My father was attached to gardening by birth. One of my earliest memories is following Dad barefoot around in the garden with both hands blackened from digging in the soil. The garden is a wonderland full of possibilities.
As Dad grew older, he still loved gardening. Even when he was diagnosed with cancer, he still planted all sorts of plants. Sometimes, I would come over to visit, and we would walk together in the garden. But then, something changed. Like the weeds that took over his garden, the cancer grew rapidly in Dad. I stayed with Dad twenty-four hours a day and I found myself in all kinds of uncomfortable situations with Dad until I promised to care for the garden.
Though I had heard the words of the doctor, what really made me believe that Dad was dying was the state of his garden. That year, he only planted tomatoes. Too tired to weed them, he simply tied them with strong strings to the fence and let them be. It made me sad to see them ignored, so I would come over and water them once in a while, and remove the weeds. I still remember the day I picked the last tomato from the vine(藤). That day was one of the saddest I had ever experienced in my life.
Three years ago, I decided to plant my own garden. I decided I would start out with just a few tomatoes. That morning when I moved to the garden, something caught the corner of my eyes and I had to smile. It was my eight-year-old son Nathan, standing barefoot in the soil, happily playing in the soil.
1. Why did the author like his father’s garden when he was a child?| A．It was a field that produced much food. |
| B．It was a piece of land covered with black soil. |
| C．It was a place where he got educated. |
| D．It was a fantastic place with unexpected surprise. |
| A．His garden. | B．His illness. | C．His son. | D．His grandson. |
| A．The words of the doctor. |
| B．The condition of his father. |
| C．His communication with his father. |
| D．That the garden wasn’t taken good care of by his father. |
| A．He remembered his father. | B．His son showed interest in the garden. |
| C．He thought of the food he would get. | D．He could take care of his own garden. |
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【推荐1】After three years on horseback, Tim Cope has followed the route of Genghis Khan(成吉思汗) and other Asian nomads(游牧民族) who crossed into Europe over the centuries.
The 28-year-old Australian arrived in Hungary on Saturday, Sept.22, ending a 6200-mile travel through Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Southern Russia and Ukraine. Surrounded by his traveling companions—his dog and three horses, Cope said, “I’m very happy to be here. Sometimes I didn’t think I would ever arrive.”
Cope was inspired to make the horseback journey during a bicycle trip from Moscow to Beijing. Trying to push his bike through the sands of the Gobi Desert, Cope watched in frustration as nomad horsemen appeared out of nowhere and disappeared over the horizon.
That got him interested in nomad life and the journey by ancient Asian groups. He set off from Mongolia in 2004 for a trip he thought would take 18 months. It ended up taking three years, and in late 2006, he had to return to Australia for several months when his father died in a car crash.
Cope quickly learned to trust the wisdom of locals. “In Mongolia, the nomads always told me that wolves were the most dangerous things and I didn’t believe them at first.” he said. Then one night he found himself surrounded by wolves. “When you hear that cry alone at night in the forest, it’s one of the most frightening sounds you’ll ever hear,” Cope said. “After that I took their advice and threw firecrackers out my tent door every night to keep the wolves away.”
Cope says he probably spent about half of his nights in his tent and the rest in farm houses and huts of strangers along the way. “In Kazakhstan, they believe that if you invite a guest, luck will fly into your house.”
Cope wants to write a book and shoot a film about his voyage, and is already imagining future adventures in northwest China and the Middle East.
“It’s my way of life. It was not just a trip,” Cope said. “I’ll be back in the saddle(马鞍) as soon as I can.”
1. Why did Tim Cope decide to make the horseback journey?| A．It was impossible to make the journey by bike. |
| B．Genghis Khan was the person he admired most. |
| C．He wanted to visit Hungary where he had never been. |
| D．he was deeply attracted by the life of nomad horsemen. |
| A．In March, 2004. | B．In March, 2006. |
| C．In September, 2006. | D．In September, 2007. |
| A．He will come back to Australia. |
| B．He will devote his life to adventures. |
| C．He will travel on horseback soon. |
| D．He will take this journey again. |
| A．An Australian’s ambition to take adventures. |
| B．A rider who completes a horseback journey. |
| C．A modern young man who lives nomad life. |
| D．Following Genghis Khan to cross into Europe. |
【推荐2】Blind imitation(模仿)is a disaster. To those who do not recognize their unique worth, imitation appears attractive; to those who know their strength, imitation is unacceptable.
