1 . A Book-list by Trusted Critics

I Can Explain
Shinsuke Yoshitake

Has your mom ever caught you picking your nose or biting your nails? In this book, bad habits yield complex explanations that justify their very existence.

And really, how hard is it to believe that nose pickers are actually pushing hidden nose buttons that release “cheerful beams” that make everyone happy?

Where Butterflies Fill the Sky
Zahra Marwan

What happens when you have to leave your home where the desert reaches all the way to the sea and 100 butterflies always fill the sky? This picture book about immigration deals with its serious subject matter while keeping heart, humor and family close at hand.

It tells the true story of how the girl and her family moved from one land to another.

Farmhouse
Sophie Blackall

Our lives are our stories. In this one Sophie Blackall manages to spin a single sentence capturing the imagined lives of a houseful of children on a farm. The images and story were inspired by the detritus (废弃物) she discovered in an old farmhouse.

The resulting images are sure to delight children and adults alike, while the story is a reminder of what we leave behind.

My Brother Is Away
Sara Greenwood

It’s never easy to explain that a family member is imprisoned, and it can be especially hard for children.

This simple picture book draws on the author’s own childhood to tell the story of a young girl whose brother is in prison. A gentle and hopeful story for kids about very adult situations and complex feelings.

1. What is Where Butterflies Fill the Sky about?

A．A story of 100 butterflies always filling the sky.

B．A story of immigration, family, and finding home.

C．A story of serious matters of a girl and her mom.

D．A story about very adult situations and complex feelings.

2. Which book will leave the reader with a heavy heart?

A．Where Butterflies Fill the Sky.	B．I Can Explain.
C．Farmhouse.	D．My Brother Is Away.

3. Who do you think the books are written for?

A．Senior students.

B．Adults.

C．Kids.

D．Foreigners.

2 . The following are the comments on The Berry Pickers.

Donna David

Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2024

I enjoyed the story. The characters were interesting and the story of the people working in the blueberry fields in Maine was of great interest to me. But there’s a problem. In the story, they speak about coming to Maine for 2 months. The blueberry season was and is 3 — 5 weeks. I think the author should have been a little more thoughtful in her research to make it more accurate (精确的).

Mom2AC

Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2024

This is such a beautiful and heartbreaking story of two families—one filled with love, pain, and loss, the other with secrets. The story was beautifully written and had me in tears at the end. I love books that have me thinking about the characters once the book is finished.

Diana Jaycox

Reviewed in the United States on December 17, 2023

I read The Berry Pickers as part of a Kindle Reading Challenge. The Berry Pickers was not my normal pick of reading material. That is what I love about the Kindle Reading Challenges; I am forced to try new authors. This is not the kind of novel you can read in one setting. No, The Berry Pickers, requires you to read slowly, enjoying the richness of Amanda Peters’ words, and her great settings.

EH

Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2024

As I began reading, I thought I’d mistakenly bought a book for young adults. It’s not badly written, but it is too simple for its subject matter. It’s also overly long, and would have worked better as a novel.

1. What is Donna David’s complaint about The Berry Pickers?

A．It’s very long.	B．It’s inaccurate.
C．It’s too simple.	D．It’s poorly-organized.

2. Who think highly of The Berry Pickers?

A．Donna David and EH.	B．Diana Jayeox and EH.
C．Mom2AC and Diana Jaycox.	D．Donna David and Diana Jaycox.

3. What’s the purpose of the text?

A．To share comments on a book.	B．To record personal experiences.
C．To complain about bad service.	D．To introduce a reading activity.

3 . ※ Brown Girl Dreaming

By Jacqueline Woodson

As a winner of the National Book Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, and a Newberry Honor Book, in her book, Brown Girl Dreaming, the author uses poetry to tell her true story of growing up as a black woman in the 1960s and 1970s. Woodson’s beautiful language explores big ideas while describing her family, her growing awareness of race and the civil rights movement, and her life in South Carolina and New York City.

※ When You Were Everything

By Ashley Woodfolk

Cleo and Layla have been best friends for years. But in their second year of middle school, everything changes. Layla starts hanging out with her new friends, and the two girls’ friendship slowly ends. Cleo is still trying to make sense of what happened as she tries to make new friends. Told across two timelines, Cleo’s story of sadness surrounding a lost friendship will be relevant for many 8th graders trying to deal with past middle school friend drama and looking forward to high school.

※ The Hound of the Baskervilles

By Arthur Conan Doyle

The famous detective Sherlock Holmes and his friend Watson set out to look into a new case in Dartmoor, England. A man is dead, with many dog paw prints leading to his body. Holmes and Watson arrive in Dartmoor to find several unexplainable events and clues. Together, they start to figure out a puzzle that has defined mystery and detective fiction ever since.

※ The Hobbit

By J. R. R. Tolkien

This story is an opener to the longer and more challenging The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It’s an adventure story set in a fantasy world. With dwarves (小矮人), hobbits, sword fights, wizards and dragons, the book’s plot and humor have stood the test of time.

1. How is Brown Girl Dreaming different from the other books?

A．It focuses on city life.	B．It uses clear language.
C．It has won many awards.	D．It tells humorous stories.

2. What is When You Were Everything mainly about?

A．Friendship and growth.	B．Lost love and gained hope.
C．Learning to be more independent.	D．Dealing with pressure from schoolwork.

