The     1     (winner) of the 2023 Hugo Awards were announced on Saturday night, with Chinese author Hai Ya     2     (take) home the Best Novelette award for “The Space-Time Painter.” Hai Ya’s novelette is inspired by a painting masterpiece, Qianli Jiangshan Tu by Wang Ximeng from the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Hai Ya has woven the story of Wang’s life into a thriller     3     combines the elements of traditional Chinese culture and history with sci-fi and detective genres.

3 .

#1 Author: Leisa Sharpe Price: £ 14.99 Release: Jun. 13, 2023	How Does Chocolate Taste On Everest This isn’t your typical children’s book nor is it a night-time read: it’s an action-packed adventure around the world. Young adventurers will step into the footprints of the greatest explorers, using their senses as their guides. This book immerses its young readers in life in the world’s most fascinating habitats, countries and continents, as well as those on other planets.
#2 Author: Z Kids Price: £ 9.99 Release: Sep.25, 2023	The Ultimate Riddle Game For Kids For readers between the ages of 9 and 12, this fun riddle book combines logic challenges, competitive contests and brain training. The first section consists of short, snappy riddles, the maths section requires mental arithmetic (算术), and for the stories section you will need to discover all the possible hidden meanings. But try not to cheat. The book is much more rewarding as the sections get more challenging. When you begin to understand the best way to approach each riddle type, your confidence, resilience and score are likely to grow.
#3 Author: Kim Zachman Price: £ 12.99 Release: Dec. 15, 2023	There’s No Cream In Cream Soda The only drink humans need is water, but the beverage industry is growing larger every year. This book explores the history of the invention of drinks, beginning thousands of years ago, when humans first added natural flavourings to their water as it boiled over the fire. Its humorous and conversational narrative means that you don’t know what will come next. Ranging from core scientific processes to the unlikely origin stories of some sodas, this book is sure to have a story to fascinate every kid.

4 . Wuthering Heights

Suddenly we heard the sound of a carriage in the courtyard. He went to the window and I hurried to the door to open it.

It was the two Lintons, Hindley Frances and Catherine. They all ran into the house and stood in front of the large fire in the sitting room to get warm.

I told Heathcliff to go and join them. He opened the kitchen door as Hindley was coming out of the sitting room. When Hindley saw him, he pushed him back into the kitchen saying Joseph! Keep him away from the sitting room.

Then he noticed Heathcliff’s nice clothes.

“Look at you!” he said sneering. “Who do you want to impress? Get out or I’ll pull your hair until it’s longer than it is now!”

“It’s long enough already,” observed Edgar Linton. He was standing at the siting room door. His hands over his eyes like a mane!

Edgar didn’t say this to insult Heathcliff but Heathcliff had a quick and violent temper. He suddenly picked up a pan of hot apple sauce and threw the contents in Edgar’s face. Edgar screamed. Hearing her brother’s cries, Isabella, followed by Catherine, came running out. Hindley grabbed Heathcliff by the arm, took him to his room and gave him a beating.

I didn’t have much sympathy for Edgar but I cleaned his face. His sister was crying and wanted to go home. Catherine was confused and embarrassed and didn’t say anything.

7 . This passage is adapted from Jane Eyre by Charloue Bronte.

Seeing me, she recovered herself: she made a sort of effort to smile and expressed a few words of congratulations, but the smile disappeared, and the sentence was abandoned unfinished. She put up her glasses and pushed her chair back from the table.

“I feel so astonished,” she began, “I hardly know what to say to you, Miss Eyre. I have surely not been dreaming, have I? Sometimes I half fall asleep when I am sitting alone and fancy things that have never happened. It has seemed to me more than once when I have been in a doze (打盹), that my dear husband, who died fifteen years since, has come in and sat down beside me; and that I have even heard him call me by my name, Alice, as he used to do. Now, can you tell me whether it is actually true that Mr. Rochester has asked you to marry him? Don’t laugh at me. But I really thought he came in here five minutes ago and said that in a month you would be his wife.“

“He has said the same thing to me,” I replied.

“He has! Do you believe him? Have you accepted him?”

“Yes.”

She looked at me confused. “I could never have thought it. He is a proud man; all the Rochesters were proud; and his father at least liked money. He, too, has always been called careful. He means to marry you?”

“He tells me so.”

She surveyed my whole person: in her eyes, I read that they had there found no charm powerful enough to solve the mystery.