In the early stages of skill or character development, imitation is helpful. When I first learned to cook, I used recipes and turned out some tasty dishes. But soon I grew bored. Why follow someone else’s way of cooking when I could create my own? Imitating role models is like using training wheels on a child’s bicycle; they help you get going, but once you find your own balance, you fly faster and farther without relying on them.
In daily life, imitation can hurt us if we subconsciously hold poor role models. If, as a child, you observed people whose lives were bad, you may have accepted their fear and pain as normal and gone on to follow what they did. If you do not make strong choices for yourself, you will get the results of the weak choices of others. In the field of entertainment, our culture glorifies celebrities. Those stars look great on screen. But when they step off screen, their personal lives may be disastrous. If you are going to follow someone, focus on their talent, not their bad character or unacceptable behaviors.
Blessed is the person willing to act on their sudden desire to create something unique. Think of the movies, books, teachers, and friends that have affected you most deeply. They touched you because their creations were motivated by inspiration not desperation. The world is changed not by those who do what has been done before them, but by those who do what has been done inside them. Creative people have an endless resource of ideas. The problem a creator faces is not running out of material; it is what to do with the material knocking at the door of imagination.
Study your role models, accept the gifts they have given, and leave behind what does not serve you. Then you can say, “I stand on the shoulders of my ancestors’ tragedies and declare victory, and know that they are cheering me on.”
1. When is imitation useful according to the passage?| A．When you begin to learn something new. |
| B．When you lose the balance of life. |
| C．When you know you are unique. |
| D．When you get tired of some routine practice. |
| A．We should stay away from stars. |
| B．We should ask others for decisions. |
| C．We should choose the right example. |
| D．We should forget daily fear and pain. |
| A．how to search for more materials |
| B．the absence of practical ideas |
| C．the lack of strong motivation |
| D．how to use imagination creatively |
| A．To criticize the characters of role models. |
| B．To emphasize the importance of creativity. |
| C．To compare imitation with creation. |
| D．To explain the meaning of success. |
阅读短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
There was once an old wise man living on the top of a mountain. Whenever the villagers had a problem, they would climb up the mountain and ask the old man for advice.
One day a young man arrived. “Wise man,” he asked, “What makes a man truly great?”
The old man said, “Do you sincerely want to know?”
“Yes, yes!” the young man replied.
“Well,” the wise old man said to him, “Let me tell you in the form of a story.”
There was once a Greek man who suffered from a deadly disease. Knowing that he would die soon, he was the first to join the army when his country was in a battle with the enemy. Hoping to die in battle, he would fight in the front line, risking himself without any worry for his life. Finally they won the battle and he was still alive. His general (将军) was so impressed with his bravery which contributed much to the victory.
The general decided to promote him and award him with medals of bravery and honor. On the day of presentation (授予仪式), he was looking very down and sad. Curiously, the general asked him why he was so sad on a day he should be so proud. The soldier told him of his deadly disease. “How could I let such a brave soldier die?” the general thought. So the general hired the best physician and finally cured the soldier. But from that day on, the once valiant soldier was no longer seen at the front. He would always avoid danger and tried his best to protect his life.
“Young man,” the wise man said, “if you want to be truly great, you must not be afraid of dying, you must be daring.”
