1 .
| Lord of the Flies An airplane evacuating schoolboys from Britain during World War II is shot down over a remote tropical area. Two boys, Ralph and Piggy find the other surviving boys and begin to organize the group. As time passes, rivalries are formed, rules are broken and civilized behavior has turned savage. Lord of the Flies is a classic study on human nature, adolescence, and competition by William Golding. |
| The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer’s best friend, stakes out his own adventure in this classic coming-of-age tale. Tired of trying to be good and fearful of his drunken father, Huck Finn runs away and takes Jim, a man who has escaped enslavement, with him. Together they sail down the Mississippi River on a raft and experience dangerous as well as comical adventures along the way. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is an enduring classic. |
 | A Separate Peace A friendship forms between two boys attending a New England boarding school during World War IL. Gene, smart and socially awkward, draws the attention of Phineas, a handsome, athletic and outgoing boy. The two become friends, but war and rivalry lead to a tragic accident. John Knowles is the author of A Separate Peace, a classic story about friendship and adolescence. |
 | Of Mice and Men Best friends Lennie and George travel from farm to farm in California looking for work while trying to avoid trouble. Although both men are good workers and have dreams of owning their own farm, they never stay at one job long because of Lennie. Lennie is a simple-minded gentle giant who doesn’t know his own strength and often gets into trouble. When tragedy strike, George must make am awful decision that will alter the plans he and Lennie have made for their future. Of Mice and Men is a classic John Steinbeck story about migrant workers and the downtrodden surviving the Great Depression. |
| A．Of Mice and Men and Lord of the Flies |
| B．Lord of the Flies and A Separate Peace |
| C．The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Lord of the Flies |
| D．A Separate Peace and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn |
| A．George’s tendency to get into trouble. | B．Lennie’s dependence on George. |
| C．Lennie’s inability to manage his own strength. | D．George’s identity as a migrant worker. |
| A．Lord of the Flies | B．A Separate Peace |
| C．Of Mice and Men | D．The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn |
2 . From the ancient Chinese stories, to the stories in the medieval cathedrals（中世纪的教堂）in the west, it is perfectly clear that there is strong pleasure and meaning to gain from stories told through images or pictures. People are lucky enough to have had books with both pictures and words when they were children.
After the world wars, the cheap books without pictures were everywhere and it made reading books illustrated with pictures for adults a very luxurious thing. Somehow, pictures had also come to seem childish or strange.
What is the use of a book without pictures? Very little, it turns out, particularly if we consider that pictures are buried within the very symbols used to write words. As for a picture book for adults, author Tokarczuk sweeps away all doubts. She adores the picture book.
| A．Because it is hard to read books with pictures. |
| B．And yet readers love stories told through pictures. |
| C．However, words and pictures are not always connected. |
| D．Text and picture, after all, are not so far apart. |
| E．For her it is a powerful, old way of telling a story. |
| F．Adults are thought foolish to read such books. |
| G．They often remember the pictures as clearly as the words. |
3 . "My Best Teacher Ever" Contest（竞赛）
Essay（文章）Topic
Who was/is your best teacher ever? What makes him or her the best?
Contestant
The contest is open to all students.
Word: not more than 300
Essays will be judged on the following criteria（标准）by Readers editorial staff（工作人员）:
•originally, creativity﹣﹣﹣40 percent
•clarity of presentation﹣﹣﹣40 percent
•grammar, punctuation, spelling﹣﹣﹣20 percent
Contest Deadline （最后期限）
Entries must be postmarked on or before April 26,2020,or mailed by EST on that date. Email your entry with attached essay and entry information to web﹣contest@readers.com or mail your entry with attached entry form to this address:
Readers Publishing My Best Teacher Ever Contest
Attn: Anne Flounders 44 South Broadway, 18th Floor White Plains, NY 10601
Prizes
Winning students will win a $50 gift card and may have their essays published on readers. com. Winning essays will be announced on May 7, 2020, on readers. com and winners will be told directly.
