Author: Ekaterina Kassesinova

Way Station by Clifford D. Simak 🇺🇲

I have been wanting to read this book for quite a long time. My husband has read it several times and constantly said that he loved the story. But he read and reread this book in Russian, while I wanted to read it in the original language – English, and that made the task a little more difficult (because, as you know, I live in Russia). :)

Finally, I found the English version, and I wasn’t disappointed. This book turned out to be a good solid science fiction, very well written and thoughtful. I liked the main character, Enoch Wallace; I felt a strong connection with him. You know, it is a great talent to write in such a way that the reader could tell that the characters are real characters, and Clifford D. Simak definitely had this talent.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves science fiction.

Here are some words from the book that I found interesting and that I would like to share with all of you. I hope you enjoy them.

grub = (разг) жрачка, харчи (He lives rather simply, to judge from the grub he buys.)
moonshine = самогон (I helped them with their moonshine…)
goldenrods = золотарник (The goldenrods were blooming now…)
frills = ужимки, навороты, прибамбасы (Don’t add any frills. Just do what I tell you.)
letterhead = фирменный бланк для письма, на котором напечатаны название и адрес фирмы (I do not use the journal’s letterhead because this letter is personal and unofficial…)

Started reading – 7 July 2023
Finished reading – 12 July 2023

Replay by Ken Grimwood 🇺🇲

Just finished reading Replay by Ken Grimwood. Interesting idea, and the writing wasn’t bad but the characters were… (Sorry, I can’t find the right word here.) The characters were well developed and they were good decent people, but for some reason I just didn’t care much for them. Strange, isn’t it? :scratch:

As usual, in the book I found some words and phrases that were interesting to me as a Russian and that I would like to share. I hope you enjoy them.

🇺🇲 (En) 👉👉👉 🇷🇺 (Ru)
🔹 off kilter = странный, в смятении, в беспорядке; возбужденный (I’ve been feeling a little off kilter.)
🔹 OD’d = overdosed = передоз, перебор (Enough already; I’ve OD’d on James Bond.)
🔹 cash in one’s chips = (досл.) обменять фишки на наличные в конце игры, рассчитаться, продать чью-то долю или акции (… I’m cashing in my chips, old partner. Walking away from the table.)
🔹 Gelusil = Гелусил = aнтацидный препарат (…two foil-wrapped tablets of Gelusil.)
🔹 far out = отлично, (я бы даже сказала) отпадно (I probably said ‘far out’ a lot.)
🔹 wet behind the ears = молоко на губах не обсохло; новичок, зеленый, неопытный (I thought you were some wet-behind-the-ears kid…)
🔹 bed-tangles = если я правильно понимаю, это спутанные (взлохмаченные) волосы после сна (She had finished dressing and was brushing the bed-tangles from her fine, straight hair.)

Started reading – 2 July 2023
Finished reading – 7 July 2023

The Last Woman 2 by Jacqueline Druga 🇺🇲

Эх, кирдык человечеству… :-(

Интересные слова/выражения:

Wendy’s = Wendy’s fast food restaurant = американская сеть ресторанов быстрого питания (к стыду своему, не знала);
unscathed = невредимый (Faye is fine, unscathed);
no sweat off my back = (здесь) не волнует (No sweat off my back if he lives or dies);
RV = recreational vehicle = жилой автофургон, дом на колесах (The RV is big, it requires a lot more stops to refuel);
gizmo = штуковина, гаджет, девайс, хренотень; устройство неизвестного названия (… played games without relying on gadgets or gizmos);
old wives’ tales = “бабушкины сказки”. Насколько я поняла, в книге имелись виду старые поверья, народные приметы, часто касающиеся здоровья, но основанные на неподтвержденных данных. (He didn’t have the resources to do blood work, so he had to rely on knowledge, old fashioned wives tale signs, deduction and reasoning.)

The Last Woman by Jacqueline Druga 🇺🇲

Давно меня так не бесила главная героиня. Все эти самокопания и алкоголь, алкоголь, алкоголь…
Привычного мира, который ты знала, больше нет, в живых остались единицы, а ты бухаешь гектолитрами и желаешь остаться одна? Серьезно?

Ну (разводящий руками смайлик). Зато нашла несколько интересных слов и выражений:

MRE = Meal, Ready-to-Eat = сухой паек;
tide over = поддержать, помочь продержаться (… are you sure I can’t give you an MRE or box of cereal to tide you over?)
buzz cut = короткая стрижка (под машинку). В книге один из выживших предлагает главной героини подумать над тем, чтобы укоротить волосы. Он говорит: «I mean buzz it.»

Harry Potter y el cáliz de fuego (la segunda mitad del libro) 🇪🇦

He terminado de leer la segunda mitad del libro mucho más rápido que la primera (en solo dos semanas). Creo que leí esta parte tan rápido porque ya estoy acostumbrado al estilo de la escritora (J.K. Rowling) y, por supuesto, de los traductores (Adolfo Muñoz García y Nieves Martín Azofra).
Mientras leía me encontré con algunas palabras y frases, que son interesantes para mí como rusa y que me gustaría compartir con ustedes.

