音樂盒娃娃

這個音樂盒娃娃誕生於1973年，純真的臉上帶著一絲憂鬱的氣質，使我想起了「刺鳥」一書的女主角Meggie。此書一開頭描寫身處貧困家庭的小Meggie，收到人生中第一個生日禮物──她心中渴望但不敢奢望的洋娃娃──卻因哥哥們的惡作劇而被無情地肢解。此舉讓她小小的心靈一如洋娃娃般破碎，久久無法釋懷。

「刺鳥」這部長篇小說以女孩Meggie及神父Ralph之間禁忌愛戀為主幹。Meggie幼年時隨父母兄長移民澳洲，從她遇到Ralph那一刻起，便注定成為她一生中最執著的思念。本書除了情愛糾葛、靈慾衝突、人性光明與黑暗面描寫外，對土地及家園的真誠摯愛，以及澳洲的田園景緻亦做了深刻的描繪。

傳說中的刺鳥一生中只唱一首歌，在它唱歌之前將尋找一棵有刺的樹，飛身衝撞並唱出最動人的歌而死去。故事中的主角不計一切代價創造自己的刺，促成了無可挽回的悲劇命運，就如同刺鳥的行徑。作者精確地掌握每個角色的特性，全書步調緊湊，令人有意想不到的情節發展，使讀者屏息凝神以待最後結局。這部巨著多年前曾拍成迷你影集造成轟動，近幾年也有DVD上市。

轉動此款娃娃底部的音樂盒，世界名曲「給愛麗絲」隨著娃娃旋轉也跟著流瀉而出。娃娃的鄉村造型服飾讓我憶起此部劇集中澳洲優美的田園風光。

I like to read novels, especially the love stories. A few years ago, I read a novel named “The Thorn Birds”. In legend, there was a bird, it sang beautifully and it only sang once during its lifetime. When it sang, it would find a tree with thorn and hit it. Before dying, its songs moved people. But it paid a heavy price to sing such a beautiful song.
This long novel not only described love between a girl and a priest, it also had a deep description of Australia. Under the bold subject, the reader can understand the light and dark sides of human nature, the conflict between ones soul and sex, and the faith to homeland. It fully revealed the interaction between human character and fate. Both of the leading roles in this book paid a heavier price to pursue their goals, just like the thorn birds.
In real life, people will also over-pursue their goals and forget that there are many other things worth doing. Finally, they may have achievements but at the same time they will find they lose something important in their life. From this book, we can learn more beyond description. It is really a good book that worth us reading.