Being able to read is an important skill in today’s society. It is important because it develops the mind and imagination. A person who knows how to read can educate themselves in any area of life they are interested in.
Reading is an active mental process that improves your concentration and focus. Since you must concentrate in order to read, this requires you to focus and think about what you are reading.
Studies show if you don’t use your memory, it becomes more and more difficult to remember things.
The more you read, the more knowledgeable you become and with more knowledge comes more confidence. Reading about the diversity of life and exposing yourself to new ideas and more information help to develop the creative side of the brain and bring innovations (创新) into your thinking process.
When you are reading books, especially challenging ones, you will probably find yourself exposed to many new words. Do you remember when you learned to read, how you learned to figure out the meaning of one word by reading the other words in the sentence?
Reading can help you get access to the diversity of ethnicity (民族特点) of people, their customs and their lifestyles. You’ll become more aware of different places.
| A．So it’s a chain reaction. |
| B．Reading helps to strengthen your memory muscles. |
| C．If you are feeling bored, then pick up a book and start reading. |
| D．Reading is one of the most enjoyable hobbies a person can have. |
| E．You will get the same benefit for building your vocabulary from reading books. |
| F．It makes you use your brain, helping you to reason out things which are unfamiliar to you. |
| G．Ever found yourself in an embarrassing situation where you didn’t have anything to talk about? |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】If there was one good thing to come out of lockdowns, it was improved book sales and rates of reading, especially among children. A survey of 70, 000 children and young people by the National Literacy Trust, however, has found this gain is now gone: figures are now equal to just before the pandemic, when the trust recorded the lowest levels of reading enjoyment since it first asked the question 17 years ago. A concurrent study of 8, 000 five to eight-year-olds found that nearly one in five did not have a book at home.
These questions are not about basic literacy but about the habit of reading. The children surveyed spoke of books giving them subjects to talk about; of entertainment and information; of reading helping them to understand people unlike themselves; of finding in books a place of escape and a reduction of loneliness; of aid in coping with difficulty. “It helps me in learning about what I am feeling. That is because I have a hard time expressing my emotions and would rather not bother anyone,” as one child put it.
Children who read at home are six times more likely to be able to read above expected levels, while one study of 160, 000 adults from 31 countries found children whose homes held at least 80 books, but whose schooling ended at 13or 14, were “as literate and technologically quick in adulthood as university graduates.” Another found these children also went on to earn more.
It is not that most parents don’t understand this. A reason often cited for the lack of books at home is the cost of living. Almost a fifth of Britain’s public libraries have closed in 10 years, while one in eight primary schools in England, rising to one in four in disadvantaged communities, do not have a library or given reading space. Furthermore, the Department for Education, with its insistence on systematic synthetic phonics (自然拼读法), would keep an eye on the number of children who told the National Literacy Trust that teaching in primary schools had put them off reading. Compared with other problems this country faces, providing varied reading material is relatively straightforward to fix. We owe it to children to do so.
1. What does “this gain is now gone” in Paragraph 1 most probably mean?| A．More children take to reading. |
| B．Sales of books have shrank. |
| C．Rates of reading remain stable. |
| D．Reading materials are available. |
| A．Reading broadens children’s horizons. |
| B．Reading offers children spiritual shelters. |
| C．Reading improves children’s basic literacy. |
| D．Reading helps children deal with emotions. |
| A．to be pushed by expected levels of reading |
| B．to end schooling earlier than average readers |
| C．to be willing to learn more when they grow up |
| D．to possess greater reading and technological abilities |
| A．Local communities do not have public libraries or appointed reading spaces. |
| B．Immediate action should be taken to offer children more varied reading material. |
| C．Primary schools have so far done a great job in encouraging children to read more. |
| D．Disadvantaged families attach little importance to reading for lack of books at home. |
Swapping (交换) books is an easy and fun way to share your literature and keep your book collection updated.
You can exchange books you have read with nearby friends and relatives. Perhaps there is a book that you know a local friend has read and that you want to get your hands on. Arrange to leave a book with a wanted-book note on the friend’s doorstep or put the book in his letterbox if it fits. If you have lots of books that you are happy to swap, or even give away, these could be left in a clear plastic container, with a lid (盖子), outside your door or by your garden or driveway. Leave a note in the box telling passers-by that they can look through them and choose some.
You can also join Bookswap, the bookswap.co.uk website. It helps people get rid of books and pick up others. With the help of an adult, visit the site and see if there are any titles you fancy reading. You can list books for swapping. If there are books you want to read, just add them to your Wishlist and make orders. The lists are always revisable.
Read the instructions carefully, before making your swaps.
·International swaps and delivery are not yet available through the Bookswap website.
