1 . The Hitchhiker’ s Guide to the Galaxy (HG2G) by Douglas Adams

This is a comedy science-fiction series about a man’s adventures in space. It was initially a radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It is extremely funny and inventive, and has a very British sense of humor, whose true meanings foreign readers can hardly make out though it has been translated into French and Italian and so on. But when I read it I feel a strong connection to my home. It was published in paperback by Pan Books, after BBC Publishing had turned down the offer of publishing a novelization, an action they later regretted.

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Have you ever read a description of a landscape or countryside that made you feel like you were actually there? For me, this book does exactly that. It is about a young girl who is taken to live in a big house in my hometown and discovers a secret garden.

Daddy-Long-Legs by Jean Webster

This book takes the form of a series of letters, and follows the story of a young orphan(孤儿), Judy, as she goes to university and discovers a whole world of new experiences. This book always reminds me of my family, especially my mother, because she used to read it to me when I was ill in bed.

The Railway Children by E. Nesbit

This was one of my favorite books when I was younger, and for this reason it still strongly reminds me of England and my childhood. It is also set in Yorkshire where I was born and spent my childhood, and follows three children living next to a railway and their adventures.

1. What do we know about HG2G?

A．It was based on true adventures.

B．Its language is abstract and inventive.

C．Its humor is hard for foreigners to understand.

D．It was adapted for radio after being published.

2. Which books are set in the same place?

A．Daddy-Long-Legs & HG2G.

B．The Secret Garden & The Railway Children.

C．The Secret Garden & HG2G.

D．Daddy Long Legs & The Railway Children.

3. What do all the books have in common?

A．They follow children’s adventures.

B．They are British countryside series.

C．They refer to the author’s childhood.

D．They bring memories of home to the author.

2 . 假定你是李华，你的英国朋友Andy将要参加中文诗歌朗诵比赛（recitation contest），发邮件向你询问下面这首诗歌的含义。请你回复邮件，介绍该诗歌的主要内容、表达的思想感情和写作手法。
游子吟
作者：孟郊（唐）
慈母手中线，游子身上衣。
临行密密缝，意恐迟迟归。
谁言寸草心，报得三春晖。
注意：
1. 字数100字左右；2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

3 . Kwame Alexander is a best-selling author of 24 books. His novel in verse (诗体) The Crossover won the Newbery Medal in 2015, and was followed by another verse novel in 2016, Booked. In the just-released The Playbook: 52 Rules to Aim, Shoot, and Score in This Game Called Life, Alexander aims to inspire readers to dream big and reach for their goals.

Time For Kids:

What can you tell us about The Playbook?

Kwame Alexander:

I wanted to write a book about how important it is to persevere (坚持) and accept the challenges that come, because they only make you stronger. And I wanted to do it in a really cool and fun way, using sports as a metaphor (隐喻), so students would be interested in reading a book that is telling them how to make their lives better.

TFK:

Where did you get the idea for the book?

Alexander:

In The Crossover, the father of the main characters, Josh and Jordan, gives them these rules for life, called Basketball Rules. Well, I was having breakfast with a friend of mine in New York City. He said, “Kwame, I love those Basketball Rules you have in The Crossover. You should think about writing a whole book on those.” That’s where it all began.

TFK:

Is it hard to mix sports and poetry (诗歌)?

Alexander:

I love sports, and I’ve been writing poetry since I was a kid. So those two things are as natural to me as breathing, laughing and walking.

TFK:

You’ve said teachers need to make learning poetry fun. Did you have a teacher like this as a kid?

Alexander:

My mom. She read poetry to my sisters and me when I was a kid, and she would make the words jump off the page!

TFK:

What advice would you give to young writers?

Alexander:

Read everything you can get your hands on. The best way to become a good writer is to read what other people have written.

1. What can we learn about The Playbook?

A．It is a historical novel.

B．It won the Newbery Medal.

C．It is actually about rules for life.

D．It is based on Alexander’s true life.

2. Who inspired Alexander to write The Playbook?

A．His mom who read poetry to him.

B．The teacher who taught him poetry.

C．His friend who read The Crossover.

D．The two characters in The Crossover.

3. When Alexander was a kid, how did he feel about poetry?

A．It was rather boring.	B．It was quite difficult.
C．It was pretty mysterious.	D．It was very interesting.

4. In Alexander’s mind, what’s important to become a good writer?

A．Always dream big.

B．Gladly accept challenges.

