1 . It's the most wonderful time of the year! The winter holidays are the perfect chance to get comfortable with a good book, and luckily we have some best sellers right now. We're sure you'll find what you're looking for.
Sunday Funday by Katherine Hallgan
Hardback, $20 (10 percent off with membership)
A great book full of seasonal activities that families and friends can enjoy together. From gardening projects to creative hand-made things and warming winter recipes (食谱), there's something for everyone, whatever the weather.
The History of the World in 100 Animals by Simon Barnes
Hardback, $16.99
This beautifully pictured book explores the good relationship between humans and animals, from bees to chimpanzees (黑猩猩) who share more than 90% of our DNA. If you are crazy about animals, this is the book for you.
Accidentally Famous by David Baddiel
Paperback, $12.99
Nothing amazing ever happens to Billy Smith but when TV workers visit his school he becomes popular, but as everyone knows, being famous comes with a price. David Baddiel's laugh-out-loud book asks what life would be like if everyone suddenly knew your name.
Eddie Albert and the Animal Gang by Paul O'Grady
Paperback, $15
This action-filled adventure from TV favourite Paul O'Grady follows a young boy with a very special gift—he can talk to animals! On a trip to Amsterdam, Eddie meets a monkey in danger and rescues the young creature with the help of his animal friends.
1. What is the member price for Sunday Funday?| A．$20. | B．$19. | C．$18. | D．$10. |
| A．Sunday Funday. | B．Eddie Albert and the Animal Cang. |
| C．Accidentally Famous. | D．The History of the World in 100 Animals. |
| A．They are published in hardback. | B．They stress harmony with animals. |
| C．They are full of beautiful pictures. | D．They speak of famous TV persons. |
2 . Writing a news article is different from writing other articles or informative pieces.
Gather all your facts. Before you write a news article, make a list or an outline of all the connected facts and information that need to be included in the article. This list will help prevent you from leaving out any relevant information about the topic or story.
Create an article outline. Your outline, and subsequently your article, should be structured like an inverted pyramid.
Find an angle.
| A．Know your audience. |
| B．Include all the important details. |
| C．It will also help you write a clean, brief article. |
| D．Why is this article unique to you? What is your voice? |
| E．Unlike other articles, it presents information in a specific way. |
| F．Be as specific as possible when writing down all of these facts. |
| G．It allows you to build your story so that the most important information is at the top. |
3 . Will you expect your child to be fond of reading? Here are some good choices for you.
I Used to be a Fish
The book is an entry level popular science book written by Tom Sullivan. A little boy, who was inspired by a fish, fueled by imagination to tell of his own life’s story, which introduces the history of human evolution (进化). The book has been praised by many people in the industry, as well as by many parents.
The Wind in the Willows
The book published in 1908, is a series of animal tales by British writer Kenneth Grahame, at first as bedtime stories for his son. The work, with its vivid descriptions of the countryside and exciting adventures, became a classic of English children’s literature.
Charlotte’s Web
Charlotte’s Web is a children’s book by American author E.B. White, published in 1952. Charlotte, a spider, lost her life to save Wilbur, a pig by writing about his stories in her web (网). Publishers Weekly lists the book as the best selling children’s book of all time.
The Little Prince
The Little Prince was written in 1942 by French Writer Antoine de Saint Exupery. The Little Prince is a pure and blue boy who comes from the solar system. He passed through various stars, and later he arrived at the Earth, trying to find solutions to loneliness and pain.
1. Which book is suitable to read if a child wants to know where human comes from?| A．I Used to be a Fish | B．The Wind in the Willows | C．Charlotte’s Web | D．The Little Prince |
| A．I Used to be a Fish is spoken highly of by many people. |
| B．Charlotte’s Web listed the best book of all time tells the story of friendship. |
| C．The Little Prince is about a sad boy who wants to ease his bad feelings. |
| D．The Wind in the Willows was firstly written for Kenneth’s son as bedtime stories. |
| A．teenagers. | B．parents. | C．teachers. | D．book lovers. |
4 . On Feb. 19, the same day Harper Lee passed away, the world lost another literary giant. He was 84-year-old Umberto Eco, an Italian writer, whose masterpiece The Name of the Rose won him international fame when it was published in 1980. The novel sold more than 10 million copies in about 30 languages and was made into a movie in 1986 starring British actor Sean Connery.
A USA Today obituary (讣告) thus describes: “Eco was an author of books ranging from novels to scholarly books to essay collections; Eco was enthusiastic about the obscure as well as ordinary daily life; As a scholar, critic and novelist, he also did research on the mysterious theory of semiotics-the study of signs and symbols in language and the technical languages of the Internet.
The Name of the Rose can be seen as a much more complicated version of US writer Dan Brown’s popular novel The Da Vinci Code. The book is set in a 14th century Italian Monastery (修道院) where monks are being murdered one by one in terrible manners. Two monks who travel to the monastery try to solve the murders. The book’s mystery develops around a complex-designed library and a lost Aristotle’s book on comedy.