1. The reason why the young man went to see the old man was that _______.
| A．he enjoyed the scenery of the great mountain |
| B．the old man was very good at telling stories |
| C．there was a difficult problem troubling him |
| D．he was not sure who the greatest man was |
| A．after he realized the man’s serious illness |
| B．because the man fought bravely in battle |
| C．though he knew the man would die soon |
| D．so that he could find the man a good doctor |
| A．brave | B．polite | C．curious | D．proud |
| A．trying to be kind to the people in trouble |
| B．mastering the skills of telling |
| C．joining the army to fight for his country |
| D．learning a lesson from the Greek man |
【推荐1】I was born on the 17th of November 1828, in the village of Nam Ping, which is about four miles southwest of the Portuguese Colony (殖民地) of Macao, and is located on Pedro Island lying west of Macao, from which it is separated by a channel of half a mile wide.
As early as 1834, an English lady, Mrs. Gutzlaff, wife of a missionary to China, came to Macao. Supported by the Ladies’ Association in London for the promotion of female education in India and the East, she immediately took up the work of starting a girls’ school for Chinese girls, which was soon followed by the opening of a boys’ school.
Mrs. Gutzlaff’s comprador(买办) happened to come from my village and was actually my father’s friend and neighbor. It was through him that my parents heard about Mrs. Gutzlaff’s school and it was doubtlessly through his influence and means that my father got me admitted into the school. It has always been a mystery to me why my parents should put me into a foreign school, instead of a traditional Confucian school, where my big brother was placed. Most certainly such a step would have been more suitable for Chinese public opinion, taste, and the wants of the country, than to allow me to attend an English school. Moreover, a Chinese belief is the only avenue in China that leads to political promotion, influence, power and wealth. I can only guess that as foreign communication with China was just beginning to grow, my parents hoped that it might be worthwhile to put one of their sons to learning English. In this way he might become an interpreter and have a more advantageous position to enter the business and diplomatic world. I am wondering if that influenced my parents to put me into Mrs. Gutzlaff’s School. As to what other sequences it has eventually brought about in my later life, they were entirely left in the hands of God.
1. How was the author admitted to Mrs. Gutzlaff’s school?| A．Through his father’s friend’s help. |
| B．Through his own efforts to exams. |
| C．Through his father’s request. |
| D．Through Mrs. Gutzlaff’s influence. |
| A．An English school was more influential. |
| B．Foreign trade with China was developing fast. |
| C．It met with Chinese public opinion. |
| D．He could become a successful interpreter. |
| A．It was skeptical. | B．It was mysterious. |
| C．It was thoughtful. | D．It was wonderful. |
Born into a Chinese family that had recently arrived in California, I’ve been giving more thought to the kind of English my mother speaks. Like others, I have described it to people as “broken” English. But feel embarrassed to say that. It has always bothered me that I can think of no way to describe it other than “broken”, as if it were damaged and needed to be fixed, as if it lacked a certain wholeness. I’ve heard other terms used, “limited English,” for example. But they seem just as bad, as if everything is limited, including people’s perceptions（认识）of the limited English speaker.
I know this for a fact, because when I was growing up, my mother’s “limited” English limited my perception (认知) of her. I was ashamed of her English. I believed that her English reflected the quality of what she had to say. That is ,because she expressed them imperfectly her thoughts were imperfect. And I had plenty of evidence to support me: the fact that people in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.
I started writing fiction in 1985. And for reasons I won’t get into today, I began to write stories using all the Englishes I grew up with: the English she used with me, which for lack of a better term might be described as “broken”, and what I imagine to be her translation of her Chinese, her internal（内在的） language, and for that I sought to preserve the essence, but neither an English nor a Chinese structure: I wanted to catch what language ability tests can never show; her intention, her feelings, the rhythms of her speech and the nature of her thoughts.
