活到老学到老的励志爷爷：91岁识字98岁出书

For those faced with a struggle, Captain James Arruda Henry's story is nothing short of inspirational.

对那些陷入困境苦苦争斗的人来说，老船长詹姆斯·阿鲁达·亨利的故事无疑是鼓舞人心的。

The 98-year-old retired lobsterman has become a first-time author, having written and published his autobiography after learning to read at the incredible age of 91. And his manuscript, entitled 'In a Fisherman's Language', even has Hollywood calling.

他在91岁高龄才开始读书认字，现在，这位98岁高龄的老渔夫第一次成为了一名作者，完成并出版了自己的自传。他的手稿题为“以渔夫之言”，已经被好莱坞制片人相中。

As ABC affiliate WTNH reports, Mr Henry, of Mystic, Connecticut, spent most of his life without even his closest family members suspecting he was illiterate. Forced to quit school in the third grade to take odd jobs, he kept the secret close to his chest - only confiding in his late wife.

根据ABC旗下的WTNH电视台报道，神秘的亨利老先生是康涅狄格州人，在他生命的大半时间，即便是最亲近的家人都不知道他是文盲这件事情。亨利在小学三年级时就被迫退学，打零工挣钱。他一直把这个秘密埋藏在心底——只告诉过他已故的妻子。

Mr Henry's granddaughter, Marlisa McLaughlin, told the station how he used tricks, like waiting for others to order at restaurants first, or asking waiters how much he owed at restaurants, to avoid the issue.

亨利老先生的孙女，梅丽莎·麦克劳林女士向我们讲述了他的小伎俩，比如下馆子的时候，他总是让别人先点餐，或者问服务员应该付多少钱，避免别人发现他不识字的秘密。

A family dispute in his 90s, she said, sparked his initiative to reclaim his education. 'He signed a document he could not read about where he was going to go live,' Ms McLaughlin said, declining to offer further detail.

在他90岁时，一次家庭纠纷激发了老先生重拾课本的念头。“他稀里糊涂签署了一份文件，那份文件规定了他的住处，可他根本就看不懂。”麦克劳林女士不愿透漏更多的细节。

And then, after hearing about George Dawson, a son of slaves who learned to read at age 98 and went on to write a book of his own, entitled 'Life Is So Good' at age 101 - Mr Henry took up reading.

后来，他听说了乔治·道森的故事：一位奴隶的儿子，98岁时开始学习阅读，101岁时写出了自传《生命如此美好》——亨利先生也重新拾起了课本。

'I said if he can do it, I'm gonna try,' Mr Henry said. Starting with his name, he eventually moved on to the ABC's and children's books.

“如果他能做到，我也要试一试。” 亨利先生说。从自己的名字开始，他认全了24个字母，直到能阅读儿童读物。

He put them down for four years after the tragic loss of his wife. But eventually he went back to reading and with the help of his tutor, Mark Hogan, began to log his life.

痛失妻子后，他的学习耽搁了四年。但最终他又重新回来，并在老师马克·霍根的帮助下开始记录自己的生活。

As WTNH reports, he wrote about his family's voyage from Portugal to the U.S., how he went on to captain a lobster boat and serve on the National Guard, his many journeys at sea and how he was unable to save another fisherman who had fallen overboard. He became a carpenter and a plumber, and even a professional boxer - and eventually built his own home in Stonington Borough.

他写下了自己的故事：如何随家人从葡萄牙乘船来到美国，怎样成为一艘捕虾船的船长，又怎样加入了国民警卫队，许多次的航海历程，以及他是怎样眼睁睁目睹另一位渔民摔落海中，又无能为无法救援。他做过木匠，管道工，甚至当过职业拳击手——最后，他把家安在了斯托宁顿小镇。

His life stories have become so popular, in fact, nearly 800 copies were sold in the first two weeks of the book's release last month. One thousand more have since been printed as requests for the book flood in from as far as Germany. And now even Hollywood producers have approached Mr Henry about optioning the rights to his life story for a big screen adaptation.

他的生活传奇非常受欢迎，事实上，这本书上月刚刚上架，短短两周之内就卖出近800本。出版社甚至收到了来自德国读者的图书订单，现在图书已经加印了一千多册。而好莱坞制片人也在与亨利先生接触，希望能把他的故事搬上大荧幕。

According to WTNH, the family also now has a book agent and a deal in the works to publish a second edition that would include a hardcover version. Ms McLaughlin said a textbook publisher has approached the family about featuring her grandfather's story in one of its books - and Kindle and Amazon want to offer an e-version.

根据报道，现在家里已经找来一位图书代理，并正准备出版包括精装本在内的第二版。麦克劳林女士说，有家教科书出版社已经与他们联系，希望能把她祖父的故事编入课本——亚马逊也希望能推出这本书的电子版。

Meanwhile, the family says they are reconnecting and closer than ever as a result of Mr Henry's late-life endeavour. 'Everyone has a story,' Ms McLaughlin said, adding of her grandfather's: 'It teaches that when you're down and out, never give up.'

与此同时，亨利先生的家人说，在亨利先生晚年努力之下，家庭成员之间的关系变得比之前更为融洽亲密了。“每个人都有一个故事。”麦克劳林女士说道，祖父的故事告诉我们，“在你潦倒失意时，永远不要放弃。”