1. Essays will be judged on the following criteria EXCEPT________.| A．punctuation | B．creativity | C．presentation | D．handwriting |
| A．should have a total of 300 words at least | B．can't have any mistakes in grammar |
| C．should be mailed on or before April 26, 2020 | D．will be judged by some best teachers |
| A．will be given $50 in cash | B．may have your essay published online |
| C．will be told of your success online | D．can have the Readers magazine for free |
4 . Gold Fame Citrus
by Claire Vaye Watkins（$ 5.99）
With the flight of its characters through a landscape destroyed by climate crisis, this novel does not indicate much hopefulness for the future. Within it is a series of situations and consequences made more severe in a future California short of water. Across the desert. we follow Watkins' characters through a place so transformed that it needs its own field guide of animals newly adapted for strange survival.
The Ministry for the Future
by Kim Stanley Robinson（$ 18.1）
The Ministry for the Future is a masterpiece of the imagination, using fictional eyewitness accounts to tell the story of how climate will affect us all. Its setting is not a deserted world, but a future that is almost upon us. This extraordinary novel from the visionary science fiction writer will change the way you think about the climate crisis.
Breathing Fire
by Jaim Lowe（$ 27）
The front lines of the fight against climate change are peopled with those society has forgotten. Up to 30 percent of the firefighters battling wildfires in California each year are prisoners performing backbreaking labor while earning a 40th of what a civilian makes. This book follows six female prisoner firefighters and their worried families, looking into the human cost of environmental crisis.
Something Under the Sun
by Alexandra Kleeman（$ 28）
In Alexandra Kleeman's new novel, a novelist new to Los Angeles teams up with a former child actor to investigate a conspiracy（阴谋）. But this is L. A. , where wildfires burn all year long and the rich store water while the poor suffer from the consequence of climate crisis. Human weakness is pushing the city toward a disaster.
1. Which category does Breathing Fire fall into?| A．Science fiction. | B．Play. | C．Non-fiction. | D．Biography. |
| A．A novelist. | B．An actor. | C．A firefighter. | D．A minister. |
| A．They are on sale. | B．They show concern over climate. |
| C．They are intended for teenagers. | D．They are set in California. |
5 . Keeping children occupied has been a challenge for many of us of late but books can certainly help. Whether purchased as e-books or ordered online for delivery, the following titles are among the Times’ team’s favourites.
Kia Kaha – Together, standing strong
Irish rugby players may boast of being ‘together, standing strong’, but only Kiwis know how to kia kaha!
Best suited to little ones aged three to seven years of age, this book is a rousing celebration of all the many
cultures that call Aotearoa home.
And, thanks to its accompanying CD (which can be downloaded instead), they can learn a heart-warming song in both Maori and English.
June Pitman-Hayes, Ngaere Roberts (Maori lyrics) & Minky Stapleton (illustrator): Kia Kaha – Together, standing strong | Scholastic
Showtym Adventures 7 – Jackamo the Supreme Champion
After her multi-champion pony suffers a devastating injury, Vicki must turn to a beautiful, although inexperienced, mount to compete.
Although she is sure Jackamo has the X factor, has she actually bet everything on the wrong horse?
The latest addition to Kelly Wilson’s popular series, this book is a tale of tenacity and overcoming the odds through dedication and hard work.
Kelly Wilson: Showtym Adventures 7 – Jackamo the Supreme Champion | Puffin
Cece Loves Science – Push and Pull
The ‘force’ is strong with Cece! Designed to make science more accessible to young minds, this book sees Cece and her friend Isaac team up to discover the opposing forces of push and pull can be used to help Cece’s dog, Einstein.
Fostering a love of learning, this series might just help a few older ones – to whom science class is a distant memory – discover how the universe works too!
Shelli R Johannes, Kimberly Derting & Vashti Harrison: Cece Loves Science – Push and Pull | HarperCollins
Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Wrecking Ball
One of the most well-known characters in modern children’s literature – Greg Heffley, aka the Wimpy Kid – is up to his old tricks once again.
When the Heffleys receive an unexpected inheritance, major home improvements become their focus. How will this affect Greg? There’s only one way to find out!
