1 . 18-year-old Alison Sanger is an amazing student. Maybe too amazing— the book opens with Alison lying to her mother about having food poisoning so she can take a test on Shakespeare. More than getting good grades, her true motivation is to beat her opponent, Ethan Molloy.
Ethan has gone toe-to-toe with Alison on everything throughout school. They’re both honors students. They are co-vice presidents of the senior class. They both hope to get into Harvard. The fact that Ethan and Alison seem to always do everything at the same time turned into a competition a long time ago. Whoever does worse on an exam must do an unpleasant task of the winner’s choosing. If someone misses the exam, they forfeit.
This unfriendly competition is so famous that everyone at Fairview knows about it, students and staff. They’re even more annoyed by it than Alison. The principal takes matters in hand by asking the two to co-plan a previous class’s ten-year reunion after someone else dropped the ball. As you might imagine, tensions arise and passion is aroused. In a certain way, What’s Not to Love is a little like The Hunger Games. Like Katniss with Peeta, Alison is constantly evaluating her own emotions against Ethan’s supposed strategy.
While reading this book, I was forced to wonder exactly how healthy this relationship was. I assumed everyone’s intentions in the book were honorable—the authors themselves turned out all right in the end, and I’m incredibly glad for that. Wibbroka fans will not be disappointed—What’s Not to Love is story of soulmates and passion; its short chapters and tight pacing carry the reader along all the way to the satisfying conclusion. Despite its faults—which the text itself calls to attention—fans of enemies-to-lovers stories like How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days will feel right at home here.
1. Why does Alison lie to her mother?| A．To treat her food poisoning. |
| B．To prove that she’s also amazing. |
| C．To be able to be tested on schedule. |
| D．To please her friend with good grades. |
| A．Compete. | B．Withdraw. |
| C．Cooperate. | D．Succeed. |
| A．They prove their abilities separately. |
| B．They get the final result of their competition. |
| C．They set up a better relationship between them. |
| D．They use it as another chance to continue the competition. |
| A．Worth reading. | B．Useless. |
| C．Unreasonable. | D．Perfect. |
| A. stranded B. unsettling C. vast D. alternating E. titled F. breaking G. unparalleled H. unfolding I. sprung J. distress K. solidity |
Finding Comfort in War and Peace
Over the past 15 years, Yiyun Li, a Chinese-American author, has read War and Peace at least a dozen times. Her hardback copy of Leo Tolstoy's 1,200 - page saga bristles with colored notes, like some exotic lizard's spine. The novel is not just a masterclass in fiction, Ms. Li believes, but a cure for
War and Peace - originally
So large is Tolstoy's world, Ms. Li reckoned, that there could be no better companion for people
Other book clubs have
3 . Known as “China’s most popular love comedy”, Romance of the Western Chamber is regarded as one of the best works of its time. The play was written over 700 years ago by Yuan Dynasty dramatist Wang Shifu (1260-1336).
Set in the Tang Dynasty, the play tells the secret love story between a young scholar Zhang Sheng, who is on his way to take the highest imperial exam in the capital city, and Cui Yingying, daughter of a chief minister of the Tang court.
After bandits(土匪) surround Cui at a temple, her mother promises her daughter’s hand in marriage to whoever can defeat them. Zhang manages to drive the bandits away, but Cui’s mother takes back her word because Zhang is poor. However, Zhang and Cui have already fallen in love. With the help of Cui’s maid Hong Niang, the two continue their romance and break many barriers.
The play incorporates much of the beauty of the poetry from the Tang and Song eras in Chinese history. Part of its appeal to readers is found in the style, grace and flow of the language. In fact, the play represents a high mark of achievement in romantic Chinese literature, and is quite popular. It has given rise to many sequels and rewritings, and also influenced countless plays, short stories and novels. The Peony Pavilion and Dream of the Red Chamber probably wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for Wang’s classic play.
The play also inspired generations of artists across various mediums such as woodblock prints, paintings and porcelain. This fine art is still on display at places such as Freer Gallery of Art in the US and Kwun Tong’s Sun Museum in Hong Kong.
The ancient porcelain pieces depicting iconic scenes from the tale are indeed impressive. The characters are like “the superheroes from another time”, Rachel Leung, associate curator(副馆长) of Sun Museum told China Daily. “It’s exactly like the Marvel franchise.”
“This story is basically about trying to break the societal strictures. It’s about courage and perseverance to pursue true love,” Leung said. “It’s surprising to know that centuries ago our ancestors imagined a story like that. They proved that they were not rigid or passive and they could be creative enough to make things for themselves.”
Indeed, Romance of the Western Chamber is known for opposing traditional norms associated with marriage and love during a more orthodox era. It has a positive take on marriage, emphasizing that true love should prevail(占上风).