1. By saying “Language is the tool of my trade”, the author means that ______.
| A．she uses English in foreign trade |
| B．she is fascinated by languages |
| C．she is a writer by profession |
| D．she works as a translator |
| A．impolite | B．imperfect | C．amusing | D．practical |
| A．Americans do not understand broken English. |
| B．The author’ mother had positive influence on her. |
| C．Broken English always reflects imperfect thoughts. |
| D．The author’s mother was not respected sometimes. |
| A．rich in meaning | B．well structured |
| C．in the old style | D．easy to translate |
| A．The changes of the author’s attitude to her mother’s English. |
| B．The limitation of the author’s perception of her mother. |
| C．The author’s misunderstanding of “limited” English. |
| D．The author’s experiences of using broken English. |
I know you think these notes are silly. I have watched you wear a long face over the years when I give them to you. But understand that sometimes I want to tell you something and I want to get it just right. Putting it down on paper helps me do that. I wish I had been a better writer, I wish I had gone to college. If I had, I think I would have studied English and maybe my vocabulary would have improved. So many times I feel I am using the same words over and over. Like a woman wearing the same dress every day. So boring！
What I want to say to you, Charley, is that you are marrying a wonderful girl. I think of Catherine in many ways like I think of Roberta. Like a daughter. She is sweet and patient. You should be the same with her, Charley.
Here is what you are going to find out about marriage: you have to work at it together. And have to love three things. You have to love
1) Each other.
2) Your children (when you have some).
3) Your marriage.
What I mean by that last one is, there may be times that you fight, and sometimes you and Catherine won’t even like each other. But those are the times you have to love your marriage like a third party. Look at your wedding photos. Look at any memories you’ve made. And if you believe in those memories, they will pull you back together.
I’m very proud of you today, Charley. I am putting this in your tuxedo pocket because I know how you lose things.
I love you every day！
Mom
1. Why did the mother write the letter to Charley?| A．To congratulate her son. | B．To give him some advice. |
| C．To show her pity. | D．To talk things through. |
| A．To congratulate her son. | B．To give him some advice. |
| C．To show her pity. | D．To talk things through. |
| A．Regret. | B．Pride. | C．Care. | D．Complaint. |
| A．He is forgetful. | B．He is patient. |
| C．He is boring. | D．He is worried. |
In the library, I found my way into the “Children's Room.” I sat down on the floor and pulled a few books off the shelf. The cover of a book caught my eye. It presented a picture of a beagle. I had recently had a beagle, the first and only animal friend I ever had as a child. He was my secret sharer, but one morning, he was gone, given away to someone who had the space and the money to care for him. I never forgot my beagle.
There on the book's cover was a beagle which looked similar to my dog. I ran my fingers over the picture of the dog on the cover. My eyes ran across the title, Amos, the Beagle with a Plan. Unknowingly, I had read the title. Without opening the book, I borrowed it from the library for the summer.
Under the shade of a bush, I started to read about Amos. I read very, very slowly with difficulty. Though pages were turned slowly, I got the main idea of the story about a dog who, like mine, had been separated from his family and who finally found his way back home. That dog was my dog, and I was the little boy in the book. At the end of the story, my mind continued the final scene of reunion, on and on, until my own lost dog and I were, in my mind, running together.
My mother's call returned me to the real world. I suddenly realized something: I had read a book, and I had loved reading that book. Everyone knew I could not read. But I had read it. Books could be so wonderful. I was going to read them.
I never told my mother about my wonderful experience that summer, but she saw a slow but remarkable improvement in my classroom performance during the next year. And years later, she was proud that her son had read thousands of books, was awarded a PhD in the literature, and published his own books, articles, poetry and fiction. The power of the words has held.
1. The author's mother told him to borrow a book in order to ___________.
| A．help cure him of his reading problem |
| B．encourage him to do more walking |
| C．let him spend a meaningful summer |
| D．make him learn more about animals |
| A．he was forced by his mother to read it |
| B．the book told the story of his pet dog |
| C．the book reminded him of his own story with his dog |
| D．the happy ending of the story attracted him |
| A．The author's mother read the same book. |
| B．The author has become a successful writer. |
| C．The author has had happy summers ever since. |
| D．The author's mother rewarded him with books. |
| A．The Charm of a Book | B．Mum's Strict Order |
| C．Reunion with My Beagle | D．My Passion for Reading |
【推荐2】According to the United Nations, 60 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions come directly from the way that we currently produce our electricity.71 percent of the earth is covered in water yet only around 1.5 percent of the global energy is produced through wave power. That’s what inspired Eco Wave Power CEO, Inna Braverman to take on the challenge.
