1 . Reading award-winning literature may boost your ability to read other people, a new study suggests. Researchers at the New School for Social Research found that when they had volunteers read works of acclaimed (受到称赞的) “literary fiction”, it seemed to temporarily improve their ability to _________ other people’s emotions. The same was not _________ of nonfiction or “popular” fiction, the mystery, romance and science fiction books that often dominate bestseller lists.

Researchers _________ a series of five experiments which participants read either literary fiction, popular fiction, nonfiction or nothing at all before taking some standard tests. One of the tests is known as “Reading the Mind in the Eyes”. People have to look at photos of actors’ eyes, and then guess what emotion is being expressed in each. The test is considered a(n) _________ of empathy. Overall, study participants scored better after reading literary fiction, versus the other three _________.

It was a(n) _________ improvement, according to the principal researcher David Comer Kidd, “It’s not like taking people from a ‘C’ to an ‘A’ ,” he said. But, Kidd added, the effect was seen after only about 10 minutes’ reading, and it was a statistically strong finding, meaning it’s unlikely to have been due to _________.

What’s so _________ about literary fiction? It’s usually more focused on character than on plot. There is usually no single “dominant narrator” who takes readers through the story. It _________ that the readers should think about the characters and fill in the gaps. The author doesn’t tell you what to think. Readers have to make__________ about characters. And that’s often what people are doing in the real-life conversations.

“This is great study!” said Raymond Mar, an associate professor of psychology at York University, who was not involved in the new study. __________, he added that the overall research in this area is “still in its infancy” and one key question is whether literary fiction really __________ other types of fiction. So, it’s too early to tell people to __________ their romance novel for Nobel literature, at least if the goal is boosting empathy.

But it is __________ that the findings suggest literature is important beyond entertainment or improving vocabulary. “There’s a common belief that reading literature is frivolous (可笑的), or not practical,” Mar said. “But there’s a growing body of evidence that it’s important in __________ that we need in our lives.”

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia—At 19, Yohannes Gebregeorgis borrowed a novel entitled Love Kitten that changed his life forever. Born in rural Ethiopia, his father was an illiterate cattle merchant who insisted that his son     1     (have) an education. So Gebregeorgis had seen a few books in school. But     2     (have) a book of his own sparked a lifelong commitment.

Today, Gebregeorgis is establishing libraries and literacy programs to connect Ethiopian children with books. “Most Ethiopian children only have access to textbooks in the classroom,” says Gebregeorgis. “Books     3     children read outside of school are the spices of education.”

Until he became a children’s librarian, he didn’t realize     4     the children of his native home were missing. Arriving in the United States in 1981, Gebregeorgis ultimately put himself through college,     5     (obtain) a graduate degree in library science. He took a position at the San Francisco

Children’s Library in 1985. There, he met The Little Engine That Could, Captain Ahab, and Peter Pan. He realized the impact children’s books could make     6     a child’s sense of wonder and vision. “Children could imagine everything from books—connections to other cultures, to other people, to other children, and to the universe at large. Reading gives them hope. It gives them pleasure. It gives them everything that they cannot otherwise get in regular textbooks.”

But Gebregeorgis found that there were no children’s books in Amharic, the primary language of Ethiopia, and none representing the places and characters of Ethiopian lore.     7     the library granted $1,200 for the purchase of Ethiopian books, Gebregeorgis was unable to find any, so he wrote one. Silly Mamma was the first bilingual Amharic-English children’s book, and its publication led Gebregeorgis     8     (establish) the nonprofit organization Ethiopia Reads in 1988. Using proceeds from book sales, the nonprofit organization     9     (finance) his efforts to bring children’s libraries to Ethiopia.

Gebregeorgis reads storybooks to children who     10     (deny) access to television or computers and believes that literacy and education will emancipate his impoverished land. “With literate children there is no limit as to how much we can do.”

9 . 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.