【推荐1】Just days after the January 4 premiere (首映) of Hollywood blockbuster Avatar in China, the box offices across the country had gone beyond 100 million yuan (around $14.7 million), thanks to the enthusiasm of huge number of Chinese movie fans. China Film Group Corp. Estimates are that the total box office may finally reach 500 million yuan.

Though almost every movie theater in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai gives Avatar top billing(最优先的档期), with as many as 20 show times a day, Chinese audience still find it tough to get a ticket. In Beijing, the Wanda Movie Theater in Shijingshan, the first IMAX theater in Asia, is the first choice for Avatar moviegoers. The theater shows the 3D IMAX version of Avatar five times a day, and tickets are generally sold out a day in advance.

In Shanghai, to get an IMAX ticket for Avatar can mean waiting in freezing weather all night for a show three days later. Shanghai local media reported that on Friday, around 500 people were queuing for tickets at 8 a.m. in front of the downtown Peace Cinema, including some who had waited for 12 hours. Movie fans came equipped with quilts, wooden stools and snacks, in a scene reminding of that at train ticket windows before the New Year, when huge numbers of Chinese travel to be with family.

For the 3D version of Avatar, ticket prices varied for different theaters and time slots(场次), ranging from 60 yuan to 120 yuan. Meanwhile, illegal tickets traders asked as much as 600 yuan for the IMAX version in Shanghai. The Peace Cinema is planning to raise the ticket price for the IMAX version to as much as 200 yuan from the current 150 yuan from Jan. 14 for some time slots.

A report by the People's Daily owes the difficulty in getting tickets partly to the lack of 3D screens in China. There are only 11 IMAX commercial theaters in nine cities across China. Because of this, people are traveling long distances to see the movie. In southern China, the IMAX-equipped Dongguan Wanda theater has seen a huge coming of people from Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Wednesday afternoon, due to a technical breakdown of the system, the movie was stopped for an hour, and the sound didn't come together with the picture. In the end, the general manager of the theater had to beg forgiveness on his knees twice to lessen the angry audience who drove a long way to see the movie. The theater had to pay back each audience member the full ticket price as well as 200 yuan for traffic expenses.

The world-wide gross(总收入) for "Avatar" is now at $1.335 billion, second only to the $1.843 billion pulled in by "Titanic," another film directed by Cameron. But how long will 'Avatar' manage to hold its death grip around the number one spot?

1. The behavior of movie fans in Shanghai shows that __________.

A．the time slots of the film are not enough

B．people are too enthusiastic about the film Avatar

C．Chinese seldom have chances to enjoy Hollywood blockbusters like Avatar

D．the tickets for the film are harder to get than train tickets before the New Year

2. Chinese audience still find it difficult to get a ticket for Avatar because __________.

A．the weather is freezing and the queue is too long

B．the cinemas have raised the ticket price for Avatar

C．not many 3D screens are available in China

D．there are many illegal tickets traders in different cities

3. From“how long will 'Avatar' manage to hold its death grip around the number one spot?”in the last Paragraph, we learn that the writer __________.

A．thinks the film is sure to hold the number one spot

B．questions the truth of the number one spot of the film

C．concludes that the film Avatar is not better than Titanic

D．doubts whether the film can keep its popularity with the people

4. The best title of the passage should be __________.

A．Hollywood Blockbuster Avatar Hitting China

B．Chinese People Kneeling Down for a Film

C．Lack of IMAX Theaters in China

D．Difficulty in Seeing Avatar in China

【推荐2】People may have some unclear memories of their childhood, but almost everyone will remember the beautiful princess and the cruel queen in "Snow White", the innocent little girl and the greedy big gray wolf in "Little Red Riding Hood"．    1     For example, "True love can overcome anything", and "Even a frog can turn into a prince"． However, at a certain age, we start to learn new things about life, particularly that love doesn't always win, and that a frog is just a frog．

    2     Just look at animated films like "The Lion King" and "Frozen", which have millions of fans young and old． And this year's Lucerne Festival in Switzerland - a classical music festival - will also feature the themes of "Childhood" and "Fairy tales"．

"Fairy tales endure because they are the stories of our lives in their most stripped down form，" wrote US author Laura Packer． "They are stories of love and loss， desire and death， riches and ruin．"     3     But if children only see just one side of reality, adults usually see the other． For example, in the movie "Maleficent", we′re told the tale of Sleeping Beauty from the perspective of the evil queen．     4     Instead, she suffers great losses growing up, leading to the creation of her "evil'' side． And in US author James Finn Gamer's book "Politically Correct Bedtime Stories", he tells the classic story of "Little Red Riding Hood", but with a modern touch．

    5     They may usually start with "Once upon a time but as we grow older, we learn that every story doesn't always need a "happily ever after" to be a good one．

A．Fairy tales are all about reality．

B．But somehow, our love for fairy tales never dies．

C．Most of us get our earliest life lessons from fairy tales．

D．The theme of fairy tales is to teach people courage and kindness．

E．Fairy tales have been adapted into versions suitable for children．

F．It looks like fairy tales aren't just stories our parents read us at bedtime．

G．Unlike the children's version of the story, we see that the queen wasn't born evil．