C．Read as much as possible.

D．Have a wide knowledge of poetry.

4 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1. Where was Frost born?

A．In New England.

B．In Boston.

C．In San Francisco.

2. When did Frost become friendly with Edward Thomas?

A．Between 1924 and 1943.

B．Between 1912 and 1915.

C．Between 1943 and 1963.

3. Which was published in 1914?

A．Steeple.

B．A Boy’s Will.

C．North of Boston.

4. What does the speaker ask the listeners to do next?

A．Read a poem.

B．Study a novel.

C．Write a letter.

5 . Strongest Female Literary Characters of All Time

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 from the 1813 Jane Austen 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 to herself, she would rather remain single, a concept that was unheard at the time.

Nancy Drew

She first appeared in the 1930s but remains one of the most iconic female characters in all of literature. Created by Edward Stratemeyer, Nancy Drew wasn’t simply a pretty girl. Instead, the bold, physically strong, and fiercely intelligent Nancy used her superior intelligence—not her looks—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 Women, published by Louisa May Alcott in 1868. At 15, she is strong-willed, confident, and literary and unlike her sisters, she is outspoken and uninterested in marriage. Jo both struggles with and challenges 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 is too stubborn.	B．She doesn’t want to cheat herself.
C．She doesn’t want to marry for love.	D．She was the eldest daughter of the family.

2. What is Nancy Drew like?

A．Kind.

B．Outspoken.

C．Clever.

D．Proud.

3. Who created Josephine March?

A．Jane Austen.	B．Edward Stratemeyer.
C．Louisa May Alcott.	D．Nathaniel Hawthorne.

4. What is the right order of the time these females appeared in novels?
a. Elizabeth Bennet                                                            b. Nancy Drew
c. Josephine March                                                            d. Hester Prynne

A．dcab

B．adbc

C．cdba

D．adcb

6 . The science fiction type of entertainment is considered by mot to be fathered by Jules Verne (A Journey to the Center of the Earth and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea) and H. G. Wells (The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds). Sci-Fi, as it is commonly shortened, is a fictional story in which science and technology have a significant influence on the characters and plot. Many such works are guesswork about what the future holds and how scientific findings and technological advances will shape humankind.

Writing in the late 1800s, Jules Verne was remarkably successful in his 10 guesses about future technologies of air conditioning, automobiles, the Internet, television, and underwater, air, and space travel. Unbelievably, of all places from which to choose, Jules Verne guessed Tampa, Florida, USA as the launching site of the first project to the Moon, which was only 200 kilometers away from the actual 1969 location at Cape Canaveral, Florida.

One of the best-known science fiction books is Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell. Published in 1949, it was not meant as a prediction, but as a warning: Orwell was describing what he saw as the outcome of the ideas, trends, and emerging technologies of his time. Many invented terms from this novel have become common in everyday use, such as “big brother” and “doublethink”. Even the author’s name has been made into an adjective—Orwellian—and has become a warning descriptor for situations where privacy is lost and the individual has no power and is completely controlled by the government. Nineteen Eighty-Four was translated into sixty-five languages within five years of its publication, setting a record that still stands.

What helps bring science fiction into being is usually a new discovery or innovation. The author creates an analysis of the potential influence and consequences and then wraps it in a pleasant story. For example, the beginning of space exploration was followed a few years later by the Star Trek television program and movie series. The science fiction author’s self-determined role is search the world of future possibilities upon the road which we are traveling.

1. From the first paragraph, we know that science fiction might be ________.

A．a forecast of how a new discovery could influence mankind

B．a brief review of the present drawbacks of technology

C．a thoughtful look at the past and a prediction of the future

D．an analysis of how a new technology could be used to harm human.

2. Which of the following best describes Nineteen Eighty-Four?

A．A prediction of future technologies.

B．A warning of unfair and cruel ruling.

C．The motive of scientific development.

D．An imaginary perfect world of freedom.

3. From the passage we can learn that ________.

A．H.G. Wells predicted the Internet in the late 1800s

B．Nineteen Eighty-Four adopted some popular terms

C．Star Trek movie series were based on space exploration

D．Cape Canaveral was mentioned in Jules Verne’s fiction

4. According to the author, what is the role of science fiction in society?

A．A reference of technology.

B．A moral compass.

C．A record of science development.

D．A form of thinking about possibilities.

