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 9-year-old 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 signed 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．Unique. | B．Normal. | C．Precious. | D．Funny. |
| 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 . Reading is not just an important professional skill. It is also a way to enjoy informative, creative, and inspiring works of literature that enrich our life experiences. Like any skill worth mastering, a reading habit requires time to develop.
When you read, read for the main idea of each paragraph, along with its supporting reasons. When you are building up reading skills, it can be helpful to read with a pencil in hand to take notes or underline the key idea of each paragraph.
Look up unfamiliar words
It is quite normal to meet with some unfamiliar words when reading. Merriam Webster online is a wonderful and thorough resource for defining unfamiliar words.
Become familiar with literary devices
Particularly if you are a fan of novels and short stories, becoming familiar with common literary tools like metaphor, simile, parallel structure and personification is an important part being a better reader.
Don’t rush
Reading for learning and enjoyment is never a sprint (冲刺). Instead, take your time, advance your skills and their development at your own pace.
| A．Read for content |
| B．Read to get the author’s attitude |
| C．You will be an excellent reader if you stick. |
| D．Simply underline or make a list of these words. |
| E．Understanding them can enrich the reading experience greatly. |
| F．To enjoy your reading, practicing good reading skills is a must. |
| G．Do not get discouraged if you are a slow reader, especially at first. |
3 . Books are excellent gifts. Here are four of the year’s most talked-about titles.
Ordinary Monsters | By J. M. Miro
Miro has temporarily abandoned literary fiction in favour of a new series of historical fantasy novels. Ordinary Monsters is about a group of children with magical gifts who come together and pool their powers to escape the bad shape-shifting man that’s going after them.
Son of Elsewhere: A Memoir in Pieces | By Elamin Abdelmahmoud
The soundtrack to The O. C., a drama series, and the strange beauty of Highway 401 were important factors in developing selfhood of Abdelmahmoud. This book describes his own experience of moving from Khartoum, Sudan, to Kingston, Canada, in the early 2000s at age 12.
A Magic Steeped in Poison | By Judy I. Lin
Harry Potter has his magic stick. And Ning, the heroine of Lin’s first novel, has tea, which in her world carries magical properties. Lin has created a pleasing Young Adult fantasy rich in Chinese mythology (神话). In this book, Ning enters a competition to find the most gifted tea master, Shennong.
A Ballet of Lepers | By Leonard Cohen
Unlike many other posthumous (死后出版的) works, you can count on Cohen’s to be worth your wait. Before his death, he said that the novel contained in the book, which was never published, was likely better than The Favourite Game, a novel he published during his lifetime. This book also includes a radio play script (剧本) and a handful of short stories.
1. Which book is a mirror of the author’s life story?| A．Ordinary Monsters. | B．Son of Elsewhere: A Memoir in Pieces. |
| C．A Magic Steeped in Poison. | D．A Ballet of Lepers. |
| A．They are about teamwork. |
| B．They are based on an imaginary world. |
| C．They both involve Chinese characters. |
| D．They draw inspiration from other novels. |
| A．It is a collection. | B．It is Cohen’s best novel. |
| C．It is a fantasy novel. | D．It is adapted from a play. |
4 . I was about 13 when an uncle gave me a copy of Jostein Gaarder’s Sophie’s World. It was full of ideas that were new to me, so I spent the summer with my head in and out of that book. It spoke to me and brought me into a world of philosophy (哲学).
That love for philosophy lasted until I got to college. Nothing kills the love for philosophy faster than people who think they understand Foucault, Baudrillard, or Confucius better than you — and then try to explain them.
Eric Weiner’s The Socrates Express: In Search of Life Lessons from Dead Philosophers reawakened my love for philosophy. It is not an explanation, but an invitation to think and experience philosophy.
Weiner starts each chapter with a scene on a train ride between cities and then frames each philosopher’s work in the context (背景) of one thing they can help us do better. The end result is a read in which we learn to wonder like Socrates, see like Thoreau, listen like Schopenhauer, and have no regrets like Nietzsche. This, more than a book about understanding philosophy, is a book about learning to use philosophy to improve a life.
He makes philosophical thought an appealing exercise that improves the quality of our experiences, and he does so with plenty of humor. Weiner enters into conversation with some of the most important philosophers in history, and he becomes part of that crowd in the process by decoding (解读) their messages and adding his own interpretation.
The Socrates Express is a fun, sharp book that draws readers in with its apparent simplicity and gradually pulls them in deeper thoughts on desire, loneliness, and aging. The invitation is clear: Weiner wants you to pick up a coffee or tea and sit down with this book. I encourage you to take his offer. It’s worth your time, even if time is something we don’t have a lot of.
