【推荐1】When the great library of Alexandria burned, the story goes, one book was saved. But it was not a valuable book and a poor man got it.

The book wasn’t very interesting, but between its pages there was something very interesting indeed. It was a thin strip of vellum (羊皮纸) on which was written the secret of the “Touchstone (点金石)”. The touchstone was a small pebble that could turn any common metal into pure gold. The writing explained that it was lying among thousands and thousands of other pebbles that looked exactly like it. But the secret was this: The real stone would feel warm while ordinary pebbles are cold.

So the man sold his house, bought a tent, camped on the seashore and began testing pebbles. He knew that if he picked up normal pebbles and threw them down again because they were cold, he might pick up the same pebbles hundreds of times. So, when he felt one that was cold, he threw it into the sea. He spent a whole day doing this but none of them was the touchstone. Yet he went on and on this way. Pick up a pebble. Cold — throw it into sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea. The days stretched into months and the months into years.

One day, however, about mid-afternoon, he picked up a pebble and it was warm. He threw it into the sea before he realized what he had done. He was used to throwing each pebble into the sea as soon as he picked it up. So when the one he wanted came along, he still threw it away.

So it is with opportunity. Unless we are careful, it’s easy to fail to realize an opportunity when it is in hand and it’s just as easy to throw it away.

1. According to the passage, the touchstone is a stone ________.

A．that you can touch

B．that can turn common metal into pure gold

C．that can bring you thousands of pebbles

D．that can bring you good luck

2. The man threw the touchstone into the sea because ________.

A．it was cold

B．it was a normal pebble

C．he was too tired to hold it

D．he had formed a habit

3. How did the man probably feel when he realized it was the touchstone?

A．Excited.	B．Moved.
C．Interested.	D．Regretted.

4. What does the writer want to tell us?

A．Opportunity knocks but once.

B．Use it or lose it.

C．Where there is a will, there is a way.

D．Practice makes perfect.

【推荐2】I lay in the hospital bed with my six­year­old daughter, Elizabeth, holding her in my arms. “Mommy, will you stay with me the whole time?” she asked, looking up. “You know I can’t be in the operating room,” I said carefully, not wanting to frighten her. “But Daddy and I will be waiting right outside.” Elizabeth nodded, but her eyes looked troubled.

Elizabeth had broken her right leg in July. Seven months later, it still hadn’t healed (康复). In fact, it had gotten worse. She was here in the hospital for surgery (手术).

I wanted to tell her that everything would be okay and promise that this would be the last time she'd have to go through this. But what if something went wrong again? How could I comfort my daughter when I needed comfort myself?

There was a knock at the door. A nurse? I thought. Time to say goodbye already? But the woman who came in wasn't a nurse. “Hi,” the woman said. “I’m a volunteer here, and I’ve got something for Elizabeth.” She handed a bright­blue box to my daughter.

Elizabeth sat up and took the box. She opened it and started pulling out goodies one by one — candies, stickers, a lovely toy in the shape of a star. She hugged the star, perking_up for the first time since she entered the hospital. “Thank you,” she said. “I love them.” There was a big smile on her face. It had been so long since I saw that big smile.

The gift was a great comfort not only to my daughter, but also to me.

1. Why did the author’s daughter feel upset?

A．She would have surgery on her arm.

B．The author had no time to play with her.

C．She had to stay in the hospital for a long time.

D．The author couldn’t stay in the operating room.

2. The author didn’t make any promise because ________.

A．there was no time for her to do so

B．she wasn’t sure of the result herself

C．she believed everything would be okay

D．she thought there was no need for her to do so

3. The underlined part “perking up” means “________”.

A．having a rest	B．thinking carefully
C．doing her best	D．becoming cheerful

【推荐3】The famous director of a big and expensive movie planned to film a beautiful sunset over the ocean so that the audiences could see his hero and heroine(女主角) in front of it at the end of the film as they said goodbye to each other forever. He sent his camera crew out one evening to film the sunset for him.

The next morning he said to the men, “Have you provided me with that sunset?” “No, sir,” the men answered.

The director was angry.

“Why not?” he asked.

“Well, sir,” one of the men answered, “we're on the east coast here, and the sun sets in the west. We can get you a sunrise over the sea, if necessary, but not a sunset.”

“But I want a sunset!” the director shouted. “Go to the airport, take the next flight to the west coast, and get one.”

But then a young secretary had an idea. “Why don't you photograph a sunrise,” she suggested, “and then play it backwards? Then it'll look like a sunset.”

“That's a very good idea!” the director said. Then he turned to the camera crew and said, “Tomorrow morning I want you to get me a beautiful sunrise over the sea.”

The camera crew went out early the next morning and filmed a bright sunrise over the beach in the middle of a beautiful bay. Then at nine o'clock they took it to the director. “Here it is, sir,” they said, and gave it to him. He was very pleased.

