【推荐2】Little Women is the best-known work of author Louisa May Alcott. Published after the end of the Civil War, the book is about the lives of the author and her sisters. Although it was her most successful work, it was not her first.

Alcott began writing at the age of 20, when she published her poem “Sunlight”. Throughout her early career, she wrote many poems and short stories for magazines. At the age of 22, she began to write fairy tales, romantic thrillers, and other novels, mostly to earn money. At a time when few opportunities were open to women, Alcott supported women’s right to work. With her small income, she had long provided for her family.

When the Civil War broke out, Alcott, at the age of 30, joined the war effort to fight against slavery. She had originally wished to serve as a soldier. However, women were not allowed in battle at that time. As a result, she became a Civil War nurse. Alcott’s work as a nurse served as a milestone (里程碑) in her writing career.

In December of 1862, she left New England to work in the Union Hotel Hospital in Washington, DC. There were few supplies, and doctors performed operations without painkillers. The conditions for patients and doctors were terrible. Within a few weeks, Alcott herself became so ill that she nearly died. She returned home and recovered slowly over a period of months.

As soon as her health improved, Alcott started a new project. The letters she had sent home became the basis of a newspaper series about her experience as a Civil War nurse. She wrote about her tasks, the wounded soldiers she looked after, and the difficulties they faced. The series, Hospital Sketches, was a success, which received praise from readers and critics (批评) at the same time. Although her best-known work was yet to come, the success of Hospital Sketches marked the achievement of her dream to become a popular author.

【推荐3】One day a few years ago a very funny thing happened to a neighbour of mine. He is a teacher at one of London’s big medical schools, He had finished his teaching for the summer term and was at the airport on his way to Russia to give a lecture.

He had put a few clothes and his lecture notes in his shoulder bag, but he had put Rupert, the skeleton (人体骨骼) to be used in his lecture, in a large brown suitcase (箱子). At the airport desk, he suddenly thought that he had forgotten to buy a newspaper. He left his suitcase near the desk and went over to the shop.

When he got back he discovered that someone had taken his suitcase by mistake. He often wonders what they said when they got home and found Rupert.

【推荐1】I had just picked up my new car, a very beautiful automobile if you’re into cars. A few months later, I was involved in an accident. That new and very beautiful car was destroyed.

The accident was clearly not my fault. The other guy was so busy on his cell phone that he went right through a red light and slammed into the passenger side of my car. It was even scarier because my niece was asleep on the back seat and her father, my brother, was in the front passenger seat. He was not happy, to say the least.

The police arrived and began taking statements. I explained that I had been going at about 55kmph. “So you were going about 50kmph…” he said.

“No, I said I was doing about 55kmph” I said.

“Right, so you were doing about 50kmph…” again he repeated.

In a slightly annoyed(恼火的)tone because I felt I wasn’t being heard, I said: “No! I was doing about 55kmph!”

“OK, if that’s the way you want it,” this time the officer simply replied.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was shooting myself in the foot. My insurance company paid me for the damages to my car. However, I totally missed the boat on the other driver’s insurance company.

The city speed limit is 50kmph. I ended up getting 50 percent less than I would have from the other guy’s insurance company because I had insisted I was doing 55kmph.

It suddenly struck me that the traffic policeman had been trying to help me out. He hadn’t minded about the 5kmph; he had known something about the insurance that I had not.

I thought about what had happened again. I might have carried on insisting that I told the truth, but I could at least have said “Thank you” to him instead of acting so rudely. After all, he had been trying to help me out.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do is to let other people talk while you simply shut up and listen. Never forget to hear, you have to be able to listen.

【推荐3】“Barefoot Mike” gets a lot of attention when he shows up at the beginning of a race. He loves to run and has been running since he was a kid. He loves to and often competes in 10K races. But That’s not the reason he gets so much attention. People notice him because when he runs, “Barefoot Mike” runs barefoot.

Running barefoot has become a huge trend in the world of running. “I didn’t set out to be a trend setter,” laughed “Barefoot Mike”, otherwise known as Mike Whitaker. “I’ve always been a runner, but until a few years ago, I always wore shoes. Then one day I was running after a rainstorm. I stepped off into the grass to avoid a puddle (水坑) on the sidewalk, and accidentally stepped into a huge muddy puddle that had been hidden in the grass. I tried to keep running, but the wet and dirty shoe made it really hard. I figured the best solution was to just get rid of the shoes.”

Mike took off his shoes and dropped them into the nearest trash can. “Then I started running. At first I went really slowly because I was watching out for rocks or other things that could hurt my feet, but there really weren’t any problems.” He started going faster. “It felt so good!” Mike said. “My knee, which always ached, didn’t ache. My foot was able to spread out so I had better balance. And my feet didn’t feel all hot and sweaty. It was awesome!”

“There are actually potential health benefits to running barefoot” said Dr. Nancy Bower, a podiatrist (足科医师).

A recent study agrees. A team of researchers recently videotaped several people running—first wearing shoes and then barefoot. In almost every case, when wearing shoes, the runners tended to land on the heel of their foot, which they call “heel-striking.” Many runners have impact injuries such as knee pain. Heel-striking may be the cause of these injuries or may make an existing injury worse. When running barefoot, the runners tended to land on the middle part of the foot. The force is spread out throughout the foot. The ankle, shin (胫部), knee and hip don’t get the shock of a hard landing with every step.