1 . To get the most out of literary works, one must approach them with intention and skill. Here are five key strategies to enhance your reading experience.

Engage with the text. Engagement is crucial when reading literature.     1    . Ask questions as you read: Why did the character do that? What does this scene symbolize? What might the author be trying to say? This active engagement helps you to think critically and to immerse (沉浸在) yourself in the literary world.

Understand the historical and cultural context.     2    . It reflects the culture in which it was written. By researching the historical period, the author’s life, and the social norms (规范) of the time, you can gain a deeper understanding of the text.

    3    . Literature is an art form that uses language in creative and often complex ways. Pay attention to the author’s use of literary devices such as imagery, symbolism, metaphor, and irony. Knowing these techniques can reveal hidden layers of meaning and give you a greater appreciation of the author’s craft.

Reflect on themes and personal relevance. Great literature often deals with themes that are universal and timeless. Reflect on the themes you encounter in the text and consider how they relate to your own experiences and beliefs.     4    . Besides, it can offer insights into both the literature and your own life.

Discuss and share insights. Literature is meant to be shared and discussed. Conversations with others can enhance your understanding and enjoyment of a text. Join a book club, participate in online forums, or simply discuss the book with friends or classmates. These discussions can provide you with new perspectives (观点).     5    

A．Think of words in the book

B．Analyze literary techniques

C．Every piece of literature is a product of its time

D．They can lessen your appreciation of the literature

E．Interacting with others will lead you about the book

F．This personal connection can make reading more meaningful

G．This means actively interacting with the text, not just reading the words

3 . Some people never read any books again and feel that since they already know the outcome, there is nothing to be gained by rereading. I have to dissent.

I am reminded of a professor in college, who always had us read our assignments twice. “The first time, read fast and for fun,” he said. “The second time, look for delicate distinctions and small differences in meaning.” His suggestion works great for me.

When I have a new book, I read fast, eager to discover the resolution. Then if I like the book, I will read it again. Not right away, but a few months later, possibly on a rainy Sunday afternoon, I will grab the book and settle down to discover the small details. I will read more slowly the second time, appreciating the descriptions and looking forward to my favorite sections, enjoying the anticipation. Knowing those favorite passages are coming does not spoil anything. I’m looking forward to revisiting those treasured places in the book. Knowing they are coming heightens my enjoyment.

Rereading a book gives me a chance to appreciate the small things an author integrates into her story. A turn of a character’s head, a thought in the night, a sigh, these are the things that give insights into a book and the characters. I love dissecting (剖析) a story the second time around, looking for clues that give the tale a deep meaning. Reading is like revisiting a friend, familiar, yet always with something more inside.

What have I been reading lately? The Merlin Trilogy by Mary Stewart. These books rank among my all-time favorite rereads. Set in Britain in roughly the second half of the 5th century CE, they were Mary Stewart’s take on the familiar King Arthur stories. If you are unfamiliar with them, I highly recommend all three books, especially if you love fantasy and historical fiction.

1. What does the underlined word “descent” in paragraph 1 mean?

A．Understand.

B．Disagree.

C．Complain.

D．Discontinue.

2. According to the author’s professor, what should one do during the second reading?

A．Look for assignment clues.	B．Pay attention to the finer details.
C．Stick to the most interesting sections.	D．Skip some parts to get to the end fast.

3. What does the author enjoy about rereading a book?

A．Visiting the places mentioned in the book.	B．Discovering the resolution of the story quickly.
C．Finding out the lessons learned by the characters.	D．Appreciating the writer’s storytelling techniques.

4. What is The Merlin Trilogy?

A．The author’s new favorites.	B．A series of science-fiction novels.
C．Books based on ancient British stories.	D．Mary Stewart’s successful adaptations.

4 . Newspapers are losing the battle against smartphones as the preferred place to learn the news, but one woman has found a way to bridge the divide and bring the print to the people.

Kelsey Russell makes TikToks in which she goes through a single article and explains the context along the way. “I got a subscription to the Sunday New York Times physical copy,” she said in one video. At first, she didn’t like reading from a small cellphone screen, and it was her doctor who brought her to print newspapers after suggesting she address her anxiety by going back to activities she enjoyed as a kid. “When I was little, I would read the newspaper with my parents,” she said. “So I said, ‘Let me just go back to what made me happy as a child.’”

“When I read the news on print, I actually had time to process what was going on.” Russell approaches her videos as a learning experience. She tries to read at least one newspaper a day. However, a part of Russell feared the bad news, and she said what she read often felt like depressing and disheartening. That experience isn’t unique; a recent report found many people actively choosing to avoid news because they consider news boring and despairing.

