1 . Four famous classic Italian writers
When speaking of Italian literature, many people come up with Dante. But there are many other famous Italian authors. Below are four recommended writers and their masterpieces.
Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533)
Ariosto is best known for his epic (史诗般的) poem Orlando Furioso, which was published in 1977. As a poet always with new ideas, Ariosto invented the way of “singing the poem to the audience”. The poem presents a rich variety of characters, which has been an encouragement for many paintings and musical works.
Italo Calvino (1923-1985)
Calvino was the author of If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler published in 1979. The novel differs from others for its unique description of a frame story - a unifying story within which several tales are related. It has encouraged musicians like Sting to create their works. At the time of his death in 1985, Calvino was one of the world’s most translated Italian writers.
Umberto Eco (1932-2016)
Eco wrote The Name of the Rose, a historical murder mystery (神秘) novel published in 1980. In the story, he skilfully applied the use of signs and symbols to it. A number of his books deal with the meaning and understanding of communication.
Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873)
Manzoni is most famous for his novel The Betrothed published in 1827. The novel was regarded to be connected with Risorgimento, the Italian unification movement(统一运动) in the 19th century. Probably we can say, without this great novelist and this masterpiece of world literature, Italy wouldn’t be Italy.
1. What do Orlando Furioso and If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler have in common?| A．They have both influenced musical works. |
| B．They both have related characters and stories. |
| C．They were both published in the same year. |
| D．They are both translated into many languages. |
| A．A unique describing style. | B．A mix of new ideas. |
| C．The use of signs and symbols. | D．The history of a movement. |
| A．Ludovico Ariosto. | B．Italo Calvino. | C．Umberto Eco. | D．Alessandro Manzoni. |
| A．Read a novel. |
| B．See a movie. |
| C．Watch a TV program. |
Chinese book culture has a long history. Its roots can be traced back thousands of years, to the earliest known
The first major development in Chinese book culture was the invention of woodblock printing by Bi Sheng in the 11th century. This revolutionized book production, making it much
In modern times, new forms of literature such as science fiction and fantasy have grown in
With its rich history and diverse contents, Chinese book culture provides a window into Chinese society. From ancient classics to modern bestsellers, Chinese books can open up
4 . Reading is an important part of learning English, but many students find it difficult. This collection of tips can be of great help to you.
Read for the main ideas
Read the text a first time to understand the main idea, and don’t look up new words.
Use Context
Context refers to words and situations around a word you don’t understand. Look at the example sentence：
I went to the shlumping to buy some chitla for dinner.
What’s ‘schlumping’? - It must be a store because you bought something there.
What’s ‘chitia’? -
Use Your Own Language
Ask yourself this question：Do I read every word in my own language when I am reading a schedule, or summary?
Understand Different Reading Skills
Here is a quick overview of the four types of reading skills used in every language： skimming, scanning, extensive reading and intensive reading.
You can use these reading skills to improve other areas of English learning, such as pronunciation, grammar and increasing vocabulary.
| A．The answer is most definitely：No! |
| B．You may not be so sure about the answer. |
| C．You can usually understand the general idea. |
| D．Skimming is used to quickly gather the main idea. |
| E．It must be food because you are going to eat it for dinner. |
| F．Scanning is used to find a particular piece of information. |
| G．Words you don’t know may contain important information. |
5 . My experience with reading, as a child, probably differs from most people in my position. Nearing 40 years of age, I am finally at a point in life when I can honestly say I
Growing up in Anthony, I gave my mother and primary school teachers headaches because I had no
Though I wasn't a fan of reading growing up, I was, and still am,
Looking back, I am
Fast forward to today and I
| A．enjoy | B．regret | C．avoid | D．finish |
| A．room | B．time | C．chance | D．desire |
| A．more than | B．other than | C．rather than | D．less than |
| A．Instead | B．However | C．Therefore | D．Otherwise |
| A．familiar | B．fascinated | C．satisfied | D．careful |
| A．final | B．present | C．sad | D．rare |
| A．hand-written | B．custom-made | C．sports-related | D．state-published |
| A．dream | B．idea | C．task | D．excuse |
| A．Patiently | B．Previously | C．Additionally | D．Strangely |
| A．fearful | B．hopeful | C．forgetful | D．thankful |
| A．cheating | B．following | C．guiding | D．inviting |
| A．forced | B．taught | C．encouraged | D．reminded |
| A．call | B．find | C．show | D．fancy |
| A．persuades | B．warns | C．challenges | D．drives |
| A．read | B．speak | C．choose | D．play |
A picture book stood quietly on the shelf of a children’s bookstore, waiting for young readers to read it.
One day, a little girl came. She sat down on the ground and read the picture book with interest. Then she put it back on the shelf, took out her pocket and said to the book, “I love you so much, but I can’t afford you. My father is working out of the town, and my mother is ill now. You see, my pocket is empty. I have no money.”
The next day, the little girl came again. She read the picture book again, and wrote a note, reading: “I want to read you once more, but I can’t come tomorrow because I will go to the hospital to take care of my mother. Can you fly over to my house like a bird? The note has my home address on it.” She put the note into the book, and left the bookstore.
How the picture book wanted to fly into the arms of the little girl! Books needed readers who liked them most, just like the little girl needed her mother. But it was not a bird. It could not fly, and its hardcover could not flap like wings. The picture book could do nothing but huddle (蜷缩) in the middle of the books, waiting for the girl to come again.
One day, there was a big boy who loved reading. He put all the books he liked into his shopping basket, including the picture book. His mother paid the bill for all the books without saying anything.
The big boy had his own bookshelf in his room, with all kinds of books ranked neatly on it. He began to read one book after another that he had bought. When he got to the picture book, he found the note. He was so surprised that he gave it to his mother. His mother read it and was deeply touched, knowing that there was a little girl who loved the picture book but could not afford it. They resolved to deliver the picture book to the address that the little girl had written on the note.
注意：
1．所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2．续写部分分为两段每段的开头语已为你写好。
Paragraph 1:
The next day, the deliveryman returned the picture book, saying the girl could not be reached.
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Paragraph 2:
Until one day, the big boy heard a woman and a girl talking in the house.
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