His fictionalised portrait of the artist as a young man is recalled by an older, disillusioned narrator. What begins as an enchanted adventure of youth becomes freighted with trauma and loss.

本书采用倒叙的方式，以一位年老志衰的叙述者追忆年轻时光，一开始是充满魔力的年轻冒险，到后来却渐渐经历失败与创伤。

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I would bet my bottom dollar that if this stern-looking man is a manager of a company, the company will hardly suffer a heavy loss, for he is a crafty boss.

如果这位面色严厉的人是某家公司的经理的话，那这家公司就不大可能会亏损，因为他是个狡猾的老板。对此，我什么都敢赌。

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The man also admitted that the loss of the cow was indeed a blessing in disguise!

男人承认，丢失那头奶牛是这个家天大的幸事啊！

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Instead,the president found himself talking to the nation about the loss of a man known as "the liberal lion" of the Senate.

VOA: standard.2009.08.26

All of them mourn the loss of a man who became their uncle.

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It is a tremendous loss for world football, the loss of a man of rare qualities in our time.

BBC: Goalkeeper suicide stuns football

Did you not find yourself surprised to feel the loss of a man you never knew? (But whose creations, of course, you gaze, tap and stroke dozens of times a day).

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