🇪🇦 (Es) 👉👉👉 🇷🇺 (Ru)
🔹 ojal = петлица;
🔹 alcachofa = артишок (Llevaba en el ojal una flor que parecía una alcachofa de las más grandes)
🔹 estar mal del coco = estar mal de la cabeza (“Estás mal del coco”)
🔹 plantar cara (a) = давать отпор, оказать сопротивление, противостоять, (встретиться) лицом к лицу (Como le había dicho Hagrid, lo que tuviera que llegar, llegaría, y ya habría tiempo de plantarle cara).

También aquí hay algunas palabras del libro que muestran сómo habla en español Viktor Krum, el búlgaro. Me pareció interesante cómo pronuncia la letra “r” 😊

«perro» = pero;
me «parrece» =me parece;
«invierrno»/«verrano» = invierno/verano
«sobrre» = sobre («Perro» en «verrano» volamos a «diarrio», «sobrre» los lagos y las montañas).

The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera 🇺🇲

Interesting story that gives you something to think about. I also liked a soft mixture of English and Spanish in the book. I’m really happy that I can read and understand both of these great languages. ❤️

Some interesting words and phrases I found in the book and I’d like to share them here:

🇺🇲 (En) 👉👉👉 🇷🇺 (Ru)
🔹 tall tale = небылица, небыль, выдумка (… she says, referring to one of her tall tales);
🔹 squabbling = пререкаться, ссориться из-за пустяков (… we need to stop squabbling, be kind, and work hard);
🔹 Jesus lizard = common basilisk = шлемоносный или обыкновенный василиск (Len sprints up the shuttle’s ramp like a Jesus lizard across a pond);
🔹 turn a cold shoulder (to sb) = оказать холодный прием, демонстративно проигнорировать (Voxy huffs annoyedly at the man and turns a cold shoulder);
🔹 get cold feet = сдрейфить, оробеть, струсить в последнюю минуту (… if Voxy gets cold feet and tells Nyla I took one of the relics);
🔹 crisscross applesauce = cross-legged = сидеть скрестив ноги, по-турецки (I take a few steps back and plop down crisscross applesauce…).

Also, a quote from the book:

“Just because someone says something over and over doesn’t make it true.”
– Donna Barba Higuera, The Last Cuentista

Started reading – 24 May 2023
Finished reading – 2 June 2023

P.S. I just didn’t understand, was it really necessary to mention about “the great pandemic from back in the twenties”…

Harry Potter y el cáliz de fuego (Harry Potter #4) de J.K. Rowling 🇪🇦

He terminado de leer la primera mitad del libro – Harry Potter y el cáliz de fuego. Este libro me gusta más que el anterior (Harry Potter y el prisionero de Azkaban). Es más difícil de leer, pero al mismo tiempo es interesante y divertido.

Algunas palabras interesantes que encontré en el libro:
🇪🇦 (Es) 👉👉👉 🇷🇺 (Ru)

🔹 ballena asesina = кит-убийца = касатка (Dudley había alcanzado ya el tamaño y peso de una ballena asesina joven.)
🔹 blasfemia = богохульство (Tío Vernon parecía tan ofendido como si Harry acabara de soltar una horrible blasfemia.)
🔹 chusma = сброд, отребье (En cambio, en el Instituto Durmstrang no admiten a ese tipo de chusma.)
🔹 encogerse de hombros = пожимать плечами (… dijo el ministro búlgaro, encogiéndose de hombros.)
🔹 baja por enfermedad = отпуск по болезни, больничный (¡Los elfos domésticos no quieren bajas por enfermedad ni pensiones!)
🔹 llamativo = яркий, броский, бросается в глаза (Hedwig atrae demasiado la atención… Es muy llamativa.)

También me parece muy interesante cómo las francesas (Madame Maxime, Fleur Delacour) hablan español en este libro:

«Dumbledog» = Dumbledore
me «paguece» =me parece
«pego» = pero
«pog favog» = por favor
whisky de malta «pugo» = whisky de malta puro
«egog» = error («Pego» es evidente que ha habido un «egog».)

Only Child by Helen Mary Hoover 🇺🇲

This was a quick read; light and easy but interesting. It’s a pity that the author didn’t write some more of this story. I would definitely like to know what happened next – with Cody (the main character), with his parents, and with the inhabitants of the planet, of course. :)
Anyway, I highly recommend this short story to anyone who loves middle grade and young adult SF novels. Clean and thought-provoking. I think you’ll love it!

Some interesting words and phrases I found in the book:
🇺🇲 (En) 👉👉👉 🇷🇺 (Ru)

🔹 down-in-the-mouth = как в воду опущенный, подавленный, несчастный (“Why you standing there looking down-in-the-mouth, boy?”)
🔹 frond = похожий на ветку лист папоротка или пальмы (Cody had to duck to avoid being hit by branches and fronds.)
🔹 blither = болтать вздор, пороть чушь, нести ахинею (The creature let him blither on until he fell silent with self-consciousness.)
🔹 to the quick = (задеть) за живое, до глубины души, (о коже под ногтями) до мяса (Four fingernails were broken, several to the quick.)

Also, two quotes from the book:

“Your kind does not listen to others. Pets. To them, only humans can think or feel.”
– Helen Mary Hoover, Only Child

“… it wasn’t the big things that changed your life but the little ones. Things you never expected to have any consequences.”
– Helen Mary Hoover, Only Child

Started Reading – 18 May 2023
Finished Reading – 19 May 2023