7 . Poetry, one of the essential art forms of literature, is a brief and easy way to express our feelings. Moreover, everyone understands it in their own way. Some find relief in poems; some read them simply for peace; some read poems for simple artistic pleasure.
There are some special features of poetry, which make it quite different from other forms of literature. First of all, poems have rhythmic patterns. Generally most parts of a poem follow the same form of rhythm. Poems may have rhyme, but they don't have to. The lines are neatly arranged together so that they express a particular feeling or emotion.
There can be various types of poems but according to the pattern or the form, there are mainly three types:
Lyrics: The lyric mainly concentrates on human thoughts and emotions rather than a story. Lyrics always bear song-like appeal. These are mainly short poems. Popular lyric poem forms are the elegy, the ode and the sonnet. William Shakespeare, Edmund Waller and Keats are some of the greatest lyric writers of all times.
Narrative poems: This type of poetry tells a story. Narrative poems are usually long poems. Epics(史诗) and ballads fall under this type. Some of the greatest epic poets are John Milton, Dante, Edgar Allan Poe, Alexander Pope, William Shakespe are, etc..
Dramatic poems: Any drama that is written in verse is a dramatic poem. These poems generally tell a story. Black verse, dramatic monologue(独白) and closet drama belong to this type. William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson are some of the greatest dramatic poets.
Whatever the form is, one thing, which cannot be denied, is that poetry is one of the most powerful tools to express our feelings.
1. What do we know about lyrics?
①They are similar to songs.
②They usually tell stories.
③They are not very long.
④The sonnet is a type of lyrics.

A．①②③

B．②③④

C．①②④

D．①③④

2. We can know from the text that                 .

A．poems are weak in showing feelings

B．some poets write more than one type of poem

C．narrative poems are shorter than lyric poems

D．the sonnet and the ballad belong to the same type

3. This passage is written mainly to                 .

A．tell us some simple facts about poetry

B．teach us how to write poems

C．give some advice on reading poems

D．make us interested in poems

8 . The True Story of Treasure Island

It was always thought that Treasure Island was the product of Robert Louis Stevenson’s imagination. ______, recent research has found the true story of this exciting work.

Stevenson, a Scotsman, had lived ______ for many years. In 1881 he returned to Scotland for a ______.With him were his American wife Fanny and his son ______.

Each morning Stevenson would take them out for a long ______ over the hills. They had been ______ this for several days before the weather suddenly took a turn for the worse. Kept indoors by the heavy rain, Lloyd felt the days ______.To keep the boy happy, Robert asked the boy to do some ______.

One morning, the boy came to Robert with a beautiful map of an island, Robert ______that the boy had drawn a large cross in the middle of ______. “What’s that?” he asked. “That’s the ______ treasure,” said the boy. Robert suddenly ______ something of an adventure story in the boy’s ______.While the rain was pouring, Robert sat down by the fire to write a story. He would make the ______ a twelve-year-old boy, just like Lloyd. But who would be the pirate (海盗)？

Robert had a good friend named Henley, who walked around with the ______ of a wooden leg. Robert had always wanted to ______ such a man in a story. ______ Long John Silver, the pirate with a wooden leg, was ______.

So, thanks to a ______ September in Scotland, a friend with a wooden leg, and the imagination of a twelve-year-old boy, we have one of the greatest ______ stories in the English language.

1.

A．However

B．Therefore

C．Besides

D．Finally

2.

A．alone

B．next door

C．at home

D．abroad

3.

A．meeting

B．story

C．holiday

D．job

4.

A．Lloyd

B．Robert

C．Henley

D．John

5.

A．talk

B．rest

C．walk

D．game

6.

A．attempting

B．missing

C．planning

D．enjoying

7.

A．quiet

B．dull

C．busy

D．cold

8.

A．cleaning

B．writing

C．drawing

D．exercising

9.

A．doubted

B．noticed

C．decided

D．recognized

10.

A．the sea

B．the house

C．Scotland

D．the island

11.

A．forgotten

B．buried

C．discovered

D．unexpected

12.

A．saw

B．drew

C．made

D．learned

13.

A．book

B．reply

C．picture

D．mind

14.

A．star

B．hero

C．writer

D．child

15.

A．help

B．problem

C．use

D．bottom

16.

A．praise

B．produce

C．include

D．accept

17.

A．Yet

B．Also

C．But

D．Thus

18.

A．read

B．born

C．hired

D．written

19.

A．rainy

B．sunny

C．cool

D．windy

20.

A．news

B．love

C．real-life

D．adventure