Jeff Kinney: Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Wrecking Ball | Puffin
1. Which book is suitable for kids to learn cultures?| A．Kia Kaha – Together, standing strong |
| B．Showtym Adventures 7 – Jackamo the Supreme Champion |
| C．Cece Loves Science – Push and Pull |
| D．Diary of a Wimpy Kid – Wrecking Ball |
| A．Old tricks | B．Maori lyrics |
| C．Adventures | D．scientific knowledge. |
| A．Jeff Kinney |
| B．Shelli R Johannes, Kimberly Derting & Vashti Harrison |
| C．June Pitman-Hayes, Ngaere Roberts (Maori lyrics) & Minky Stapleton (illustrator) |
| D．Kelly Wilson |
6 . “A novel, like a letter should be loose, cover much ground, run swiftly, take risk of morality and decay,” Saul Bellow once wrote. Like many novelists, in his spare time the author of The Adventures of Augie March was also an enthusiastic letter writer.
A selection of Bellow’s huge correspondence, reproduced in a recent issue of the New Yorker, provides a fascinating insight into the writer’s character. Witty, often brief and almost always entertaining, Bellow’s letters are a reminder of why writers’ letters often prove so popular with readers. At their best, literary letters have something for everyone: general readers get a glimpse of how authors write when freed from the expectation to produce a work of conventional literary worth, and scholars get enough scholarly writings.
All this is well and good—except for one small problem: nobody writes letters anymore, at least not the kind of intellectual, humorous letters that distinguish great correspondence. As we are so often told, we live in the digital age. Like the rest of us, authors now largely correspond with their agents, friends, and occasionally, fans through email, not “snail mail”.
As literary vehicles, emails are severely lacking. Digital messages tend to alternate between the deathly dull and formal and the casually daring complete with BTW, LOLs and unclear text—speak with little middle ground. Letters can be revealing, friendly, humorous; emails, even at their best, tend to exhibit only one of these characteristics of good writing.
Future literary archivists (档案管理员) will need to be digital experts, hacking through hard drives and email accounts, mobile phones, in their attempts to fully document the lives and thoughts of their subjects. But who among us has all their email correspondence from the past five years, let alone a lifetime? Hardware is disposed (废弃) of and forgotten about; mobile phones are replaced every few years. The idea that we can construct a complete record of a writer has always been unrealistic, but technological advances have made it physically impossible, too. With so much material digitalized, and often wiped, writers will no longer leave behind boxes suffered with letters, ripe for investigation and possible publication.
Back in 1898, the New York Times named the long-dead Lord Byron the greatest letter writer in the English language, celebrating his letters’ humor, the force and spirit of their substance, the grace and purity of their style. Saul Bellow’s letters might not be remembered quite so fondly 70 years from now, but chances are that, by then, the entire genre of collected writers’ letters will have disappeared completely—leaving readers significantly poorer for their loss.
1. Authors’ letters are often popular with readers probably because ______.| A．well-known magazines like New Yorker choose to publish them |
| B．authors write them with a specific audience in mind |
| C．not only are they scholarly, but they are also funny |
| D．readers can gain an insight into how the classics are created |
| A．email exhibits characteristics of good writing |
| B．email reaches its receivers much faster |
| C．email is full of variation alternating between “formal” and “casual” |
| D．email conveys clear messages with little ambiguous middle ground |
| A．To illustrate that technological advances can contribute to greater literary loss. |
| B．To arouse readers’ interest in how digital property will be treated in the future. |
| C．To point out that it is impossible to document the life experience of a writer. |
| D．To warn that there will be no writers’ letters left for research. |
| A．Exploring Literature through Letters. | B．Well-Written “Letters”: Saul Bellow Shows Us How |
| C．The Dying Art of Letter Writing | D．The Power of a Letter in the Digital Age |
7 . Pick up something you can’t put down
The Unequal Twins
Sylva Kanderal
www.xlibris.com
Hardback I Paperback I E-book
$28.99 I $16.99 II $3.99
What if the twins Ava and Zoe, who could hardly be distinguished from each other visually and who could not have been more different in character, had to go through a hell of envy, jealousy, and malice?
Where does that trail lead to? To a total loss of their connection, or are they finding the lost path to each other again?
