1 . J. K. Rowling frequently shows there is magic every day. Her Harry Potter series has helped people through times of stress and depression and she is always there to deliver wise words of encouragement.
She is one celebrity who is very active on Twitter. So when a single dad named Matt Burke sent her a message thanking her for the series, she noticed. Her series had helped strengthen his relationship with his 9yearold daughter Bailey.
He included a link to his article titled Being a Broke Parent. He explained how he hadn’t found a level of financial stability that allowed him to pay bills on time and take his daughter on more activities and events. The family also doesn’t have the Internet or TV, which means there’s no “digital babysitter” and he has to rely on his own creative ways to bond with his daughter. Since he received the series, the main thing that has occupied them these days is reading books together.
Burke admits that he thought he was “too cool” for the books when they first came out and he was in his twenties, but he’s loving reading them now. “We switch off chapter by chapter reading them out loud，“Burke explains.” This not only allows her to get more used to reading aloud in front of someone, but it gets me directly involved in something she loves, and it gives me the chance to be very dramatic when I read my chapters and bring myself into the characters in the book, which has proven to be a ton of fun.”
After hearing Burke’s story, Rowling said how honored she was when Harry Potter was a part of his family’s life and offered Burke more books. Besides, people are also offering to send Burke more books as gifts. For Burke, this experience, far more than gifts, will be what he treasures.
1. Why did Burke thank J. K. Rowling according to the text?| A．She guided him how to write a good story. |
| B．She encouraged him when he was in trouble. |
| C．Her books helped him through times of confusion. |
| D．Her books helped him improve his bond with his daughter. |
| A．He has found it interesting to read the series. | B．He was too old to understand the series better. |
| C．He has chosen a better way of reading the series. | D．He hopes to play a role in the drama in the future. |
| A．Useless. | B．Normal. | C．Valuable. | D．Boring. |
| A．J. K. Rowling chooses to help improve kids’ health. |
| B．J. K. Rowling gives a magical gift to a single father. |
| C．J. K. Rowling has a deep influence on others’ growth. |
| D．Burke comes to know J. K. Rowling through her series. |
2 . After I made it to the city center, I started to feel it might be easy for a foreigner to deal with the great size of Beijing. With growing confidence, I decided to take the subway to the hotel, not realizing that the network didn’t go that far. Impressed with the cleanliness of the station, I bought a ticket and boarded the first subway that came along.
After a few minutes I asked in English a young man seated next to me where I should get off closest to the Friendship Hotel. Wearing a smart business suit and tie, he would surely speak English, wouldn’t he? Unfortunately, he couldn’t understand me but seemed very friendly. I showed him the room card with all the information of the Friendship Hotel in Chinese characters. He looked at it, and then his eyes moved quickly to the carriage (车厢) subway map. Next, he raised three fingers of his right hand.
In Australia, raising fingers at someone is not usually nice, but this man wasn’t smiling. At the next station he showed me two fingers. Now in Australia, that’s really rude, but I got the message. When we stopped at the third station, he didn’t just point to the door, but got up, took me out of the train, and led me to the top of the stairs, and out onto the street. Then he stopped a taxi and told the driver where to take me.
All this came from a man who couldn’t speak my language, and I couldn’t speak his. I was now speechless, especially when he refused my offer of money. I felt a little embarrassed having even thought he would accept a tip.
This experience made it clear I had to learn some Chinese quickly or my adventures might start turning into misadventures.
1. Why does the author decided to take the subway?| A．Because he believed in his ability to deal with the trip |
| B．Because the network covered most of the stops |
| C．Because he lived near the city center |
| D．Because he had a good impression of its cleanliness |
| A．still remained puzzled | B．understood the author well |
| C．answered the author directly | D．pointed at the subway map |
| A．helpful. | B．impolite. | C．warm-hearted. | D．responsible. |
| A．To prove the importance of being careful |
| B．To introduce a young man who didn’t know English |
| C．To complain some cultural misunderstanding |
| D．To describe one of his adventurous experiences |
3 . An expensive car speeding down the main street of a small town was soon caught up with by a young motorcycle policeman. As he started to make out the ticket, the woman behind the wheel said proudly, “Before you go any further, young man, I think you should know that the mayor of this city is a good friend of mine.” The officer did not say a word, but kept writing. “I am also a friend of chief of police Barens,” continued the woman, getting more angry each moment. Still he kept on writing. “Young man,” she persisted, “I know Judge Lawson and State Senator (参议员) Patton.” Handing the ticket to the woman, the officer asked pleasantly , “Tell me, do you know Bill Bronson.”
