1 . Some say everyday miracles are predestined (注定的) -- All that’s necessary is readiness, the right circumstance for the appointed meeting. And it can happen anywhere.
In 1999, 11-year-old Kevin Stephan was a bat boy for his younger brother’s Little League team in Lancaster, New York. It was an early evening in late July. Kevin was standing on the grass away from the plate, where another youngster was warming up for the next game. Swinging his bat back and forth, and giving it all the power an elementary school kid could give, the boy brought the bat back hard and hit Kevin in the chest. His heart stopped.
When Kevin fell to the ground, the mother of one of the players rushed out of the stands to his aid. Penny Brown hadn’t planned to be there that day, but at the last minute, she changed her shift (轮班) at the hospital, and she was given the night off. Penny bent over the senseless boy, his face already starting to turn blue, and giving CPR, breathing into his mouth and giving chest compressions (按压). And he came to life.
After his recovery, he became a volunteer junior firefighter, learning some of the emergency first-aid techniques that had saved his life. He studied hard in school and was saving money for college by working as a dishwasher in a local restaurant in his spare time.
Kevin, now 17, was working in the kitchen when he heard people screaming, customers in confusion, employees rushing toward a table. He hurried into the main room and saw a woman there, her face turning blue, her hands at her throat. She was choking (哽住).
Quickly Kevin stepped behind her, wrapped his arms around her and clasped his hands. Then, using skills he’d first learned in Scouts, the food that was trapped in the woman’s throat was freed. The color began to return to her face.
“The food was stuck. I couldn’t breathe,” she said. She thought she was dying. “I was very frightened.”
Who was the woman?
Penny Brown.
1. Kevin Stephan fell to the ground and fainted probably because ________.| A．he was too excited when watching the game |
| B．he suffered heart attack all of a sudden |
| C．he stood close to the boy who was swinging his bat |
| D．he swung the bat too hard to keep his balance |
| A．He worked part-time in a local restaurant to save money for college |
| B．He was hit on the face by a boy and almost lost his life |
| C．He was a volunteer junior firefighter, teaching the players first-aid skills |
| D．He saved Penny Brown though he didn’t really know how to deal with food choke |
| A．She was there to give her son directions |
| B．She came to watch her son’s game and cheered him |
| C．She was a little worried about his son’s safety |
| D．She volunteered to give medical services |
| A．working part-time is a good way to save money for college. |
| B．when Penny Brown knew it was Kevin who had saved her, she would probably feel sad. |
| C．if Kevin didn’t learn the first-aid techniques, the miracle wouldn’t have happened. |
| D．Kevin’s parents would not be worried about his safety any longer. |
2 . Dear Doggy Diary
MONDAY
Now we’ve surely got all we require for the puppy’s arrival: a basket, a screaming toy banana and a bag of dog food. For names, we are hesitating between Spike or Lenny—but, as I tell this list to a Black friend, I suddenly realize both names are associated with famous Black men, and panic that this is a little offence.
TUESDAY
Our friend Sam has kindly volunteered to “puppy proof” our home. “You don’t want to give him that screaming toy, that’s encouraging him to eat your sofa,” she says, inspecting our purchases disapprovingly. She hands us a book, by Dr Ian Dunbar. “This guy”, she assures us, “is a Super Babysitter for dogs.”
WEDNESDAY
Spent last night ______57______ Dunbar has plenty of wisdom on “positively communicating” with the puppy, but nothing on how to get a puppy and also two young children.
THURSDAY
D-Day. Now the registration website wants a dog name at short notice. So, we go for “Buzz”. One syllable (音节) and with multi-generational fascination (Granny thinks Aldrin, kids think Lightyear).
FRIDAY
I feel very hesitant about saying so, but last night went well. Buzz is incredibly cute, the kids adore him and he’s very cute and only did one pee (排尿) on the blanket, and did I mention he’s cute?
SATURDAY
“Love” feels like a stretch right now. Our “play” was evidently not “focused” enough to prevent Buzz biting through our sofa. Also, our three-year-old thinks it’s funny to run away, so Buzz wrestles him to the ground and licks all over his face. I suspect this isn’t the best way to prepare Buzz for engaging with the public.
SUNDAY
The whole house smells of dog. I find this nasty, but friends, family, and people we barely know existed are dropping by to meet him. “It’s like having a baby, eh?” says my neighbor, Erik, brightly. “Yes, but it’s a baby you can neglect when it cries!” I respond cheerfully. He frowns (皱眉).
MONDAY
It’s 2 A.M. on the coldest day of the year and I’m on my hands and knees in the bushes. I think you’ve never really experienced a harsh mid-winter until you’re trying to run after a puppy. Then, we return inside, and it’s just me and Buzz. Peace. I should put him back in his cage, but I find I can’t resist a hug. Don’t tell my wife.