1. Who opened the door to philosophy for the author?| A．Foucault. | B．Eric Weiner. |
| C．Jostein Gaarder. | D．A college teacher. |
| A．To compare Weiner with them. |
| B．To give examples of great works. |
| C．To praise their writing skills. |
| D．To help readers understand Weiner’s book. |
| A．Its views on history are well-presented. |
| B．Its ideas can be applied to daily life. |
| C．It includes comments from readers. |
| D．It leaves an open ending. |
| A．Objective and plain. |
| B．Daring and ambitious. |
| C．Serious and hard to follow. |
| D．Humorous and straightforward. |
1. 读报的经历；
2. 喜爱的栏目；
3. 期望和祝福。
注意：写作词数应为80左右。
21st Century and Me
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6 . How to read more and learn more
Today, more and more Chinese people enjoy sending and receiving messages on the phone. It can help them to get the latest news and communicate with friends. But I think I should read more books besides the textbooks, the more, the better. It can open my eyes and improve my language skills.
◆ Clear your purpose for reading
◆
No matter what you are reading, it is important to enjoy what you read. Your friends may tell you the books they love, but those books might not necessarily be the ones you enjoy.
◆ Give up books that you don’t enjoy
You may have chosen books that you are interested in, and they are right to your purpose. But while you are reading them, there may still be some books that you don’t enjoy reading. Whenever you realize that you aren’t enjoying the book you are reading, give it up.
◆ Set a reading goal
It is interesting that I read the books borrowed from libraries faster than those I bought. The reason is the books I bought don’t have a due date! I don’t need to return those books.
| A．Read only what you are interested in |
| B．Read the books borrowed from others. |
| C．Remember reading shouldn’t be a chore (烦恼事). |
| D．Of course, it also can help me to get good grades. |
| E．We need to get the latest news and communicate with friends. |
| F．Before you start reading, ask yourself why you are reading this book. |
| G．Having a reading goal helps you work out how much reading you need to do in a week or even a day. |
1. 同学们的读书现状;
2. 读书的好处;
3. 发出倡议。
写作要求：
1. 词数100左右;
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear fellow students,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Student Union
8 . Best books for 12 to 14-year-olds
Mortal Engines
Author: Philip Reeve
Publisher: Scholastic
London is on the move again: the city searches the world for resources on wheels, eating smaller towns. But when he is thrown off the city, young hero Tom is soon forced to reexamine life as he knows it.
Set in a futuristic background, this imaginative story is a blend of action and adventure. The book has won the Blue Peter Book Award.
Coram Boy
Author: Jamila Gavin
Publisher: Egmont
Toby’s and Aaron’s lives are linked by the Coram Man, who collects unwanted children from across the country, supposedly to send them to a safe new life. In reality, the man sells the children into slavery. Soon, Toby and Aaron find themselves united on a journey, filled with danger and excitement.
Rich with historical detail, this book provides an important insight into the 1750s society. It was a winner of the Whitbread Children’s Book Award.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time
Author: Mark Haddon
Publisher: Red Fox
Seen through the eyes of Christopher, a mathematical talent and Sherlock Holmes fan, this novel opens with the discovery of a dead dog on a neighbor’s lawn. In his search to discover the identity of the killer, Christopher uncovers some information about his own family and he starts a journey to London to find his mother.
Watership Down
Author: Richard Adams
Publisher: Penguin
Young rabbit Fiver believes that a great disaster is about to strike the place where he lives－but no one will listen to him. At last he manages to ask a few brave rabbits to leave before it’s too late. Hunted by dogs and foxes, their journey is a dangerous one—but the rabbits can still dream of a peaceful and safe new life at Watership Down.
This book won both the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize and the Carnegie Medal.
1. Which author’s book focuses on life in the future according to the text?| A．Philip Reeve’s | B．Jamila Gavin’s. |
| C．Mark Haddon’s | D．Richard Adams’s. |
| A．His losing touch with his mother. | B．The dead body of a dog. |
| C．His neighbor’s request. | D．An overgrown lawn. |
| A．Its main character is a detective lover. | B．Its stories are based on historical facts. |
| C．It is about some rabbits escaping a disaster. | D．It won the Whitbread Children’s Book Award. |
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10 . The world is full of great books, just waiting to be read. How can you pick one you'll really like? Here are some tips：
Depend on your hobby. If you have a favorite hobby, look for books about that activity.
Choose fiction or nonfiction.
Find a family favorite. What was your mother’s favorite book when she was your age? What's about your father's? Ask them and give it a read. Then you can talk about what they like about it and share your thoughts.
Launch a book exchange.
| A．Ask someone for help. |
| B．Learn to be a professional. |
| C．You should read as many books as possible. |
| D．Some books are entirely made up and imagined. |
| E．You can find books about almost anything you like. |
| F．It’s a fun way to get to know your family a little better. |
| G．Why not get some friends together and exchange favorite books? |