“Why, no,” she answered.
“Well, that is the man you should have known,” he said, heading back to his motorcycle, “I am Bill Bronson.”
1. The policeman stopped the car because ________.| A．it was an expensive car |
| B．the driver was a proud lady |
| C．the driver was driving beyond the speed limit |
| D．the driver was going to make trouble for the police |
| A．the policeman didn’t know her friends |
| B．the policeman didn’t accept her kindness |
| C．the policeman was going to punish her |
| D．she didn’t know the policeman’s name |
| A．an honourable fellow | B．a stupid fellow | C．an impolite man | D．a shy man |
| A．had no sense of humor (幽默) | B．had sense of humor |
| C．had no sense of duty | D．was senseless |
4 . I was hired for my first airline job in August 2009. I had $45, 000 of credit card debt. Most of it was from my flight training.
Ten years ago, I was watching TV in my bedroom one day before my flight training began and I saw the second airplane hit the World Trade Center. Then I got the call saying I no longer had a job. My career was destroyed. I had no place to go and ended up moving into my car. I read newspapers to look for a job and I was offered one, which offered me $75, 000 a year, but I decided to make a change. I wanted to receive fight training and become a pilot. It was my dream. So I refused the job and chose to work part time. It sounded unbelievable to do such a thing. It was even more so because I was over the age of thirty, but I was determined to make my dream come true. I left the state of Virginia and ended up in Las Vegas.
Though I made about $25, 000 a year at that time, I was severely in debt because the fees for training were high. I was living in my tuck and sleeping in parking garages. I didn’t plan for my life to take this direction, but I insisted on my training. Then at last my world changed and my dream came true. I finally became a pilot.
The passengers that I flew had more money in their pocket than I had in the bank. I hated myself and was worried about my situation, but I never gave up. I kept paying back the debt and I kept saving in the bank. And finally, I paid off my credit card debt.
Today, I am a skilled airline pilot based in Milwaukee. I wrote in my spare time. My autobiography (自传) has been published, which sells well. That is my first book, but it won’t be my last one.
1. Why did the writer refuse the job?| A．Because he didn’t like it. |
| B．Because the pay was low. |
| C．Because he wanted to follow his dream. |
| D．Because he was frightened to work in a building. |
| A．wanted to give up | B．lived a very hard life |
| C．didn’t make any money | D．paid off his credit card debt |
| A．regrets his decision | B．is a professional writer |
| C．is a very good airline pilot | D．makes about $75, 000 a year |
| A．tell us how to become successful |
| B．encourage us to follow our dream |
| C．tell us how to become an airplane pilot |
| D．tell us about the life of an airplane pilot |
5 . Bertie knew there was something in the wind. His mother had been sad in recent days, not sick, just strangely sad. The lion had just lain down beside him, his head warm on Bertie’s feet, when Father cleared his throat and began, “You’ll soon be eight, Bertie. A boy needs a proper education. We’ve found the right place for you, a school near Salisbury in England.”
His heart filled with a terrible fear, all Bertie could think of was his white lion. “But the lion.” he cried, “What about the lion?”
“I’m afraid there’s something else I have to tell you,” his father said. Looking across at Bertie’s mother, he took a deep breath. Then he told Bertie he had met a circus owner from France, who was over in Africa looking for lions to buy. He would come to their farm in a few days.
“No! You can’t send him to a circus!” said Bertie. “People will come to see him. He’ll be shut up behind bars. I promised him he never would be. And they will laugh at him. He’d rather die. Any animal would!” But as he looked across the table at them, he knew their minds were quite made up.
Bertie felt completely betrayed. He waited until he heard his father’s deep breathing next door. With his white lion at his heels, he crept (蹑手蹑脚地移动) downstairs, took down his father’s rifle (步枪) and stepped out into the night. He ran and ran till his legs could run no more. As the sun came up over the grassland, he climbed to the top of a hill and sat down, his arms round the lion’s neck. The time had come.