1. What can we know about Romance of the Western Chamber?| A．It was composed earlier than The Peony Pavilion. |
| B．The characters in the story have supernatural powers. |
| C．It represents the highest achievement in Chinese literature. |
| D．The appeal of the play is mainly found in its complex plot. |
| A．Courage and perseverance are of vital importance to social connections. |
| B．It was believed that our ancestors were conservative and lacked creativity. |
| C．Romance of the Western Chamber enjoys popularity among the Marvel fans. |
| D．Everyone should take a positive and unconventional attitude toward marriage. |
| A．Open-minded. | B．Dynamic. | C．Ambiguous. | D．Conventional. |
| A．The Rise of China’s Love Comedies |
| B．Wang Shifu and His Most Popular Works |
| C．Marriage and Traditional Norms |
| D．Love Comes First |
4 . There are some of history's most inspiring and great females who can be found on the pages of these novels.
Elizabeth Bennet Called "Lizzie" or “Eliza" by her family and friends, Elizabeth Bennet is the stubborn and clever heroine in Jane Austen's 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice. She's the second eldest of five daughters in the Bennet family and, like the rest of her sisters, she is expected to marry for status and money, not for love. To remain true of herself, she would rather remain single, a concept that was unheard at the time.
Nancy Drew She first appeared in 1932 but remains one of the most iconic female characters in all of literature. Created by Edward Stratemeyer, Nancy Drew isn't simply a pretty girl. Instead, the bold, physically strong, and fiercely intelligent Nancy uses her superior intelligence — not her look --- to solve a series of mysteries.
Josephine March Jo March is the second eldest daughter in the March family and is a central focus in the novel Little Woman, published by Lousia May Alcott in 1868. Jo struggles with challenges from society's expectations of how women in the 19th century should carry themselves, making her one of literature’ s most daring female characters.
Hester Prynne Recognized by some critics as one of the most important characters in female literature, Hester Prynne is the leading character in Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1850 novel, The Scarlet Letter. Married but separated by distance from her husband, Hester has an affair with a minister and becomes pregnant.
1. Why would Elizabeth Bennet rather remain single?| A．She doesn't want to cheat herself. | B．She doesn't want to marry for love. |
| C．She was the eldest daughter of the family. | D．She is too clever. |
| A．Kind. | B．Clever. | C．Outspoken. | D．Proud. |
a. Elizabeth b. Nancy Drew c. Josephine March d. Hester Prynne
| A．dcab. | B．cdba. | C．adbc. | D．adcb. |
| A．A novel. | B．A newspaper. | C．A person. |
6 . Fantasy literature is fantasy in written form. Historically speaking, the majority of fantasy works have been literature. Since the 1950s, however, a growing part of the fantasy genre (流派) has taken the form of video games, music, painting, and the like. It is difficult to define the precise “beginning” of fantasy literature as stories involving magic and terrible monsters have existed since time immemorial. On the whole, the genre, as a distinct type, began to become visible in the Victorian times, in the works of writers such as William Morris, Lord Dunsany and George Macdonald.
Some commentators declared that the South African-born, English professor of philology, J. R. R Tolkien, was influential to the mas-popularization of the fantasy genre, with his hugely successful publications — The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien himself, though, was largely informed by an ancient body of Anglo-Saxon myths — particularly Beowulf — but it was after his work that the genre began to receive the name, “fantasy”. J. R. R. Tolkien’s close friend C.S. Lewis, author of The Chronicles of Narnia, also an English professor interested in similar themes, was also connected with popularizing the commercial success of the fantasy genre.
Outstanding authors in the gene who undertook popular fantasy works after Tolkien’s The Lord of The Rings phenomenon of the 1950s and 1960s appeared quickly. In recent years, the rate of female-to-male authors in a typically-stocked bookstore has skyrocketed, with female authors surpassing (超过) the volume of the male ones.
Fantasy has been famous from other forms of literature by its style. The fantasy world requires like any genre, appropriate language, and that language can vary. In various forms of fairytale fantasy, even the villain’s (坏人) language would be inappropriate if vulgar (粗俗的). Famous fantasy author Raymond E. Feist considered his genre to be one where “ordinary people” were place in extraordinary situations, and writing about what would happen.
1. How many fantasy writers are mentioned in this passage?| A．Five. | B．Six. |
| C．Seven. | D．Eight. |
| A．Because stories involving magic and terrible monsters have existed since ancient time. |
| B．Because the fantasy literature appeared in Victorian times. |
| C．Because it was mixed with other forms of fantasy, such as video games, music, paining and so on. |
| D．Because since the 1950s the fantasy genre has taken the form of video games, music, painting and the like. |
| A．rise rapidly and suddenly | B．drop rapidly and suddenly |
| C．rise slowly and steadily | D．drop slowly and steadily |
| A．the background of fantasy literature |
| B．some famous works about fantasy literature |
| C．the origin and its popularity of fantasy literature |
| D．some outstanding authors of fantasy literature |
注意：1. 词数100左右；2. 可以增加适当的细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Peter,
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Yours,
Li Hua
8 . Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926. Since Lee’s mother was mentally ill, she was raised by her father. She became very close to her father.