3. Which book suits whoever wants to read about adventures?

A．The Hobbit	B．Brown Girl Dreaming
C．When You Were Everything	D．The Hound of the Baskervilles

4 . So, do you want to know how to read classic books? Maybe you are excited to deal with classic literature but you don’t know where to start.     1     Here are some tips for enjoying classic literature and helping you get started.

Slow down the pace. The biggest difference between modern literature and classic literature is the pace. Modern reading can often feel like a short race.     2     If you try to apply short race techniques to a long distance run you will get tired pretty quickly. Well, the same is true with reading classic books.

    3     One of the challenges when you start to read classics book is the language style. Words and phrases that are out of date or no longer relevant can make the writing difficult to understand. As it’s just not the way things are written or what is being talked about, it is common to jump over concepts that we don’t understand or words that we’ve never come across before. But, the key to reading classic books and enjoying them is taking time to understand them. So don’t shy away from looking things up.

Listen to the audio(有声的)book. Sometimes the best way to devote yourself to a classic book is to listen to it. Many classic books were intended to be read aloud. Books used to be very expensive, so people shared them. This meant that a family might gather together to listen to a few chapters every night.     4    

Choose your favourite. Finally, the key to reading classic books and actually enjoying them is to choose one that actually appeals to you. Classic Books can get mixed up into a single genre(流派)“Classic”.     5     Think about what you already love reading and look for books that suit your interest.

A．Look up dates and history.

B．But that’s really not the case.

C．Don’t be afraid to look things up.

D．However, classic literature is more of a marathon.

E．A character list can keep who is related to whom in check.

F．Listening to audio books is a lovely way to continue that tradition.

G．Or perhaps you’ve tried reading classics before and don’t really get the main points.

5 . Flights of imagination take wing with picture books

Room for Everyone (ages 4-8)

Written by Naaz Khan, illustrated by Merce Lopez

Hop on the dala-dala (a kind of minibus taxi) on the way to the blue crystal waters of Zanzibar! Rhythmic language dances across the pages as more and more people and their belongings pile into (挤进) the vehicle on the way to the beach. It seems there can’t possibly be room, but “after some moving around and fun, they make enough room for everyone.” This is a book you will be happy to read again and again because it’s so full of sunlight and energy.

Gladys the Magic Chicken (ages 4-9)

Written by Adam Rubin, illustrated by Adam Rex

It’s a big, sweeping story that’s just right for sharing a belly laugh (捧腹大笑) with the whole family. Set in ancient times, the story centers around a much-celebrated chicken named Gladys. At 48 pages, this is longer than the standard picture book, which helps give it a bigger feeling.

Maybe Maybe Marisol Rainey (ages 4-10)

Written and illustrated by Erin Entrada Kelly

Readers might know Erin Entrada Kelly from her Newbery Medal-winning chapter book, “Hello, Universe”. In this start of a series aimed at younger readers, Kelly again creates rich characters, but this time with short chapters and cute line drawings that work perfectly for early independent chapter-book reading.

A Boy Named Isamu (ages 3-7)

Written and illustrated by James Yang

One of the unexpected charms of this book is that it is told in the second person. The lines between audience and character, observer and artist, and reader and listener soften to allow us to explore isolation (孤独) and creativity along with the protagonist (主人公). This book might help everyone understand how one might be “alone but not lonely”.

1. What can be learned about Room for Everyone?

A．It consists of simple words.	B．It is an award-winning book.
C．It features cute line drawings.	D．It is full of fun and happiness.

2. Who wrote a book that suits independent readers?

A．Merce Lopez.

B．Adam Rex.

C．Erin Entrada Kelly.

D．James Yang.

3. What is special about A Boy Named Isamu?

A．It is told in the second person.	B．It involves short chapters.
C．It has two characters.	D．It is for older readers.

6 . What made the man’s eyes red?

A．Lack of sleep.

B．Too much e-reading.

C．A sad thing.

7 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

Jackie was searching for her library book in her room. Outside her house stood her friend Sasha waiting for her to go to the library. But the book was missing.

Jackie then ran into her sister’s bedroom. “Have you seen my library book? Last week my book was bitten by your cat. The week before that, you dropped my book in the park,” Jackie asked angrily. Her sister shook her head. Despite her efforts, Jackie found no traces of the book there.

“What’s taking you so long, Jackie?” Mom’s voice rang through the house. “I need to find my library book. It has a red cover. It’s due (到期) today. If I have lost the library book, I am not allowed to check out any books for a whole month,” Jackie sighed, walking down the stairs. She nearly ran into her mom, who was carrying a heavy laundry (待洗衣物) basket.

“Good luck with that book. The library closes in twenty minutes.” Mom stopped to grab Jackie’s clothes from the railing and wrinkled her nose. “I’m putting these in the laundry,” said Mom, disappearing down the basement stairs.

Jackie ran around the house, looking under the sofa, in the fridge, and behind the piano. However, the book was nowhere to be found. Where was that library book? The thought of not being able to get into the world of stories and knowledge for a whole month made her feel very sad. Jackie sank onto the living room sofa, her mind racing with thoughts of the result she would soon face.

Just then Mom came into the living room and suddenly said, “Have you searched all the places? You need to think carefully and see if you’ve missed anything?” “I’ve searched everywhere I can think of, but I still haven’t found it,” Jackie almost cried. “I looked for you in your painting room in the backyard last night where you were practising your painting. I seemed to see a red thing. Maybe it was in the painting room,” Mom added.

注意：
1．续写词数应为150左右;
2．请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Without wasting another moment, Jackie rushed outside to the painting room.
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Rushing to the library, Jackie and Sasha found the door still open.
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