听美文故事记6级单词0207

　　Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton says that she's still not quite sure why her memoirs, Living History, sold so well.

　　In a four-page afterword to the paperback edition, which comes out April 19, the former first lady lists a few possibilities.

　　I knew that some readers just wanted to see how I would explain the personal challenges I had faced, she writes. Apparently, a few wanted a signed copy to sell on eBay. Others were eager to see me in the flesh and decide for themselves whether or not I was a normal human being.

　　Clinton received million from Simon Schuster to write Living History and didn't take long to earn back her advance. Nearly 1.7 million copies of the hardcover are in print and a 525,000 first printing is planned for the paperback.

　　Her afterword is both earnest and lighthearted, an author's reflections and a politician's commentary.

　　Clinton toured five countries for the book and signed copies until her hands became swollen. By tour's end, her signature resembled the tracks of a confused chicken.

　　She became convinced that her life, though lived in the spotlight and blessed with greater opportunities, echoed the experiences of millions of other Americans. Some readers, however, had other agendas.

　　Clinton writes of being approached by two long-haired, bearded men, looking like characters from 'Lord of the Rings, ' who wanted her to join their campaign to let men look as God intended. She recalls a man who handed her a business card with the handwritten inscription, If you're ever single, give me a call.

　　Lines were long and one young fan entertained the crowd by playing the violin. Another time, Clinton looked up and saw her grinning daughter, Chelsea, waiting her turn for a signed book.

　　At one stop, Living History was upstaged by an even greater publishing phenomenon. Clinton describes a night last summer when she was signing copies, only to have hundreds of kids rush into the store, not to see me, but to camp out until midnight to snatch up the first copies of the new Harry Potter.

　　希拉里·克林顿说她自己仍然不确定她的回忆录《亲历历史》为什么卖得这么好。

　　4月19日，《亲历历史》的平装本即将出版，在长四页的编后记中，这位前美国第一夫人列举了几种可能性。

　　她在编后记中写道：“我知道有些读者只是想看看我如何解释过去所面临的个人挑战。显然，有些人想把有我亲笔签名的书拿到拍卖网站eBay上出售;另外还有一些人渴望看到一个有血有肉的我，以便他们自己来判断我是否是一个普通人。”

　　为了《亲历历史》这本书，Simon Schuster出版社向希拉里·克林顿支付了800万美元的预付款，不过他们很快就收回了这笔钱。《亲历历史》的精装本出版了将近170万册，而平装本计划首次印刷52.5万册。

　　她的编后记写的即真挚又轻松，既有作为作者的思考也有作为一名政治家的评论。

　　为了这本书，希拉里·克林顿去了5个国家巡回签名售书，直到她的手都肿了起来。在巡回售书结束之前，她的签名看上去已像“慌乱的小鸡留下的足迹”一样难以辨认了。

　　希拉里·克林顿开始相信“尽管一直生活在聚光灯下，而且总是有很多机会，自己的生活经历还是可以和几百万其他美国人产生共鸣的”。然而有些读者却不以为然。

　　希拉里·克林顿在书中提到两个头发很长而且留着胡须的男人，他们看上去就像《指环王》中的人物。他们一直在接近她而且想让她加入他们的名为“让男人看上去象上帝希望的那样”的活动。她回忆起一个男人曾递给她一张名片，上面用手写体写着“如果你什么时候单身了，就给我打电话。”

　　排队等待签名的队伍很长，一位年轻的崇拜者为排队的人群演奏小提琴。还有一次，希拉里·克林顿抬头看见她的女儿切尔西正笑嘻嘻地排在队伍中等签名。

　　在其中一站签名售书时，《亲历历史》却被另一个更有名的出版物抢了风头。希拉里·克林顿描述了去年夏天的一个夜晚，当她正在签名售书时，没想到有几百名孩子冲进书店，“他们并不是冲着我来的，而是在书店外苦等到半夜，就为了抢购第一批新出版的《哈里波特》”。