“It passes me!” she continued, “but no doubt it is true since you say so. How it will answer I cannot tell:I really don’t know. Equality of position and fortune is often advisable in such cases; and there are twenty years of difference in your ages. He might almost be your father.”

“No, indeed, Mrs. Fairfax!” I protested, annoyed, “he is nothing like my father! No one, who saw us together, would suppose it for an instant. Mr. Rochester looks as young, and is as young, as some men of twenty-five.”

“Is it really for love he is going to marry you?” she asked.

I was so hurt by her coldness and skepticism that tears rose to my eyes.

“I am sorry to make you unhappy,” continued the widow (寡妇), “but you are so young, and so little acquainted with men,I wished to put you on your guard. It is an old saying that’ all is not gold that glitters’; and in this case,I do fear there will be something found to be different to what either you or I expect.”

“Why? Am I a monster?” I said. “Is it impossible that Mr. Rochester should have a sincere affection for me?”

“No, you are very well; and much improved recently. and Mr. Rochester, I dare say, is fond of you.I have always noticed that you were a sort of pet of his There are times when, for your sake, I have been a little uneasy at his marked preference and have wished to put you on your guard; but I did not like to suggest even the possibility of wrong. I knew such an idea would shock, perhaps offend you; and you were so discreet (谨慎的) and so thoroughly modest and sensible, I hoped you might be trusted to protect yourself. Last night I cannot tell you what I suffered when I sought all over the house, and could find you nowhere, nor the master either. and then, at twelve o’clock, saw you come in with him.”

“Well, never mind that now,” I interrupted impatiently; “it is enough that all was right.”

“I hope all will be right in the end,” she said. “But, believe me, you cannot be too careful. Try and keep Mr. Rochester at a distance: distrust yourself as well as him. Gentlemen in his station are not accustomed to marrying their governesses.”

The colour was rushing to his cheeks, and his eyes were wide open,     1     (shine) with joy, and in the centre of each eye, right in the very centre, in the black pupil, a little spark of wild excitement     2     (dance) slowly. Then the old man took a deep breath, and suddenly, with no warning whatsoever, an explosion seemed to take place inside him. He threw up his arms and yelled ‘Yippeeeeeeee!’ And at the same time, his long     3     (bone) body rose up out of the bed and his bowl of soup went flying into the face of Grandma Josephine, and in one fantastic leap, this old fellow of ninety-six and a half, who     4     (be) in bed these last twenty years, jumped on to the floor and started doing a dance of victory in his pajamas.

10 . Tara took down the first mask. It was a golden dragon’s face with large red eyes. “Of course, this mask is for you, Tahir. It is customary for the eldest of the King to wear a dragon costume to the Golden Festival of Light,” she explained to Tom as she handed the mask to Mahir. Then she took down the second mask. “And this is your mask, Tom,” she said and handed him the mask. “This is the snow leopard. Legends say that the snow leopard rescued Princess Kia from a terrible death.”

“Who was Princess Kia?” asked Tom.

“She was one of our ancestors,” said Tara. “She was a very brave and wise woman. One day, she heard that one of her farmers had lost his yaks. Somebody had stolen them. She decided to go and speak to the administrators of the region about the problem. The administrators for each region live and work in a castle. These castles are usually on a hill or mountain top. While Princess Kia was riding up to the castle, it started to snow. It snowed very heavily and she got lost. Her horse stumbled and fell. It was icy cold and she lost consciousness. While she was unconscious, she had a dream. A powerful animal with snow-white fur came and carried her on its back up the icy mountain paths and left her at the gates of the castle. When she woke up, she was in a bed in the castle. They told her that they had found her outside the castle gates. ‘The snow leopard saved my life’, she said.”

“It’s just a story,” said Mahir, “but many people believe that when a good person is in danger a snow leopard will come to rescue them. The snow leopard is a symbol of strength and courage.”

Tom took the white mask with the silver spots and the emerald green eyes. “Thank you very much, Tara. It’s beautiful,” he said.

Then she took down the third mask. “This is my mask,” she said. It was the face of a beautiful woman. It too had emerald green eyes.

“This is the mask of Princess Kia,” said Tara. “Let’s hope that you don’t have to rescue me tomorrow night,” she laughed. But Tom felt a cold chill when she said the words and a shiver ran down his spine.

“Something bad is going to happen tomorrow night,” he thought. “I can feel it.”

“Look at the time,” said Mahir. “It’s nearly 8. We’d better go down for dinner.”

Tom pushed the uneasy thoughts to the back of his mind and followed Mahir and Tara out of the room. They were laughing about something and soon Tom was laughing too.