适合朗诵的英语文章
中国人学习汉语要朗读,中国人学习英语更要朗读。下面是我带来的，欢迎阅读!
1
The adolescent girl from Tennessee is standing on the stage of a drama summer camp in upstate New York. It's a beautiful day. But the girl doesn't feel beautiful. She's not the leggy, glamorous Hollywood type. In fact, she describes herself as dorky.
Since she was six years old, Reese Witherspoon has wanted to be a country singer. And Dolly Parton is her idol. But this flat-chested wisp of a girl is no Dolly Parton.
Nevertheless, all of this summer she's been acting, dancing and singing---giving it her best.
Play to your strengths. If you're going to make it in this business, it's not going to be on sexy—that's not who you are. Better focus on what you're good at. Celebrate yourself.
Despite three years of lessons, at the end of camp her coaches tell her to forget about singing. They suggest she think about another career. If Reese did have talent, it was hiding under her skinny, mousy frame and her Coke-bottle glasses.
Still, she takes their words to heart. After all, why shouldn't she believe the professionals?
But back at home in Nashville, her mother — a funny, happy, upbeat person — wouldn't let her mope. Her father, a physician, encouraged her to achieve in school. So she worked hard at everything and was accepted at Stanford University.
And at age 19, she got a part in a low-budget movie called Freeway. That led to a substantial role in the movie Pleasantville. But her big break came with Legally Blonde.
Well, she decided, "if you can't sing and you aren't glamorous, play to your strengths. If you're going to make it in this business, it's not going to be on sexy — that's not who you are. Better focus on what you've good at. Celebrate yourself." And then came the offer that took her back to her Nashville roots — playing the wife of tormented country star Johnny Cash. A singing role.
All of a sudden the old fears were back. She was so nervous on the set, a reporter wrote, she "kept a sick bucket" nearby and admitted she "would go backstage after a singing scene and shake." But she didn't give up on the movie or herself.
The humor and drive she learned at home overcame the self-doubt learned on that summer stage. She spent 6 months taking singing lessons again. She learned to play the Autoharp. And the hard work built up her confidence.
Last March, Reese Witherspoon walked up on another stage, the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, and accepted the Oscar as Best Actress for her heartbreaking, heartwarming singing role as June Carter Cash in Walk the Line.
Finally, as you read thse accounts of Reese Witherspoon, consider the obstacles she met. The lesson of the strory, I suppose, is that instead of making dozen excuses why you can not realize your dreams, think about this story, just hold to your dream and never give up.
一名少女由田纳西州来到纽约北部，她站在戏剧夏令营的舞台上，虽然天气是那么好，她的心情却一点也不好。因为她不是那种身材颀长、丰腴美艳的好莱坞式美女，实际上她形容自己是“土里土气，还有点傻”。
从六岁开始，里斯•威瑟斯庞就梦想着成为一名乡村歌手，多莉•帕顿是她心中的偶像。但她可一点都不像多莉•帕顿，她胸部扁平，身材纤细。
然而，整个夏天她都在尽全力地表演，跳舞和唱歌.
发挥长处。如果想在这一行发展，不要走自己不擅长的性感路线。更好地专注于自己的特长，为自己喝彩。
她已经上了三年的声乐课程，但夏令营结束时，老师们还是告诉她应该忘掉唱歌这件事儿，另谋出路。如果里斯确实有天分的话，那也是给她纤细的身材和厚如可乐瓶底儿的眼镜遮盖住了。
虽然心有不甘，可她还是听从了建议，毕竟，她有什么理由怀疑专业人士呢?
但回到位于纳什维尔的家里，她的妈妈—— 一名风趣、快乐、乐观的儿科护士——可不会让里斯感到丝毫的沮丧。她的爸爸是一名医生，他鼓励女儿在学业上有所成就。于是，她凡事努力，终于被斯坦福大学录取。
19岁那年，她出演了一部低成本电影《极速惊魂》。这为她后来在《欢乐谷》中争取到真正重要的角色奠定了基础。而她真正的破冰之作是影片《律政俏佳人》。
她暗下决心：“既然自己没有歌唱天分，又不是光彩照人，那就尽力演出。要想在这行做下去，就不要在性感上做文章了——自己不是那种型别的。最好在自己擅长的方面下功夫。要展示自己。”这时，她接到片约，邀她出演约翰尼•卡什——一个饱受折磨的乡村歌手——的妻子，这是个需要演员有唱功的角色，该片约又把她带回到纳什维尔的家乡。
突然，旧时所有的恐惧感又回来了，一名记者报道说，她在台上实在是太紧张了，甚至在一边“准备了呕吐时要用的痰盂”，她自己也承认“每唱完一幕回到后台，自己都在发抖”。但她没放弃那部电影，也没放弃自己。
她用六个月的时间重新开始学习声乐。她还学会了演奏竖琴。不懈的努力让她重拾信心。
2006年3月，里斯•威瑟斯庞走上了另一个舞台——好莱坞的柯达剧院。凭借在影片《一往无前》里饰演的琼•卡特•卡什这一歌唱角色，她获得了奥斯卡最佳女演员奖，她在片中饰演的角色令人心碎，但也让人心暖。
最后，当你读瑞茜威瑟彭斯的故事时，想想她遇到的挫折。我认为，这个故事告诉我们，与其找借口解释梦想为什么不能实现，不如想想这个故事，坚持你的梦想，永不放弃。
2
An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer contractor of his plans to leave the house building business and live a more leisurely life. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire. They could get by.
一位年迈的木匠准备退休了。他告诉他的老板准备离开建筑业的打算，他说他想和他的妻子过一种更休闲的生活，享受天伦之乐。他还说他会怀念这里的薪水的，但必须退休了，他的离职他们慢慢就会适应。
The contrctor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his haert was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials.
老板对他的这位优秀员工的离去感到非常遗憾，于是问他是否可以盖最后一栋房子作为私下里的帮忙。这位木匠答应了，但显而易见他做事的时候是心不在焉的。他的手工做得毛毛糙糙，用的材料也是次品。
It was an unfortunate way to end his career. When the carpenter finished his work and the builder came to inspect the house, the contractor handed the front door key to the carpenter. "This is your house," he said, "my gift to you."
这样结束他的事业是不不幸的，当木匠最后完工，老板来看房子时，他把前门的钥匙交给木匠说：“这是你的房子，是我送给你的礼物。”
What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently, Now he had to live in the home hs had built none too well.
震惊!羞愧!如果他早知道他是在盖自己的房子，他肯定会做得截然不同的，现在他不得不住在自己建的糟糕透顶的房子里面。
So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized that we would done it differently.
这个道理同样适合我们。在营造生活时，我们的精力被分散到太多的地方，我们只是被动地适应而不会主动行动，而我们自己也不愿意去尽心尽力地营造我们的生活。在重要的时刻我们也没能尽自己最大的努力做好工作。仁厚我们吃惊地看到自己做的一切：发现自己处在自己建造的房子里。如果我们早意识到这一点的话，我们的做法就会完全不同。
Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Build wisely.
把你自己当成那个木匠。想想你的房子。每天你都会钉个钉子，放块模板或砌一面墙。明智地建造你的房子。
It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived graciously and with dinity.
这是你唯一可以营造的生活。即使你只可以再活一天，你也要活得优雅、有尊严。
The plaque on the wall says, "Life ia a do-it-yourself project." Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.
墙上的匾写着：“生活就是一个自己动手工程。”谁能比这个说得更明白?你今天的生活就是你过去的生活态度和所作选择的结果。你明天的生活就是你今天的生活和所作选择的结果。