Quotes from the Quiver
Dante P. Galiber, MD, FACC
www. authorhouse. com
Hardback I Paperback I E-book
$43.99 I $22.99 I $3.99
Inspired by time, space, and human interaction, this collection offers a series of original and thought-provoking ideas and quotations designed to uplift and enlighten.
Johnny Catching Fire
Aaron Allen
www. xlibris.com
Hardback I Paperback I E-book
$22.99 I $16.99 I $3.99
God gave Johnny the strength of Samson. Now, he must decide whether to use his power for good or to get even with those who bullied him.
Ting Ting, the Girl Who Saved China
Ryan O’connor
www. xlibris. com
Hardback I Paperback I E-book
$22.99 I $16.99 I $3.99
Ting Ting, the Girl Who Saved China provides insight into China’s biggest holiday, gives a sense of its culture, and shows that girls are just as strong and brave as boys are.
How to Help Yourself to Be Who You Want to Be
A Simple Guide for Those Who Are Ready to Take Charge and Redirect Their Lives
Pam Grewall
www. iuniverse. com
Hardback I Paperback I E-book
$23.99 I $13.99 I $3.99
This self-improvement book offers a simple manual to help one recognize their strengths and weaknesses and to understand how to make their own destiny.
1. If you are a fairy tales lover, you would prefer the works of________.| A．Pam Grewall |
| B．Ryan O’connor |
| C．Dante P. Galiber, MD, FACC |
| D．Aaron Allen |
| A．Johnny Catching Fire |
| B．How to Help Yourself to Be Who You Want to Be |
| C．Ting Ting, the Girl Who Saved China |
| D．The Unequal Twins |
| A．One can buy 3 books in hardback with $60. |
| B．The Unequal Twins will impress the readers with the true love between the twins. |
| C．Quotes from the Quiver is intended to improve readers’ social interaction skills. |
| D．How to Help Yourself to Be Who You Want to Be will be a good choice for those who are at a loss in their lives. |
8 . Here are the newly published books. Have a look and meet your new love.
The Legend of the Crimson Criket, the Golden Scorpion,and the Emerald Beetle
Mary Montalvo
www. xlibris. com
Hardback | Paperback | E - book
$28.99 | $16.99 | $3.99
Three remarkable brothers born with me unique abilities save village by fighting a terrible and powerful warlord and his mad son.
Miguel Jesus Corte
Geald Skow
www. authorhouse. com
Hardback | Paperback | E-book
$ 23.99 | $13.99 | $3.99
This is the self-telling story of the author, a poor Ecuadorian who moves from Gualaceo to the Orient as well as his dreams and struggles to make his life a little better.
Remembering a Great American Hero Marian Anderson “The Lady from Philadelphia”
Emile Henwood
www.xlibris.com
Hardback | Paperback | E-book
$28.99 | $16.99 | $3.99
It is a collection of shortened life stories in time order, fully illustrated by engaging photos,which shares the teachable lessons of Anderson’s well-lived long life — especially important today.
Connie Gets More Than Her Backyard
Patti Whitehead-Gill
www. xlibris. com
Hardback | Paperback | E-book
$34.99 | $ 26.99 | $3.99
This tale centers on six-year-old Connie who has recently moved to a town from the city. She learns she’s adopted，meets her best friend and falls in love with an orphan(孤儿) dog.
1. Which book can help you know about its writer?| A．The Legend of the Crimson Cricket,the Golden Scorpion, and the Emerald Beetle |
| B．Miguel Jesus Corte |
| C．Remembering a Great American Hero Marian Anderson “The Lady from Philadelpia” |
| D．Connie Gets More Than Her Backyard |
| A．$28.99. | B．$26.99. | C．$16.99. | D．$13.99. |
| A．Advertisement. | B．Reader & Editor. |
| C．Entertainment. | D．Book Review. |
9 . Sophia Gholz is an award-winning children's book author, music lover. and magic seeker. Sophia enjoys writing fiction with humor and heart. When writing nonfiction, she pulls on her love of science and her family background in ecology.
