安徒生的《卖火柴的小女孩》是一篇我们在孩童时代，就已经耳熟能详童话故事。今天带来的是这个童话故事的英文版，文章经过改写，降低了语言难度，这也是天择老师所读过的《卖火柴的小女孩》中，最好的英文改写版。
在阅读时，不要着意理解每个单词及语法，试着去感受故事所描述的情景，却体会小女孩的所思所想。你就能体会到，英文阅读所带来的真正乐趣。
THE LITTLE MATCH-GIRL
（adapted）
It was terribly cold on the last evening of the old year. Snow was falling fast. A poor little girl, with bare head and naked feet, was walking in the street.
这是旧年的最后一个晚上，天很冷，雪也下得大。一个可怜的小女孩，光着头，赤着脚，独单的走在街道上。
In an old apron she carried a bundle of matches. No one had bought anything of her the whole day, and no one had given her a penny. She was shivering with cold and hunger.
她穿着一条旧围裙，拿着一捆火柴。一整天，没有人买过她的任何东西，也没有人给过她一个便士，她又冷又饿，浑身发抖。
Lights were shining through every window, and there was a fine smell of roast goose in the air, and she remembered that it was New Year’s Eve. She sank down in a corner between two houses, tired and cold. She dared not go home, for she had sold no matches, and hadn’t even a penny to take home.
每扇窗户都闪烁着灯光，空气中弥漫着一股烤鹅的清香，她记得那是除夕。她在两座房子之间的一个角落里倒下了，又累又冷。她不敢回家，因为她没有卖火柴，连一便士也不能带回家。
Besides, it was just as cold at , for the poor girl’s family had only the roof to cover them, and the wind howled through it .
此外，在家中也是一样的冷。因为这个可怜女孩的家，只有屋顶可以盖住他们，而风却在门洞中呼啸而入。
Her little hands were almost frozen. “ Ah, perhaps a burning match might do some good. “She drew one out “Scratch!” How it burnt! It gave a warm bright light, like a little candle, and she held her hand over it.
她的小手几乎冻僵了。啊，火柴也许会有好处。她边想着，边擦着了一根火柴，“擦！”好暖啊！它发出了一束温暖的亮光，就像一支小蜡烛，她把手放在上面。
It was really a wonderful light. It seemed to the little girl that she was sitting by a large iron stove. She stretched out her feet as if to warm them. But then the match went out, and she had only the burnt match in her hands.
那真是一束美妙的光。在小女孩看来，她坐在一个很大的铁炉旁。她伸出双脚，好像是为了暖和它们似的。然而，火柴熄灭了，她手里只有一根烧焦的火柴。
She rubbed another match on the wall, and where the light fell, the wall became as thin as a veil, and she could see into the room of the house. There was a table covered with a snow-white table-cloth. On it were splendid dishes and a steaming roast goose.
她在墙上又擦了一根火柴，随着火光的亮起，那墙就象稀薄得如一层面纱一般，她可以看见房子里的情况。那里有一张铺着雪白桌布的桌子，上面有精美的菜肴和一只热气腾腾的烤鹅。
And what was still more wonderful, the goose jumped down from the table and walked across the floor, with a knife and fork in its breast, to the little girl! Then the match went out, and there remained nothing but the thick, cold wall before her.
更奇妙的是，鹅从桌子上跳了下来，穿过地板，胸前拿着刀叉，走向小女孩的面前！然后火柴熄灭了，除了她面前那堵又厚又冷的墙，什么都没有了。
