MR KEY’ S SHORTER POTTED BRIEF, BRIEF LIVES
Book ID/图书代码： 07980015B86087
English Summary/英文概要： Wesley, Samuel (British clergyman and poet, 1662 - 1735). On Christmas Day 1716, Wesley was haunted by an apparition of a badger with no head. It was called Jeffrey.
Frank writes:
"It occurred to me that it would be a good idea to write a modern, updated version of John Aubrey’s Brief Lives. But it further occurred to me that some books are unimproveable, and that in trying to follow in Aubrey’s footsteps I would embarrass myself and become the butt of ridicule. The idea continued to nag at me, however, and eventually I decided the solution was to outdo Aubrey in brevity. My own Brief Lives would consist of a single, unadorned fact about each of my subjects. So the reader may not learn very much about the life of X or Y or Z, but they would be armed with one little nugget which might come in handy to chuck into a lull during the conversation at the kind of swish sophisticated cocktail party to which they no doubt get invited."
Other entries include:
Gibson, Willie (Irish, 2nd Baron Ashbourne, 1868 - 1942). An enthusiastic Gaelic nationalist, Gibson was rumoured to keep a tortoise in his sporran.
Harmsworth, Alfred, Lord Northcliffe (British newspaper magnate, 1865 - 1922). One day at a seaside resort, Northcliffe wantonly struck down a seagull with his stick and beat it to death on the sand.
Jansson, Tove (Finnish writer and illustrator, 1914 - 2001). When staying at her Finnish island retreat, it was Tove Jansson’s practice to get out of bed at four o’ clock in the morning and stand stock still, pretending to be a tree, while a squirrel ran up and down her frozen limbs.
Lennon, John (British musician, 1940 - 1980). According to Bernard Levin (q.v.), "there is nothing wrong with John Lennon that could not be cured by standing him upside down and shaking him gently until whatever is inside his head falls out".
Stein, Gertrude (American writer, 1874 - 1946). Stein liked to write while looking at cows. She and Alice B Toklas would drive around until they found a suitable spot, then Stein would sit on a campstool armed with pad and pencil, while Toklas coaxed a cow into her line of vision.
Nixon, Richard Milhous (American politician and Potus, 1913 - 1994) Nixon’s favourite pastime was mashing potatoes.
Schubert, Franz (Austrian composer, 1797 - 1828). Upon his deathbed, Schubert’s final wish was that someone would bring him some books by James Fenimore Cooper.
Tippett, Michael (British composer, 1905 - 1998). Tippett called the refrigerator in his kitchen "Bernard Levin".
Anderson, John Henry (British magician, 1814 - 1874). The first magician to pull a rabbit out of a hat, Anderson also did a trick which he described as "a Grand Ambidexterological Illusion with 12 Handkerchiefs, into which will be introduced the Enchanted Loaf and Learned Bottle, the Animated Orange and the Invisible Pigeon".
Brooke, Charles (British, Rajah of Sarawak, 1829 - 1917). An austere character, Brooke deemed jam "effeminate" and replaced his glass eye with one taken from a stuffed albatross.
Callaghan, James (British politician and Prime Minister, 1912 - 2005). When Tom Driberg married Ena Binfield in 1951, Callaghan gave them as a wedding present four ashtrays, two of which were broken.
Russell, Ken (British film director, 1927 - 2011). According to Glenda Jackson, the only direction Russell ever gave to his actors was to say "It needs to be a bit more . urrrgh", or "a bit less hmmm".
Chinese Summary/中文概要： 塞缪尔•卫斯理 （英国诗人）。1716年圣诞节，卫斯理被一只无头獾幽灵吓到。它的名字叫Jeffrey。
作者Frank写到：
“我突然想到，写一本有关John Aubrey的生平简介的现代、时尚的传记是个不错的主意。但我很快又想到，有些书无法改进，在试图探索Aubrey的脚步的同时，我将陷入尴尬的境地、成为别人的笑柄……”
其他参考条目包括：
Gibson, Willie(爱尔兰人, 1868 - 1942).作为一名充满热情的爱尔兰民族主义者，有谣言说Gibson在他的毛皮袋里养了一只乌龟。
Harmsworth, Alfred, Lord Northcliffe(英国报业巨头, 1865 - 1922).一天在海边度假时，Northcliffe用棍子击倒了一只海鸥，并将其在沙滩上打死。
Lennon, John(英国音乐家, 1940-1980)，根据 Bernard Levin 所述，“将John Lennon倒转过来，轻轻摇晃，直到他脑子里的东西都倒出来，这个办法包治百病。”（LYR）
Awards/获奖情况：这是一本很棒的礼品书。短小但却引人入胜，结构清晰，条理清楚，人物形象鲜明。文字生动优美、有时又略带心酸。作者Frank Key独特的幽默感和晦涩的文笔贯穿于这本书，令这本书成为意外的财富。
This is a near-perfect example of a gift book that keeps on giving. Small and appealing, with a well-organised, encyclopaedia-style layout and charming portrait illustrations. The text is a delight - easy to dip in an out of, and full of facts that are perplexing, bizarre, amusing and sometimes poignant. What really sets it apart, however, is Frank Key’s unerring eye for the deliciously obscure and his unique sense of humour, which runs like a seam of precious metal through the book. An unexpected treasure.
About the Author/作者介绍： FRANK KEY是“Hooting Yard”的具有传奇色彩的所有人，“Hooting Yard”是一家超现实主义的幽默网站。Frank发表过大量书籍，包括《迷糊的鸬鹚》。目前他正在为Dabbler网站撰写“Key专栏”。
FRANK KEY is the legendary proprietor of Hooting Yard, a surreal humour website, and author of numerous books, including Befuddled By Cormorants. He currently writes the regular Key’s Cupboard column for the Dabbler website.
Format:HARDCOVER
Rights Status/版权销售情况：Simplified Chinese/简体中文：AVAILABLE
Complex/Traditional Chinese/繁体中文：AVAILABLE
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