The naughty Lee loved reading, and would make up stories with Truman, her neighbour who was two years older than her. Seeing her daughter’s imagination, Lee’s father gave her a typewriter.
Before her final year in the university of Alabama, Lee dropped out to become a writer. She moved to New York City where her childhood friend Truman was already established as a famous writer. While there, she worked on her first book—To Kill a Mockingbird. It won her the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was made into an Academy Award winning movie the following year. To Kill a Mockingbird tells the story of six-year-old Scout and her brother who lived in the town of Maycomb Alabama with their single father Attics. Attics is a lawyer who defends the blacks. At a young age, Scout is exposed to the terrors of segregation(宗族隔离). Then, in 2014, the first draft of a new book—Go Set a Watchman was discovered among Lee’s papers. It is the story of 26-year-old Scout who returns to Maycomb to visit her father. She is shocked to find her father a changed man. Attics has turned into a segregationists! The story shows the mixed feelings Scout has for the changes that have taken place in her hometown and father.
A loner for most of her life, Lee stayed unmarried, preferring to lead a small town life. On February 19,2015, Lee passed away at the age of 89.
1. What can we learn about Lee?| A．She became a professional writer at college. |
| B．She developed a gift for writing in childhood. |
| C．She was persuaded to become a writer by Truman |
| D．She got interested in writing after getting a typewriter. |
| A．Her love for writing stories. |
| B．The effect of having an ill mother |
| C．Her experience of living in a small town |
| D．Her childhood relationship with her father |
| A．He had complex feelings towards the black. |
| B．He struggled for the equal right of the black |
| C．He supported segregating the blacks and the whites. |
| D．He failed to get used to the changes of his hometown |
| A．She has no taste for social life. |
| B．She write only a book in her life. |
| C．She feels lonely for most of her life. |
| D．She enjoys the fame for her successful book. |
9 . Everyone gathered around and Paddy read out loud, slowly, his tone growing sadder and sadder. The little headline said: BOXER RECEIVES LIFF SENTENCE.
Frank Cleary, aged 26, professional boxer, was today found guilty of the murder of Albert Gumming, aged 32, laborer, last July. The jury (陪审团) reached its decision after only ten minutes, recommending the most severe punishment to the court. It was, said the Judge, a simple case. Cumming and Cleary had quarreled violently at the Harbour Hotel on July 23rd and police saw Cleary kicking at the head of the unconscious Gumming. When arrested, Cleary was drunk but clear-thinking.
Cleary was sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labour. Asked if he had anything to say, Cleary answered, “Just don’t tell my mother.”
“It happened over three years ago,” Paddy said helplessly. No one answered him or moved, for no one knew what to do. “Just don’t tell my mother,” said Fee numbly (麻木地). “And no one did! Oh, God! My poor, poor Frank!”
Paddy wiped the tears from his face and said. “Fee, pack your things. We’ll go to see him.”
She half-rose before sinking back, her eyes in her small white face stared as if dead. “I can't go,” she said without a hint of pain, yet making everyone feel that the pain was there. “It would kill him to see me. I know him so well — his pride, his ambition. Let him bear the shame alone, it’s what he wants. We’ve got to help him keep his secret. What good will it do him to see us?”
Paddy was still weeping, not for Frank, but for the life which had gone from Fee’s face, for the dying in her eyes. Frank had always brought bitterness and misfortune, always stood between Fee and himself. He was the cause of her withdrawal from his heart and the hearts of his children. Every time it looked as if there might be happiness for Fee, Frank took it away. But Paddy’s love for her was as deep and impossible to wipe out as hers was for Frank.
So he said, “Well, Fee, we won’t go. But we must make sure he is taken care of. How about if I write to Father Jones and ask him to look out for Frank?”
There was no excitement in the eyes, but a faint pink stole into her cheeks. “Yes, Paddy, do that. Only make sure he knows not to tell Frank we found out. Perhaps it would ease Frank to think for certain that we don’t know.”
1. Paddy cried because he thought ________.| A．what had happened to Frank was killing Fee |
| B．Frank should have told Fee what had happened |
| C．Frank did kill someone and deserved the punishment |
| D．Frank had always been a man of bad moral character |
| A．Fee was so heart-broken that she could hardly stand up |
| B．Fee didn’t want to upset Paddy by visiting Frank |
| C．Fee struggled between wanting to see Frank and respecting his wish |
| D．Fee couldn’t leave her family to go to see Frank |
| A．The jury and the judge agreed on the Boxer’s Sentence of Life Imprisonment. |
| B．Frank didn’t want his family to know the sentence to him, most probably out of his pride. |
| C．The family didn’t find out what had happened to Frank until 3 years later. |
| D．The police found Gumming unconscious, heavily struck by Frank. |
| A．Frank is Fee’s son and Paddy is Fee’s brother. |
| B．Frank is Fee’s lover and Paddy is Fee’s husband. |
| C．Frank is Fee’s brother and Paddy is Fee’s lover. |
| D．Frank is Fee’s son and Paddy is Fee’s husband. |