【推荐3】Have you seen a historical film recently? Do you think it was accurate? Some say that there is no such thing as a historical film. In many cases, Hollywood film-makers simply change the facts. Just look at these supposedly “historical” films.
1. The Patriot
The film was released in 2000 and was directed by Ronald Emmerish and starred Mel Gibson. It is set near Charleston, South Carolina, during the American Revolutionary War(1775—1783) and follows the story of Benjamin Martin and his fight for American freedom against the British. The film was criticized for inventing and exaggerating British cruelty. The most criticized scene was one showing the burning of a church containing people of the town, of which there is no historical record. Another historical inaccuracy was the description of American-owned slaves being freed to serve with the American forces. In reality, many slaves ran away from their American owners and fought with the British against the Americans.
2. Brave Heart
The film(1995) starred Mel Gibson was directed by Toby Reisz. It is based on the life of Scottish national hero William Wallace and his fight against English rule in Scotland during the 13th century. The film includes an affair between William Wallace and Princess Isabella (based on Isabella of France). The film implies she is a mother-to-be when William Wallace will be killed. However, historically, the real Isabella was a child of nine still living in France at this time, never having met Wallace. The film also caused controversy because of its anti-English nature. Apparently, when the film was shown in Glasgow, there was a loud noise made by happy American audience.
3. U-571
This 2000 film was directed by Jonathan Mostow and starred Mathew MacConaughey, Havey Keitel and Jon Bon Jovi. It took place during the Second World War(1939—1945). In the film, a German submarine(warship underwater) is boarded in 1942 by American soldiers who made themselves up as Germans. They took away the German submarine’s code-language machine, which, in the film, helps the Americans get many secret messages from Germany. However, the film was heavily criticized because it was actually the British who got the machine in May 1941 when they boarded U-110. The movie was also criticized for showing a scene where the U-boat sailors killed American sailors in the water after their ship sunk, which is, in 99% cases, impossible to happen.
4. The 300 Spartans
The latest controversy surrounds the film The 300 Spartans. The film (directed by Zack Synder) tells the story of the battle between the Greeks and Persians in 480 BC. It is regarded as a key event in the birth of western democracy(民主) by some historians. In the film, 300 Spartans under the king fight against the enemies, 120,000 Persians led by Emperor Xerxes. The tiny Spartan forces repeatedly gain advantage over the invaders. These actions delays the Persians’ attack and gives the Greek armies enough time to prepare for the defense of Athens. But the Iranians (modern-day Persians) aren’t happy with the film. They say the film describes them as savage, killing-loving, and war-loving.
1. This article mainly _____.

A．praises four “historical” films

B．shares with us four great movies

C．tells the readers about the inaccuracy of four “historical” films

D．expresses the writer’s positive attitude towards the “historical” films

2. As far as time is concerned, the war in _____ broke out earliest.

A．The 300 Spartans	B．U-571
C．The Patriot	D．Brave Heart

3. Mel Gibson, a great American actor, starred in _____.

A．The Brave Heart and U-571

B．The Patriot and Brave Heart

C．The 300 Spartans and Brave Heart

D．The Patriot and The 300 Spartans

4. The passage probably comes from a(n)_____.

A．film poster	B．fashion magazine
C．film review	D．tour guide

【推荐2】Kids love animals, so children’s magazines about wildlife are a great way to plant a love of reading in young kids. If your kids love animals, check out these magazines.

National Geographic Kids

National Geographic Kids brings animals, nature, science, and fun to the little learners. Its animal stories develop pre-reading and reading skills. They also answer questions about kids’ favorite creatures. Features about different cultures bring the world to your child and inspire a sense of understanding. Interactive (互动的) experiments introduce simple science, and fun puzzles and games teach logic, counting, and so much more! It is for children aged from 6 to 14.

Click

Click opens up a universe of wonder by introducing kids aged 3-7 to the world around them. Click is about science, nature, and the environment. From the publishers of Ladybug, Click is written so that children will love the challenge of new learning.

Wild Animal Baby

It helps a child develop a lifelong love of reading and learning. This sturdy (结实的), board format (版式) magazine is designed especially for babies and toddlers between the ages of 12 months and 3 years. Each issue (期) is filled with rhymes, stories and lovable baby animals. Wild Animal Baby is a fun, interactive reading experience for children and parents alike.

Zootles

It was created for children aged 2 to 6 years old. Each issue includes a featured animal, numbers, and phoneme (音素) sounds. Counting and sound recognition games are built into the content, along with read-al oud stories, poems and more! This magazine is so much fun that little kids won’t realize how much they are learning.

1. A mother would most probably choose ________ for her nine-year-old child.

A．Zootles	B．National Geographic Kids
C．Wild Animal Baby	D．Click

2. We know that the magazine Zootles ________.

A．tells about science, nature and the environment	B．includes many adventurous stories
C．covers different topics in each issue	D．mainly tells kids interactive reading experience

3. Who is the text intended for?

A．Kids.

B．Animals lovers.

C．Story-tellers.

D．Parents.