·Additional delivery zones may be added and the active restriction on the webpage will be updated.
·If a swap is cancelled, all costs are automatically returned to your account.
·You can drop off your books at Evri ParcelShop. Once collected, they are delivered to their destination in about 2-3 working days.
·You can track your order on the Bookswap webpage under My Orders. Click to see further information.
·Cancelling your order is available if the order has not been posted.
If you still need help, please write to info@bookswap.co.uk.
1. According to the passage, what is the best way to swap a book with Jenny in your neighbourhood?
| A．Mail it to Jenny. | B．Leave it on Jenny’s doorstep. |
| C．Place it by your garden. | D．Drop it off at Evri ParcelShop. |
| A．swap books internationally | B．swap books free of charge |
| C．cancel a swap anytime they like | D．monitor the swapping process |
| A．To describe the benefit of book swaps. | B．To share the experience of book swaps. |
| C．To introduce the practice of book swaps. | D．To express the attitude towards book swaps. |
【推荐3】Books by Economist writers
More. By Philip Coggan. Hachette; 496 pages; $34. Profile Books; ￡25
A history of the global economy by our Bartleby Columnist. Covering the development of key sectors such as manufacturing and energy production, it shows how links between people and countries have allowed individuals to grow not just more prosperous, but taller and stronger, and to live longer and have more choice in how they run their lives. A “brilliant survey”, thought the Times; a “fantastic sweep”, reckoned the Financial Times.
Coveted. By Melanie Grant. Phaidon; 208 pages; $89.95 and ￡69.95
When, asks the picture and luxury editor of 1843, does jewelry make the leap from fashion accessory to art? Her richly illustrated profiles of leading designers range from Faberge’s and Cartier’s links to Art Nouveau and Art Deco, to the collaboration between Georg Jensen, a Scandinavian brand, with the architect Zaha Hadid. The New York Times said “the book showed the complexity, power and artistic impact of great design.”
Independence Square. By A. D. Miller. Pegasus Books; 228 pages; $25.95. Harvill Secker; ￡14.99
A nation’s future, and a man’s fate, hang in the balance in this novel of revolution and betrayal. Set between an icy unheaval in Kyiv and a London summer, it stars a sly oligarch, an idealistic young activist and a disgraced British diplomat. “Utterly gripping,” said the Observer, “a novel with its finger on the pulse of geopolitics that still manages to move deeply.” The Spectator called it “a searing indictment of our times”.
Unconventional Wisdom. Edited by Tom Stand-age. Economist Books; 272 pages; $11.99. Profile Books; ￡8.99
A compendium of our explainer articles and daily charts, which spell out how much a ghost reduces a house’s value, how pregnancy makes people more law-abiding and why friends prefer sloppily wrapped Christmas gifts. Compiled by one of our deputy editors.
The Best. By Tim Wig-more and Mark Williams. Moblus; 256 pages; $24.95. Nicholas Brealey; ￡20
A contributor on sport and his co-author cover topics such as why younger siblings have more chance of becoming elite sportsmen, why mid-sized towns produce the most champions and the science of performance. They draw on interviews with Marcus Rash-ford, Pete Sampras and Steph Curry, among others. “Excellent”, said the Australian.
The Classical School. By Callum Williams. Hachette; 288 pages; $16.99. Profile Books; ￡20
A high-speed history of Western economic thought, by our senior economics writer, told in the form of 20 biographies. Alongside household names such as Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill, there are chapters on lesser-known figures such as Harriet Martineau and Dadabhai Naoroji. The Times called it a “brisk, absorbing and entertaining history lesson” with “an engaging cast of characters” that “leaves you a lot wiser”.
The Wake-Up Call. By Adrian Woold-ridge and John Micklethwait. HarperVia; 176 pages; $18. Short Books; ￡9.99
The pandemic, say our political editor and Bloom-berg’s editor-in-chief, proves that government is not just a diversion for politicians but a matter of life and death. The poor performance of Western democracies, particularly America and Britain, shows how far they have fallen behind the Far East, notably China. “A shot in the arm,” said the Financial Times. “Full marks for sounding the alarm,” said the Times Literary Supplement.
1. Which one of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?| A．More is a detailed survey of individual opinions about how global economy has developed through the links between people and countries so far. |
| B．All of the books are originally written by the writer(s) listed after the name of the book. |
| C．Independence Square is a novel, which describes historical issues in different cities such as Kyiv and London through the life of individuals. |
| D．According to The Wake-Up Call, the pandemic serves as an alarm for western democracies to reflect on the role of a government. |
| A．Coveted | B．Unconventional Wisdom |
| C．The Best | D．The Classical School |
| A．economics | B．arts | C．sports | D．geography |
