whistle.

흰머리 독수리를 위한 가발. 그리고 개 피리가 있지.

 

A sweater for dachshunds in the shape of a hot dog bun.

* dachshunds /닥!슨트/ 몸통이 길고 팔다리가 짧은 독일산 개.

 

I thought I’d lost all of Julius’s money. I beat it out of town.

* beat it = go away 나가다.

 

Everybody who owned a dachshund had to have one. I made back the whole thirty thousand. I had it sent directly to a secret back account in Chicago.

 

I was coming to Chicago to pay Julius back when I got hit by a Greyhound bus.

나는 Julius 돈을 갚기 위해 Chicago로 왔어. 내가 Greyhound 버스에 치였을 때.

 

Chapter8

At first the bank officer we spoke with told us she couldn’t find any secret bank account bearing the number Maurice had given us.

 

The bank officer looked startled. 놀란 것처럼 보였다.

 

“Please look harder, ma’am,” 더 열심히 살펴봐 주세요. 더 열심히 검사해 주세요.

 

Don’t be so mistrustful. 그렇게 의심하지 마. 

 

An account was opened a great many years ago. I don’t know if it’s thee right one. But it does bear the same number you gave me.

한 계좌가 굉장히 오래전에 개설되었어.

* a great many 굉장히 많은…

 

Well, the individual whose name is on the account would have to sign for it.

 

Why couldn’t he do that? 왜 그가 그걸 못하죠?

What if something had happened to him?

 

Well, if the account holder is deceased, then the money would go into probate. Probate is a very long, very complicated legal process. It takes years to sort out.

글쎄요, 그 계좌 소유자가 사망했다면, 그 돈은 아마 probate로 들어가겠죠.

 

Oh, pipe down a minute, sis.

입 다물어. = stop talking or making unnecessary noise

 

Hey, dollface. I don’t happen to have an opposable thumb.

인형 얼굴을 한 사람아!

* opposable 마주보게 할 수 있는

 

Why the heck not?

제기랄 왜 안 된다는 거야?

 

From now on, anytime somebody gets reincarnated as a cat and comes in to get his money, all he has to do is ask for it.

 

And with that, the cat leapt off the counter and hotfooted it down the hall.

그 고양이는 뛰어서 계산대를 벗어나 복도를 따라 갔다.

* hotfoot it 부리나케 가다. 가능한한 빨리 어디로 걷거나 뛰다.

+ he walked in and I hotfooted it out the back door.

 

The cat pushed the founder’s door open with his nose and walked inside. 기부자, 창설자