1. What does the phrase “puppy proof” our home mean in paragraph 2?| A．Make our home clean enough for the puppy. | B．Inspect our home to make it puppy-friendly. |
| C．Prove that the puppy will satisfy our needs. | D．Decorate our home with books on puppies. |
| A．Picking a dog ’s name from a name list of Blacks. |
| B．Looking over the house for potential safety hazards. |
| C．Studying Dunbar’s book on how to take care of a dog. |
| D．Visiting Dunbar in person in order to adopt his puppy. |
| A．Other choices imply strong prejudice against Black people. |
| B．Its pronunciation resembles the puppy’s cute and short bark. |
| C．The registration website recommends the name to the family. |
| D．The name holds appeal to both the elder and the younger generations. |
| A．Chaos and cuteness. | B．Hatred and love. | C．Mess and cleanliness. | D．Abuse and affection. |
3 . I was grocery shopping recently in my hometown, N.Y., when I heard a young voice rise. “Mom, come here, you’ve gotten see this! There’s this lady here my size!”
The mother was mortified and rushed to a boy she called Mikey, who looked to be about seven; then she turned to me to apologize. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”
I smiled and told her, “It’s okay.” Then I looked at her wide-eyed son and said, “Hi, Mikey, I’m Darryl Kramer. How are you?”
He studied me from head to toe, and asked, “Are you a little mommy?” “Yes, I have a son,” I answered.
“Why are you so little?” he asked.
“It’s the way I was made,” I said.
It takes only one glance to see my uniqueness. I stand three feet, nine inches tall. I am an achondroplasia dwarf (软骨发育不全的侏儒). Like most achondroplasia dwarfs, I have two average-height parents, as well as an average-height brother. When I was born, my mother was told in the hospital that I was a dwarf. Not knowing a lot about dwarfism, my mom’s main concern was my health. Our family doctor put her mind at ease when he told her he felt I would not have any major medical concerns. He was right.
When I was growing up, my parents encouraged me to do all the things the kids around me did. So when my neighbors got two-wheel bikes, I got a two-wheel bike. When they roller-skated, I roller-skated. I didn’t see anything different in my parents’ eyes about me. Why should I look at myself differently? Therefore, I just tried to smile and accept the fact that I was going to be noticed my whole life. I was determined to make my uniqueness an advantage rather than a disadvantage. And when I accepted myself as I was, life wasn’t that difficult after all. Most people around me were friendly and protective.
I’m 47 now, and it’s the children’s questions that make my life special. “Why are you so short? How old are you? Are you a mommy?” When I talk with children, they leave content that their questions have been answered. My hope is that in taking time with them, I will encourage them to accept their peers, whatever size and shape they come in, to know that every human deserves due respect.
1. The underlined word mortified is closest in meaning to________.| A．angry | B．ashamed | C．interested | D．grateful |
| A．That she almost died at birth. |
| B．That her parents loved her more than her ordinary-sized brother. |
| C．That her parents treated her as an ordinary person. |
| D．That all the people around her were protective and kind. |
| A．Because she wants to tell them about the rare disease. |
| B．Because she notices that children are usually kinder than adults. |
| C．Because she also has a child and wants to be a loving mum. |
| D．Because she expects them to respect every human. |
4 . Today, I’ve been recording an audio book. I am excited that I have realized my life-long dream.
I will never forget at primary school I used to wait with breathless anticipation to take my turn reading out a paragraph of great works in front. At my secondary school, when students were encouraged to select and present a reading at “morning talk”, I often added my name to the list.
This was all handy background for my career in broadcasting. But, much as I enjoy hosting shows and interviewing people, I often find myself missing the simple pleasures of reading out loud. I’d thought about putting myself forward as a narrator (朗读者) for audio books. But I’m not an actor. I can’t do regional accents or play female voice. Non-fiction, then, seemed the obvious target, but I felt that such books were best read by their original authors. If it were authors’ own voice, their stories would touch me.
Recently, delivering my son’s nightly bedtime story has reawakened my love for reading out loud—highlights so far have included Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Charlotte’s Web. But I never thought I’d get the opportunity to do it professionally.
Then, last month, I was contacted by James Plunkett, author of End State, a forthcoming book about political ideas. He had no desire to read his book out loud, but as a fan of my program, he thought I might do a reasonable job.
So, I’ve spent this week in a studio, simply reading stuff out loud. And I’m LOVING IT!