“Be wild now”, he whispered. “You’ve got to be wild. Don’t ever come home. All my life I’ll think of you. I promise I will.” He buried his head in the lion’s neck. Then, Bertie climbed down the hill and walked away.
When he looked back, the lion was still sitting there watching him; but then he stood up, yawned, stretched, and sprang down after him. Bertie shouted at him, but he kept coming. He threw sticks. He threw stones. Nothing worked.
There was only one thing left to do. With tears filling his eyes and his mouth, he lifted the rifle to his shoulder and fired over the lion’s head.
1. Bertie’s mother was sad probably because she ________.| A．had been seriously ill recently |
| B．knew selling the lion would upset Bertie |
| C．knew Bertie would hate to go to England |
| D．had decided to send Bertie to school |
| A．other animals | B．circus owners |
| C．Bertie’s parents | D．some audience |
| A．protect himself from the lion | B．kill the lion out of fear |
| C．threaten the lion back to the wild | D．show his anger towards his father |
| A．people and animals can be faithful to each other |
| B．parents are sometimes cruel to their children |
| C．animal-hunting is popular in Africa |
| D．animals usually lead a miserable life in circuses |
6 . Last week the manager of an old shop received a letter. As he was very busy, the letter lay on his desk till teatime. Then he opened it and $100 fell out onto his desk. Together with it was a short letter. It reads:
Dear Sir,
In 1935 I got engaged (订婚), but unluckily I lost my job. At that time a lot of people were out of work. Six months later I got a job again, but of course I was very short of money. I came to your shop to buy a wedding ring (结婚戒指). The girl took out some rings for me to look at, but she was called away for a moment, and I put one of the rings in my pocket. When she came back, I said I did not know the size of my girlfriend’s finger. So I left the shop without paying.
My wife died a short while ago and I had felt ashamed (羞愧的) for not paying for the ring all these years. At that time the ring cost$20, so I think it may cost $100 now, and I am sending you the money.
Yours truly,
A customer
“well, well, well,” said the manager. “Life is full of surprises.”
1. The writer of the letter sent $100 ______.| A．to buy a ring for his wife | B．to thank the girl for her kindness |
| C．to pay for his wife’s ring | D．to give an order for a ring |
| A．The girl gave it to him. | B．He bought it from the shop. |
| C．He borrowed it from the shop. | D．He took it from the shop without paying. |
| A．afraid of seeing the money | B．too excited to say a word |
| C．surprised to get the money unexpectedly (出乎意料) | D．sorry for what the young man had done |
7 . When Boris left school, he could not find a job. He tried hard and he wrote letters to many companies until he could not afford to buy any more stamps. Boris began to lose his confidence, then depressed. Still he went on trying and still he failed. He began to think that he had no future at all.
“Why don’t you start your own business?” one of his uncles told him. “The world is a money-locker. You’d better find a way of opening it. ”
“But what can I do?”
“Get out and have a look round. ” advised his uncle.
“See what people want; then give it to them, and they will pay for it. ”
Boris began to cycle around the town and found a suitable piece of waste ground in the end. Then he set up his business as a cycle repairer. He worked hard, made friends with his customers and gradually managed to win his good fame. A few months later, he found that he had more work than he could deal with by himself. He found a number of empty shops but they were all no good: in the wrong position, too expensive or with some other problems. But at long last, he managed to find an empty shop in a new place where there were plenty of customers but no competition.
Boris and his assistant taught themselves how to repair motorcycles. Slowly but surely the profits increased and the business developed. At last, Boris had managed to open the money-locker and found bank notes and gold coins inside.
1. Which of the following best describes Boris’s job hunting experience?| A．Boring. | B．Surprising. | C．Encouraging. | D．Disappointing. |
| A．repairing cycles |
| B．buying empty shops |
| C．cycling around the town |
| D．developing a waste ground |
| A．it was not so expensive |
| B．he had a lot of old customers there |
| C．there were good opportunities there |
| D．he could make good use of his skills there |
8 . “BANG!” the door was shut loudly. It was just standing there, with my father standing on one side, and I on the other side.