They all went into the studio. “All right,” the director explained, “now our hero and heroine are going to say goodbye. Run the film backwards so that we can see the 'sunset' behind them.”

The “sunset” began, but after a quarter of a minute, the director suddenly put his face in his hands and shouted to the camera crew to stop.

The birds in the film were flying backwards, and the waves on the sea were going away from the beach.

1. One evening, the director sent his camera crew out ______.

A．to film a scene on the sea	B．to try to please the audience
C．to watch a beautiful sunset	D．to find an actor and an actress

2. Why did the director want to send his crew to the west coast?

A．Because he was angry with his crew.	B．Because it was his secretary's suggestion.
C．Because he wanted to get a scene of sunset.	D．Because he wanted to fire his foolish crew.

3. After the “sunset” began, the director suddenly put his face in his hands ______.

A．as he was satisfied with what the crew filmed

B．as he saw everything in the film moving backwards

C．as the hero's and heroine's performance disappointed him

D．as the sunrise did not look as beautiful as he had imagined

【推荐2】Many people discover Roald Dahl through his stories and poems. His books have been translated into several languages. He has also inspired TV and radio shows and movies. With his help, kids all over the world can imagine strange candies, friendly giants, and frightening villains (反派主角). Indeed, Roald Dahl led a life full of adventures (冒险). Yet, we can have a better understanding of him from other things, too.

More than Just Words: The Roald Dahl Foundation

Roald Dahl became interested in helping people who had serious injuries and diseases. As a writer, Roald cared about helping children read more. To carry out these goals, his family set up the Roald Dahl Foundation. The foundation helps people, hospitals, and charities by giving money for medical and educational needs. It continues the spirit of giving that Roald expressed throughout his life.

Stories for All Ages: The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre

Roald Dahl’s wife, Felicity Dahl, wanted to set up a central place to protect all of Roald’s writings. She helped create the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre in Buckinghamshire, England. It holds a collection of Roald’s writings and recordings for the public to visit. His personal letters and postcards can be found there, as well as photographs and many of his awards. As you can see, one can get a pretty complete picture of Roald Dahl’s life by visiting this library. The museum also encourages people to write creatively.

Now, people of all ages are learning about Ronald Dahl through his works. Through his stories, the foundation, and the museum, Roald Dahl will continue to have a great effect on readers around the world for years to come.

1. It can be inferred that Roald Dahl ________.

A．produced many movies	B．mastered several languages
C．travelled to many countries	D．wrote many adventurous stories

2. The Roald Dahl Foundation ________.

A．was set up by Roald Dahl	B．employs many famous doctors to cure diseases
C．helps kids back to school	D．helps people or organizations for free

3. The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre was built to ________.

A．attract public visits	B．keep Roald Dahl’s works
C．show Roald Dahl’s awards	D．give lessons about writing

4. What is the author’s attitude towards Roald Dahl?

A．Disappointed.

B．Respectful.

C．Disagree.

D．Cruel.

【推荐3】Doctor Seuss was born in 1904. By the middle 1950s, he had become one of the best loved and most successful children's book writers in the world. His books are very popular with young readers. They enjoy the invented words and the pictures of unusual funny animals and plants.

In 1954, life magazine published (刊登) a report about school children who could not read. The report said many children’s books were not interesting. Doctor Seuss strongly hoped to help children and decided to write books that were interesting and easy to read. He used words with the same ending sound, like fish and wish. He did not receive training in art. Yet, he drew the pictures for most of his books.

In 1957, Dr. Seuss wrote The Cat in the Hat. He used less than 230 words to write the book and even a six­year­old should be able to read it. It was a fun story and easy to read. Children loved it. Their parents loved it, too. Today it is still one of the stories they like best. The success of The Cat in the Hat made him want to write more books for children. In 1960, he wrote a book using less than fifty words. The book is called Green Eggs and Ham.

In 1984, Doctor Seuss won a Pulitzer Prize (普利策奖). He was honored for the education and enjoyment his books provided American children and their parents.

He died at the age of 87, but his influence remains. Millions of his books have been sold worldwide. People say his books helped change the way American children learned to read. Yet, his books are loved by people of all ages. Doctor Seuss once said，“I do not write for children. I write for people.”

1. Doctor Seuss learned from the magazine that _________.

A．some school children could not read with interest

B．many children’s books were interesting

C．children wanted to learn to read

D．a writer for children was wanted

2. People like his books because the books ________.

A．are cheap and easy to get	B．were written in different languages
C．are easy and interesting to read	D．were written with invented words

3. He wrote the book The Cat in the Hat at the age of ________.

A．50	B．53
C．56	D．87

4. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Doctor Seuss wrote Green Eggs and Ham with over 230 words.

B．Doctor Seuss wrote books only for children in the United States.

C．The Cat in the Hat was written only for six­year­old children.

D．His books provided education and enjoyment for Americans.