Despite the struggles, Russell’s unique approach has appealed to a wide audience, lifting her fame and influencing. She has almost 90,000 followers on TikTok and more than 5.3 million likes on her videos.

Still, Russell said she wasn’t seeking to revive (复兴) the print newspaper industry(a survey found that only 5% of adults preferred print publications) and she instead encouraged people to get their news from wherever they can. Her priority is simply that the news sources are credible. “Media literacy (素养) is bigger than just reading on print,” she said. “It’s also a great way for humans to think critically about the whole entire world.”

1. Why did Russell start reading newspaper in TikToks?

A．To manage her stress.	B．To recall her childhood.
C．To digest current events.	D．To promote physical reading.

2. What challenge does Russell face?

A．Managing audience engagement.

B．Addressing negative view of Tiktok.

C．Overcoming personal anxieties about news.

D．Approaching audience’s learning difficulties.

3. What is Russell’s main concern according to the last paragraph?

A．Attracting media’s attention.

B．Encouraging creative thinking.

C．Reviving the print newspaper industry.

D．Ensuring the reliability of news sources.

4. What is a suitable title for the passage?

A．Print News Meets TikTok	B．News Revolution in TikTok
C．The Rise of Media Engagement	D．Improving Digital Media Literacy

5 . Speed reading is a skill that allows people to process information quickly with skimming techniques.     1     Here’re some efficient speed reading techniques.

Talk to yourself less and avoid sounding out each word.     2     This may help readers remember concepts but can also be a major barrier to speed. Keep in mind that you don’t need to read every single word to understand the sentence’s overall meaning.

Cover words you’ve already read with a card. When you’re reading, your eyes can move back to earlier words. These are typically short habitual movements that don’t improve understanding or speed. Use a card to cover words right after you’ve read them.     3    

Move your eyes less as you read. While reading, your eyes: move, stopping on some words and skipping others. However, you can only comprehend what you’re reading when your eyes stop moving. Learning to move your eyes less can help you read faster. So try staring at one line at a time without gliding your eyes over the words.

    4     Track your progress by timing yourself daily, or each time you do a speed reading exercise. Not only does trying to beat your best speed motivate you, but it can also give you a goal to work towards.

Set obtainable goals to improve your speed reading. Aim to work on n yours pee reading daily by completing speed reading exercises. 200 to 250 words per minute is the expected reading speed for someone 12 or older.     5     At 450 words per minute, you’re reading as fast as a college student skimming for the main points. It typically takes 2 to 4weeks to double your reading speed, so be patient with yourself and keep trying.

A．Point to the words you’re reading on the page.

B．So, how do you learn and master this amazing skill?

C．Time your reading speed so you can track your progress.

D．Some readers sound out every word they read in their heads.

E．This way, you can train yourself not to look back at previous sentences.

F．300 words per minute is the reading speed of the average college student.

G．Reading can seem like such a chore, especially because it can take so long.

6 . Four Brilliant Art and Craft Books

If you are into art and craft, there are four brilliant books for you to choose from. Practise your artistic skills, whether you want to draw comics or sew a cushion.

Make Art With Nature by Pippa Pixley

This book is packed with inspiring and exciting ideas for using nature in your artwork.

Discover how earth can be used to make paints and how flowers can create ink. You can also find out ways to add natural materials into your artistic creations using print-making. This Book Will Make You an Artist by Ruth Millington.

Take inspiration from artistic masters like Vincent van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and Yayoi Kusama with this fun book, which introduces you to 25 different artistic techniques inspired by the work of world-famous artists. Full of information and ideas, it’s a great way to learn more about a wide range of different artists and their styles.

How to Draw a Graphic Novel by Balthazar Pagani

If you love comic books, then why not try creating one of your own? This guide to creating a vivid novel combines technical advice with creative inspiration. Plus you’ll find interview s with famous comic creators.

A Beginner’s Guide to Needlecraft by Jane Bull

Try your hand at simple sewing projects, such as felt flowers or a patchwork cushion. Step-by-step instructions and photographs make it easy to learn a whole range of different techniques, including crochet and embroidery (刺绣).

1. What can you find in Pippa Pixley’s book?

A．25 different artistic techniques.

B．Interviews with famous comic creators.

C．Step-by-step instructions and photographs.

D．Ways to add natural materials into artistic creations.

2. Which book helps you create comics?

A．Make Art With Nature.	B．How to Draw a Graphic Novel.
C．This Book Will Make You an Artist.	D．A Beginner’s Guide to Needlecraft.