Two weeks after she was born in Ukraine in 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster occurred and she got hurt, suffering from breathing arrest and a clinical death. But thanks to her mother, who was a nurse, she was saved. Growing up, she felt it her purpose to find green and sustainable energy.
Inna found that previous wave energy developers have decided to pursue offshore technologies, contributing to huge installation and maintenance costs, incredibly vulnerable stations in storms, and consequently lack of funding. Her innovative version, however, is to install the power station on land. The only part of the system in the water is the floaters which bob up and down with the waves. These push compressed air into a tank where the energy is stored to produce electricity. The floaters are attached to existing man-made structures such as banks, piers, and breakwaters.
The simplicity of the design makes it cheaper to install and maintain as well as being better protected from rough weather and therefore, insurable. Once a commercial plant producing 20 megawatt s or more (enough for 20,000 homes) is in place, the unit cost significantly reduces. “Our price of energy decreases to about $0.05 US (€0.05) per kilowatt hour, which is comparable to the prices of onshore wind,” Inna explains.
A pilot station was installed in Gibraltar in 2016. It was the first wave energy system to be connected to the grid in Europe. More tests of the wave energy system have been arranged in different countries and regions.
1. What do we know from the first two paragraphs?| A．Inna was inspired by a UN program to focus on green energy. |
| B．Inna’s early experience enabled her to explore green energy solutions. |
| C．Inna came up with the idea of green energy thanks to her mother. |
| D．Green and sustainable energy solutions are greatly influenced by the nuclear disaster. |
| A．To demonstrate the environmental impact of wave energy. |
| B．To highlight Inna Braverman’s innovative approach to wave energy. |
| C．To outline the challenges faced by other wave energy developers. |
| D．To provide information about wave energy production around the world. |
| A．Its maintenance on the sea floor. | B．Its dependence on government funding. |
| C．Its installation on land. | D．Its exclusive focus on offshore technologies. |
| A．Eco Wave Power: Pioneer in Sustainable Energy |
| B．Chernobyl Survivor’s Vision: Endless Power for the Future |
| C．Land-Based Wave Power: Innovation for Green Electricity |
| D．Onshore Energy: Eco Wave Power’s Fight Against Gas Emissions |
【推荐3】On September 13th, I woke up in the best mood. It was a late start, so I got to sleep in. Not only did I get my full eight hours of sleep, but an additional two more hours as well. I got ready, danced in my room to my favorite music while I picked out my clothes, made my lunch, and was on my way to school. I arrived at 9: 50 a. m. Little did I know, in the next 20 minutes, my life would change forever. As I got out of my classroom, there he was, holding the gun.
Although everything happened so fast, in a matter of about 4 minutes, I remember it clearly. I remember every face I saw, and I remember every sound I heard. I remember the fear and the panic of the unknown. And lastly, I remember running. Running for my life. I ran down the stairs, out of the school’s front doors, and down the street to the primary school. I remember looking down at my feet. As I looked down I thought to myself, “ How am I running so fast?”
I finally made it to a safe classroom, and 20 other students and I settled in for lockdown. We stayed close to one another and cried. It felt as though the tears going down our faces would never stop. We passed our phones around to text our loved ones that we were safe and that there was a school shooter, shots were fired, and 4 students were injured thus far.
The lockdown lasted about 30 minutes, even though it felt like forever. Our headmaster made his way to our room and explained that the shooter had been caught and we were all going to make our way to the football field.
1. How did the writer feel before going to school?| A．Relaxed. | B．Worried. | C．Scared. | D．Puzzled. |
| A．sleep in bed | B．sleep with clothes on |
| C．sleep with face covered | D．sleep longer than usual |
| A．Calling the police for help. | B．Running away in all directions. |
| C．Fighting back against the shooter. | D．Texting their beloved ones about it. |
| A．On a football field. | B．In a neighboring school. |
| C．In a classroom of her school. | D．Back at her own home. |
| A．The headmaster didn’t care about his students. |
| B．There was more than one shooter in the killing. |
| C．Not all the 21 students took phones with them. |
| D．The shooter killed himself in the end. |