We were both in great anger. “Never set foot in this house again!” my father said angrily. With tears in my eyes, I rushed out of the flat and ran along the street.
I didn’t know whether it was because I had grown up or because my dad was getting old. He always put his opinions on me. We were just like two people in two different worlds. It felt like there was an iron door between us that could never be opened.
My heart was frozen on this hot summer night. As I walked on, there were fewer and fewer people on the streets. When I finally reached my house, I saw that the light was still on.
“Perhaps my dad is throwing away some of his old stamps,” I thought. “Perhaps he thinks they are useless.” I never had the courage to tell him that I liked collecting stamps.
All the lights were off except my father’s.
Dad was always like this. Maybe he didn’t know how to express himself. After shouting at me, he never showed any moments of regret. This was how he always was. He had been a leader for so long that telling everyone else what to do had become his second nature.
The light was still on. With the key in hand, I opened the door nervously. When I opened the door, tears ran down my face. I suddenly realized that the iron door that I had imagined between us did not exist.Love always exists.
1. Why did the writer run out and walk lonely on the street?| A．He wanted to make his father feel worried. |
| B．He wanted to think about his career carefully |
| C．Something unpleasant happened in his family. |
| D．Something interesting happened on the street. |
| A．Cold. | B．Sad. | C．Frightened. | D．Relaxed. |
| A．The stamps. | B．The opinions. | C．The streets. | D．The lights. |
| A．The son had already grown up. | B．They never agreed with each other. |
| C．The father was getting older and older. | D．The father had got used to doing that. |
| A．Love — it’s second to none. | B．Trust — it creates a better life. |
| C．The importance of communication. | D．The relationship among family members. |
9 . I was never very neat, while my roommate Kate was extremely organized. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled (给贴标签) everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Kate got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. So we both got tired of each other.
War broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming, “Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!” Deafened,I saw my shoes flying at me.I jumped to my feet and started yelling (叫喊). She yelled back louder.
The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled (爬行) under her covers (被子), sobbing (哭啼). Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart. Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn’t notice Kate had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression was such disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, “Thanks.”
Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn’t always agree, but we learned the meaning of living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.
1. What made Kate so angry one evening?| A．She couldn’t find her books. |
| B．She heard the author shouting loud. |
| C．She got the news that her grandma was ill |
| D．She saw the author’s shoes beneath her bed. |
| A．she was scared by Kate’s anger | B．she hated herself for being so messy |
| C．she was asked by Kate to do so | D．she wanted to show her care |
| A．By showing differences. | B．By analyzing causes. |
| C．By describing a process. | D．By following time order. |
| A．My Friend Kate | B．Hard Work Pays Off |
| C．Learning to be Roommates | D．How to be Organized |
10 . One day Howard had to go to New York for a meeting. He flew to New York and called a taxi.
“Congratulations!” he said. “You’re my first passenger and this is my first day as a taxi driver, but you don’t have to worry. In my old job I had lots of driving experience, and I know the city very well.”
Howard looked at his watch and noticed that he was early for his meeting. He decided to ask the driver to take him to a bookstore. He leaned forward and tapped him on his shoulder.
Howard was afraid. He shouted at the taxi driver. “Be careful!”
The driver screamed again, and the taxi went suddenly to the other side of the road and almost hit a truck. The truck driver shook his fist (拳头) angrily.
The driver looked at Howard. Then slowly he began to laugh. He laughed and laughed.
“What was your old job?” asked Howard. “Didn’t I tell you?” said the driver. “I used to drive a car that carried coffins (棺材) to funerals (葬礼)!”
| A．“That’s good,” said Howard. “I’m sure you’ll be a good driver.” |
| B．“I’m good at avoiding accidents,” the driver said confidently. |
| C．The driver screamed and made the taxi go suddenly across the road. |
| D．He told the driver the address of the hotel and sat in the back seat. |
| E．“It’s not funny,” said Howard. “You could have killed somebody!” |
| F．Then the taxi went into the sidewalk, just missing two more pedestrians (行人). |
| G．On the way to the hotel, Howard wanted to stop at a bookstore, so he tapped the driver on the shoulder. |