Obviously, it’s an entirely unexpected experience. It’s disheartening when the recording needs to be stopped because I’ve just carelessly skipped over a “the”, or had to clear my throat, or catch my breath. I’ve also learned how many words I’ve been mispronouncing my entire life: behavioural is BE-HAYVE-YOU-RAL, not BE-HAYVE-EE-AH-RUL. Though tackling this 339-page book doesn’t turn out to be that easy, I’ve found the whole process awesome, and hope this becomes the first of many.
1. What does the writer want to show by mentioning his experiences at school?| A．The power of dreaming. |
| B．His love for reading aloud. |
| C．The impact of schooling. |
| D．His talent for reading. |
| A．He regretted being a host. |
| B．He disliked non-fiction books. |
| C．He lacked working experience. |
| D．He lacked confidence in narrating. |
| A．He was good at reading bedtime story. |
| B．He applied for it in person. |
| C．He was appointed by the author. |
| D．He had crowds of fans. |
| A．Demanding but enjoyable. |
| B．Risky but fruitful. |
| C．Turing but stress-free. |
| D．Boring but rewarding. |
Meet the Woman Who Gives Rescued Farm Animals a Second Chance at Life
Shortly after doctors diagnosed ten-year-old Jenny Brown with bone cancer, they had to cut off her right leg below the knee to save her life. Facing a year of chemotherapy (化疗) after the surgery, Jenny begged her mother for a kitten. The orange calico Jenny named Boogie rarely left her side, licking tears from her cheeks after hospital visits and curling up in her lap as she adjusted to life with a prosthetic (假肢的) leg.
“My relationship with Boogie showed me that animals think, feel, and suffer as much as we do,” says Jenny, now 44.
In 1994, Jenny graduated from Columbia College Chicago and began a career in television and documentary production. On the side, she volunteered as a videographer for animal rights groups, and in 2002, she shot undercover footage of horrible animal mistreatment at several Texas farm animal stockyards. “After seeing that, I knew I needed to help animals,” says Jenny.
A year later, she gave up her film career and with her fiancé, Doug Abel, a film editor, opened the Woodstock Farm Sanctuary, a nonprofit organization dedicated to rescuing and recovering farm animals, on a 22-acre property they bought in the rolling hills of Woodstock, New York, the next year.
In August 2007, she received a call from Animal Care and Control of NYC about a small goat it had found hopping around Prospect Park. Jenny guessed it had run away from one of the city’s murder-houses. The goat’s legs were severely injured, probably from being bound together with wire, and its mouth was covered in aching.
Jenny and her team brought the goat, which they named Albie, to the preserve, but they soon realized that Albie’s left front leg was injured beyond repair. After a veterinarian(兽医) cut off the leg. Jenny asked Erik Tomkins, the doctor who makes Jenny’s prostheses, to fashion a leg for Albie. To date, seven of the preserve’s animals have received prosthetic limbs or braces. “On most farms, animals with these illnesses would be immediately killed,” says Jenny.
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6 . I forgot to pay my property tax last year. Was it a sign of early onset dementia(痴呆)? Had I spent last September as an anti-government tax resister and the entire month of September had
Since 2020, many of us have lived
My bad decisions and my
That little PalmPilot was a gateway drug. I eventually
Then the other factor
Having become deaf to alerts both
“You’re not the boss of me!” I yelled one afternoon when seven notifications popped up
The good news: Paper doesn’t chirp, buzz, flash or “pop up.” Paper just waits, quietly, non-judgmentally and trust you.
1.| A．failed | B．slipped | C．lost | D．bent |
| A．attentiveness | B．alertness | C．unwillingness | D．deafness |
| A．largely | B．barely | C．closely | D．specially |
| A．guilty | B．ignorant | C．unaware | D．incapable |
| A．gene | B．age | C．job | D．lifestyle |
| A．feet | B．toes | C．trick | D．track |
| A．used to | B．tired of | C．exposed to | D．involved in |
| A．outsourced | B．positioned | C．swayed | D．split |
| A．tangible | B．manageable | C．approachable | D．measurable |
| A．at length | B．at play | C．at odds | D．at intervals |
| A．frantically | B．accidentally | C．literally | D．excessively |
| A．Furthermore | B．Meanwhile | C．Thereby | D．However |
| A．overwhelmed | B．overblown | C．overflown | D．overtaken |
| A．contemporarily | B．instinctively | C．spontaneously | D．simultaneously |
| A．ease | B．work | C．paper | D．optimism |
| A．Visiting his teachers and doing shopping. |
| B．Collecting his pictures. |
| C．Buying his flight ticket. |
| D．Wandering about in the airport building. |
| A．Shirts. | B．Gloves. | C．Toys. | D．A clock. |
| A．He left his suitcase in the airport building. |
| B．He couldn’t enjoy the beauty of the evening. |
| C．He was suspected as a terrorist and taken to an airline office. |
| D．He intended to visit more teachers and buy more presents. |
8 . So many of us are terrible at being terrible. As our children venture off to school, sports, dances and music lessons, we urge them: Just try something, keep practicing, you’re only a beginner. And yet, faced with our own failure, we become less confident, and quit altogether.