Although the novel is full of Latin phrases and devotes many pages to analysis of Christian beliefs and ancient philosophy, it’s a fascinating detective thriller.
Eco also wrote some harsh literary criticism. He once wrote that “books always speak of other books, and every story tells a story that has already been told”.
1. What can we learn about The Name of the Rose?| A．It earned Harper Lee worldwide reputation. |
| B．It featured the main character Sean Connery. |
| C．It was translated into no more than 30 versions. |
| D．It had its film adaptation following the book’s publication. |
| A．Eco not only wrote novels but also some dramas. |
| B．Eco was merely interested in ordinary daily life. |
| C．Eco was an expert in the Internet. |
| D．Eco was more than a novelist. |
| A．A story copied from the novel The Da Vinci Code. |
| B．Chain murdering in an Italian Monastery. |
| C．A long-lost ownerless book. |
| D．A complex-designed library. |
| A．Stories are far from reality. | B．Creativity is hard to come by. |
| C．Some books are well worth reading. | D．Writers need to polish their language. |
5 . Joseph Conrad, a famous English novelist, said that his goal as a writer was “to make you hear, to make you feel, and above all, to make you see. That, and no more, is everything.”
In Hemingway’s story, The Old Man and the Sea, however, we must approach the content on another level.
Readers cannot appreciate a short story fully unless they react not only to what has been said but also to how it has been said.
| A．They must look for style and structure. |
| B．In complex stories, careful readers may not always agree with the author. |
| C．The impact on the reader comes from the sudden and unexpected response. |
| D．A good short story tries to give the reader a sense of the actual experience. |
| E．Finally, the reader should be able to explain the insights which the author has given into the theme. |
| F．The impact of the story comes from the insight it gives us into the needs and desires of youth and old age. |
| G．In order to read a short story with full understanding, the reader must approach the content on two levels. |
Our everyday lives are filled with stories with their significance in showing us how we think about
We live storied lives.
Stories are
7 . Four Seasonal Best-Sellers Online
Are you among the parents who are seeking books for your children during the coming winter vacation? The following seasonal best-sellers may be on your list of choices.
Salt
Salt, in which Helen Frost tells a story about friendship between Anikwa and James, was set in a time of war. Anikwa and James spent their happy days together in the forests of the Indiana Territory until facing the cruel war. As a children’s literature, it was once considered as a Kirkus Reviews Best Book in 2013.
Now
Now was set in the present day. This is the final book in Morris Gleitzman’s series that began with Once, continued with Then and Now. In the novel, Felix, a successful man with painful memories of his childhood recalls his time with his granddaughter Zelda. It has been popular with teenagers since it came out. Now is one of Kirkus Reviews Best Children’s Books of 2012.
Green
Die-cut (模切的) pages bring surprise after surprise in this magical new book. How many kinds of green are there in the world? Laura Vaccaro Seeger shapes a respect to a single color that will delight and quite possibly shock you. Green was considered as Kirkus Reviews Best Children’s Book of 2012 and a 2013 Caldecott Honor Book.
Holes
In this wonderfully creative novel, Louis Sachar makes up a puzzle about Stanley Yelnats, a boy who was sent to juvenile detention center (少年管教中心) Camp Green Lake, and forced to dig a hole a day, five feet across in the hard earth of the dried-up lake bed. It is a darkly humorous tale. The book wins the Winner of the National Book Award and was one of the best sellers among children.
1. Who is the author of the book Salt?| A．Helen Frost. | B．Anikwa. |
| C．Stanley Yelnats. | D．Louis Sachar. |
| A．It tells a serious but funny story. |
| B．It describes different kinds of one color. |
| C．It talks about friendship in the period of war. |
| D．It is one of the series by Laura Vaccaro Seeger. |
| A．They are set in modern times. |
| B．They share the same honor as each other. |
| C．They don’t sell as well as first published. |
| D．Their readers are mostly children. |
8 . Green Eyes is a book. It’s about a lovely white cat. The name of the cat is Green Eyes. He is about one year old. He lives in his big red box and meets spring, summer, autumn and winter in one year. Each season (季节) has its nice colors. The pictures of the book are very beautiful. And the words of the book are easy to read. Here’re some views (评论).
Reader A: A Sweet Girl
My name is Sally. I’m a little girl from America. I get the book on my 12th birthday this year. My parents buy it for me. I often read it before going to bed.
Reader B: Hello Kitty
My name is Linda. I’m from England. It is a great book about how a cat sees the seasons. I read it to my students every year when we study the seasons.
Reader C: Warm wind
I’m Jenny. I’m a Chinese girl. I’m in the school reading club (俱乐部). We share (分享) our favorite (喜爱的) books every Friday. I share this book with other students in the club. They all like it.