3. What skill can you get from the last book?

A．How to make paints.	B．How to draw comics.
C．How to sew a cushion.	D．How to become an artist.

7 . As a mother who had three kids in public schools, it always bothered me that the elementary school had a voluntary “reading club” in which students received prizes based on how much reading for pleasure they did each week. The message seems all wrong: We have to bribe (贿赂) you to read for fun.

A survey by the National Assessment for Educational Progress found that the numbers of 9- and 13-year-olds who say they read for enjoyment almost every day dropped from slightly more than half in 1984, to 42% during the 2019-20 school year. The trend among middle schoolers is worse. The percentage who frequently read for fun dropped by more than half, to 17%, while the percentage who seldom or never do more than tripled (增至三倍).

Meanwhile, a British study found that reading for pleasure had much wider benefits, resulting in better vocabulary, spelling and mathematical abilities. According to the nonprofit reading-advocacy group Kids Read Now, readers also learn better empathy (同理心), decision-making and social skills.

One contributor to this disappointing trend seems obvious: Social media and other digital activities are heavy draws and can consume hours of time. But some librarians and students point to other reasons as well: As students advance in school, required reading of textbooks and classroom-assigned literature increases. They may be reading more, but often enjoying it less.

Reading for pleasure isn’t the same as assigned reading because kids need to be able to relax with the reading material of their choice. As a child, my son used to finish his reading for school and then sigh (叹息) with pleasure, saying, “Now I can read.”

Parents play a key role in changing this situation, but many may not realize how important it is to expose their kids to books, magazines and the like. Giving older students more choices in what they read for class would help encourage pleasure reading too. The class could make group choices or students could pick from a menu of options instead of being assigned a single book. When there are just a few choices and we spoon-feed them to kids, we just deprive them of the experience of realizing there’s a bigger world of books out there for them to explore.

1. What made the author annoyed according to paragraph 1?

A．The messages sent by the reading club each week.

B．The lack of reading clubs in the elementary school.

C．The unrealistic reading goals set by the elementary school.

D．The way to encourage elementary school students to read for fun.

2. How does the author present the benefits of reading for pleasure to students?

A．By listing some persuasive figures.	B．By providing some research results.
C．By referring to some experts’ views.	D．By sharing her own parenting experience.

3. What does the author want to show by telling her son’s story?

A．It takes time to finish reading for school.

B．Parents should read together with their kids.

C．The reading for school is hardly fun for children.

D．Children have difficulty choosing reading materials.

4. What does the underlined part “deprive them of” in the last paragraph probably mean?

A．Keep them from.	B．Prepare them for.
C．Lead them to.	D．Fill them with.

9 . Family plays an important part in much fiction, of course, but sometimes the short story form has offered us an insight into family life that the longer novel does not. Here are some for you to taste.

Prelude, by Katherine Mansfield

Prelude is one of Katherine Mansfield's longest and finest short stories. Because Prelude is a modernist short story, the emphasis is on characters rather than plots. Mansfield is using the Burnells’ house-move, and the period when they are busy settling into their new home, as a situation to observe family, women and class.

He, by Katherine Anne Porter

Katherine Anne Porter (1890-1980) wrote just one novel and fewer than thirty short stories, yet she is regarded as an important twentieth-century American writer, with He among her most celebrated and critically praised works. An important theme of Porter’s work is the search for meaning in a modern and increasingly materialist world.

Signs and Symbols, by Vladimir Nabokov

It is a short story by the Russian-American author Vladimir Nabokov (1899-1977), originally published in the New Yorker in 1948. The story centers on an elderly married Russian couple who move to the United States; their son is suffering from paranoid delusions (妄想症) and has been limited to a care center. Signs and Symbols focuses on the couple’s attempt to visit their son and its result.

Down at the Dinghy, by J. D. Salinger

This short story was originally published in 1949. It involves an adult speaking to a child. It is about a young boy who runs from home and goes down to the nearby lake, where he gets into a boat and refuses to speak to his mother. The story ends with the mother bonding with her son.

1. What is special about Prelude?

A．It’s about scientific observation.	B．It’s the longest of the four.
C．It involves moving to a new place.	D．It focuses more on figures than plots.

2. What do we know about Katherine Anne Porter and Vladimir Nabokov?

A．They are contemporary writers.	B．Their works center on critical thinking.
C．They both seek for meaning in modern life.	D．Their works were published in the New Yorker.

3. Who are the target readers of the text?

A．Science fiction fans.	B．Family-based short story lovers.
C．Those who plan to be writers.	D．People trying to have a family.