Images of perfection fill our social-media feeds, along with advertisements assuring us we wouldn’t be so
What if we’re
“It’s such a
Ms. Rinaldi, whose experience led to a book about what you can learn from failure, recommends asking yourself: “What is it that you’ve always wanted to do or try but were too
Take myself as another example. I started yoga lessons this summer. When I
| A．distressing | B．imperfect | C．impressive | D．incredible |
| A．fearing | B．confirming | C．hoping | D．indicating |
| A．missing out | B．putting up | C．setting in | D．taking off |
| A．burden | B．nonsense | C．puzzle | D．relief |
| A．disappointment | B．nervousness | C．preference | D．satisfaction |
| A．acknowledge | B．offer | C．refuse | D．seek |
| A．angry at | B．delighted in | C．embarrassed with | D．patient with |
| A．awarding | B．forgiving | C．isolating | D．pushing |
| A．afraid | B．annoyed | C．depressed | D．exhausted |
| A．accept | B．conceal | C．deny | D．examine |
| A．excitement | B．modesty | C．potential | D．pride |
| A．apologized to | B．argued with | C．complained to | D．shouted at |
| A．abusive | B．amazing | C．annoying | D．attentive |
| A．careful | B．hesitant | C．involuntary | D．unsteady |
| A．alert | B．fulfilled | C．improved | D．worse |
9 . When I was so small that my head barely touched the windowsill, we lived in the evergreen forests of Vermont. Our home was far, far away from any town or city, but that was the way we liked it.
Some winters, it got so cold that the river would freeze, which was unusual for water like that, water which ran so fast and deep. It felt as though time had stopped near the river, and so it had decided to become solid, settling in to wait for spring. We liked to skate on that river, my grandfather and I, even though the ice was uneven and his brown leather skates was so old.
One night, in the most frigid winter my young mind could recall, long after I should have been asleep, I caught my grandfather sneaking out of the front door, his ancient leather skates in his hands. He looked sheepish when he saw me, like I had caught him doing something silly, but I was so young that I thought no adult could ever do wrong. Especially not my grandfather, because he was the model of wisdom in my eyes.
“Grandpa, where are you going?” I asked.
“Skating on the river.”
“Why would you go out now? We did that yesterday morning.”
He looked a little thoughtful, and then he said: “It’s just that when you go out there, on the coldest, stillest night of the year, and you lie on your back on the thick, bubbled river ice, you can hear them.”
“Hear who?”
“The fish. Trapped there under the ice. You can hear them singing their watery winter song. And if you hold your breath, you can almost hear the stars singing in harmony.”
1. The underlined word “sheepish” is closest in meaning to “____________”.| A．quiet | B．calm | C．frightened | D．embarrassed |
| A．To enjoy the charm of a peaceful night. |
| B．To perfect his skating skills by practice. |
| C．To catch the fish trapped under the ice. |
| D．To breathe the fresh air in the forest. |
| A．It was unusual for a fast-flowing river to freeze in midwinter. |
| B．My grandfather and I enjoyed skating because of the uneven ice. |
| C．I admired my grandfather for his wisdom and outlook on life. |
| D．I was glad to hear the stars singing together with my grandfather. |
| A．describe the joy of living in a mountainous area |
| B．highlight how embracing nature can purify us |
| C．keep record of the carefree childhood memories |
| D．explain why skating is such an appealing sport |
10 . The Enduring Appeal of Peter Rabbit
“I don’t know what to write to you, so I shall tell you a story about four little rabbits, whose names were Flopsy, Mopsy, Cottontail and Peter,” wrote Beatrix Potter, an English writer, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist in 1893, in a letter to a little boy who was suffering from a serious infectious disease.
Like many children-story authors, Potter was not a writer by profession. Her chief enthusiasm was natural history. Childhood family holidays in Perthshire and the Lake District had given her the freedom to experience the natural world first-hand.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit was first published by Frederick Warne in 1902.
| A．Potter surely had a business mind. |
| B．A decade later, with slight adjustments, the lines formed the opening to what became the bestselling. |
| C．It was this experience that gave Peter Rabbit its unique atmosphere of believable wonder. |
| D．Potter was determined that the book should be small enough to fit into a child’s hands and inexpensive. |
| E．She spent holidays in the Lake District, developing a love of landscape, which she closely observed and painted. |
| F．Though her later stories would contain more strikingly detailed illustrations, The Tale of Peter Rabbit has charming pictures of its naughty hero. |
