Noche de lectura (Reading Night)
En español
Van marchando hacia las aulas, que aún reverberan por el calor de todo el día. Entran en fila y se detienen, cada uno al lado de su pupitre. A una voz de mando se sientan. Las pupilas se acomodan lentamente a la luz amarillenta de las tres bujías en todo el recinto. Pronto llegan dos muchachos con un cajón de libros que distribuyen al azar. La carretera de Volokolansk, Un hombre de verdad, o el tomo II de Los miserables. Nadie protesta ni selecciona. No se deja de leer o de fingir que se lee. El libro iniciado hoy será truncado la próxima noche por otro. La historia me absolverá, Los tres mosqueteros o La batalla de Stalingrado. No importa el título. Este, a su vez, tendrá que ser abandonado cuando el sargento, sin previo aviso, ordene ponerse en atención y abandonar las aulas. Continuará el ritual cada noche de lectura, una o dos veces por semana. Un buen soldado tiene que ser culto.
In English (trans. by Andrew Hurley)
Group by group, they march into the classrooms, which are still like ovens shimmering with the heat accumulated throughout the day. They march in in single file and come to a halt, each boy alongside his own desk. When the order is given, they sit. Their pupils slowly adjust to the yellowish light of the three bulbs that pretend to illuminate the entire school. Soon, two boys come in with a big box of books, which they distribute randomly around the room. The Volokolansk Highway, A True Man, or Volume lI of Les Miserables. No one protests, no one says a word, no one tries to choose the book he wants. No one stops reading, or pretending to read. The book begun today wil be broken off the next night by another. History Will Absolve Me, The Three Musketeers, or The Battle of Stalingrad. The title is unimportant. This book, too, will have to be put aside when the sergeant suddenly orders everyone to stand at attention and march out of the classroom. The ritual is continued every reading night, once or twice awek. A good soldier has to be well educated.