Her book, The Boy Who Grew a Forest, shares the true story of Jadav Payeng, a man in India who single- bandedly planted an entire forest over the course of his lifetime. When he was younger, Jadav Payeng was shocked by the destruction of his island home. So he took matters into his own bands and began planting one seed at a time. Jadav's forest is now over 1300 acres and provides a home to many animals, some endangered. Jadav is still planting today and his hard work has now been celebrated around the world.
To write this story, Sophia got to know more about Jadav Payeng and his forest through a documentary film called Forest Man. Influenced by her father, a forest ecologist and a scientist, she grew up learning about the importance of trees and the natural world. When she heard about a man on a m1ssion to reforest an entire island on his own, she was drawn to this story.
As for research, most of her research was done online. She read every news article that she could find about Jadav and listened to every interview. Then she reached out to several people who had met or interviewed Jadav as well, including the producer of his short documentary film.
She hopes that The Boy Who Grew a Forest lights a spark in everyone who reads it to go out and care for our beautiful planet. She'd love young readers to be inspired to plant or to learn more about animal habitats, biodiversity and science in general.
1. What is the second paragraph mainly about?| A．A story on how to plant trees. | B．Endangered animals in the forest. |
| C．Destruction of Jadav's island home. | D．A book introducing a tree- planting hero. |
| A．He has quit planting recently. | B．He is known to many people. . |
| C．He was an actor of Forest Man. | D．He planted trees with his family. |
| A．Humorous and skilled. | B．Creative and outgoing. |
| C．Determined and diligent. | D．Controversia1 and helpful. |
| A．To encourage research on wildlife. | B．To describe a boy's farming experience. |
| C．To stress the importance of planting trees. | D．To advocate the action to protect the earth. |
10 . In October 1937, a newly published book became an instant hit in London, with more than 100,000 copies sold in just a few weeks and still much sought after following three additional printings. That book was Red Star Over China by Edgar Snow, an American journalist who first made the Communist Party of China (CPC) known to the world.
China in the 1930s was engulfed in the war against Japanese aggression. The Long March finally took the Central Red Army to Shaanbei in October 1935. Yan'an, a small town in Shaanbei and then the base of the CPC, was like an islet surrounded by the ocean of the Kuomintang's military and information blockage. The world knew little about the CPC and the Red Army but the demonized images propagated (宣传) by the Kuomintang.
In pursuit of the newsworthy story in China, Snow made it to Yan’an after a long and difficult journey on July 13, 1936. After over 100 days in Shaanbei, Snow was fascinated by the unique charm of the East, something he believed representing the light of rejuvenation (复苏) for the ancient nation of China. For him, the Communists were the most outstanding men and women he had met in China in the past decade with the "military discipline, political morale, and the will to victory", and "for sheer dogged endurance, and ability to stand hardship without complaint", so they were "invincible". He recalled his four-month time with the Red Army as a most inspiring experience, during which he had met with the most free and happy Chinese he'd ever known. In these people who devoted themselves to what they believed was the right and just cause, Snow felt a vibrant hope, passion and the unbeatable strength of mankind, something he had never felt again ever since.
In the preface to Red Star Over China, Snow attributed the global popularity of the book not to its style or form, but the stories. According to him, the stories were created by the young Chinese revolutionists and based on the accounts of them. What he did was simply writing them down in words as fair as the water running in spring.
1. What is the function of the Paragraph 2?| A．To show the importance of Snow’s book in the history. |
| B．To represent how cruelly and unfairly CPC was treated. |
| C．To tell how difficult it was for Snow to write the book. |
| D．To inform an important part of CPC’s history in Shaanbei. |
| A．Independent and curious. | B．Determined and fair-minded. |
| C．Ambitious and intelligent. | D．Strong and optimistic. |
| A．It was the first book to publicize China to the world. |
| B．It was written to show Edgar Snow’s sympathy for the Red Army. |
| C．It was a charming reflection of the political wisdom of an ancient country. |
| D．It was filled with first-hand information from the young Chinese revolutionists. |
| A．To commemorate a famous writer. | B．To recall the long history of CPC. |
| C．To introduce an important book. | D．To show respect for the martyrs. |