1. Where does Green Eyes live?| A．In a box. | B．In a tree. | C．In a hat. | D．Ina bag. |
| A．are good friends | B．are from the same country |
| C．love the book very much | D．know the writer of the book very well |
| A．Sally gets the book from her parents. |
| B．The book is about how a cat sees the seasons |
| C．The book is not difficult for readers to read. |
| D．Linda often reads it in the club. |
| A．Green Eyes and some readers’ views. | B．A cute cat and his friends. |
| C．Three nice readers. | D．Different colors of the four seasons. |
9 . The Chinese version of the French book, Pourquoi les Chinois ont-ils le temps (Why Chinese People have Time), has been recently published by SDX Joint Publication Co. The author, Christine Cayol, who has lived in China for more than 20 years, shares her observations in her writing on Chinese wisdom towards "time".
In the western world, the concept of time is often measurable, which can date from the Industrial Revolution. This view of time always reminds people of progress, improvement and efficiency.
Unlike the western "race mode", the Chinese view of time is more like a "flowing water mode". In Cayol's eyes, Chinese people can become friends with time. "For the Chinese, time is neither a flying arrow at the target nor an hourglass measuring quicksand, but running water," she said. "Water can devour us, but it carries us and holds us as well; it seems weak, but is strong actually, and nothing can stop it from flowing into the sea."
Cayol used to be uncomfortable with the way Chinese dealt with time when she first came to China: They never make appointments, and always change the time for a meeting. However, as she became more familiar with Chinese culture, Chinese wisdom has been gradually understood by her.
Life in China led Cayol to experience a different view of time, which invites people to listen to their heart, to think and to love. Time in China seems to be internal, beneficial and cherished. It is life itself: It can be solid and liquid, fast and slow, hard and soft at the same time.
Now, Cayol likes spending five hours with friends making dumplings or noodles. She believes it's a way to get along with each other, and no one will measure the time it takes. "I'm not introducing a method; I just want to reveal a new view of time, which is completely different from that in the West. Adopting it will be just like using a foreign language - it gives us greater freedom in the modern world," Cayol said. She hopes that Pourquoi les Chinois ont-ils le temps can be a cure for Westerners' worried hearts.
1. The western view of time can have the following features EXCEPT ________.| A．the mode of race | B．the flowing water mode |
| C．the focus on efficiency | D．the focus on progress |
| A．help | B．shelter | C．track | D．destroy |
| A．The Chinese tend to feel worried about time. |
| B．Cayol studied people's different attitudes towards time in China. |
| C．On arriving in China, Cayol admired the way Chinese dealt with time. |
| D．How the Chinese treat time is closely related to the Chinese culture and wisdom. |
| A．A travel journal. | B．An introduction to a book. |
| C．A summary of a book. | D．An advertisement for a book. |
10 . Suddenly we heard the sound of a carriage. It was the two Lintons, Hindley, Frances and Catherine. They all ran into the house and stood in front of the large fire in the sitting room to get warm.
I told Heathcliff to go and join them. He opened the kitchen door as Hindley was coming out of the sitting room. When Hindley saw him, he pushed him back into the kitchen saying, “Joseph! Keep him away from the sitting room!”
Then he noticed Heathcliff’s nice clothes. “Look at you!” he said sneering. “Who do you want to impress? Get out or I’ll pull your hair until it’s longer than it is now!”
“It’s long enough already,” observed Edgar Linton. He was standing at the sitting room door. “It hangs over his eyes like a horse’s mane!” Edgar didn’t say this to insult Heathcliff but Heathcliff became violent immediately. He suddenly picked up a pan of hot apple sauce and threw the contents in Edgar’s face. Edgar screamed. Hearing her brother’s cries, Isabella, followed by Catherine, came running out. Hindley caught Heathcliff by the arm, took him to his room and gave him a beating.
I didn’t have much pity for Edgar but I cleaned his face. His sister was crying and wanted to go home. Catherine was confused and embarrassed and didn’t say anything.
Hindley came back and told the children to return to the sitting room and have their dinner. As soon as they saw the food on the table they forgot everything because they were hungry. I looked at Catherine. Her eyes were dry as she cut her meat.
“What an insensitive child,” I thought. “She doesn’t really care about Heathcliff.”
I watched her lift the meat to her mouth and then suddenly her eyes filled with tears. To hide her feelings, she dropped her fork on the floor and bent down to pick it up. So she wasn’t as insensitive as I thought!
Some musicians came to play for us in the evening. While everyone was listening to them, Catherine escaped and climbed the stairs to Heathcliff’s room. She called him but there was no answer so she climbed along the roof and into his room through a small window. Later they came downstairs to the kitchen together. I gave Heathcliff some supper but he didn’t eat it.
“I don’t care how long I have to wait, Nelly,” he said, “but I’m going to take my revenge on Hindley. I only hope he doesn’t die first!”
“Heathcliff!” I said. “You should learn to forgive.”
“No! I must have satisfaction,” he replied. “I’m going to think of a good way to take my revenge. If I think about that, I won’t feel the pain.”
1. What do we know about Hindley from the text?| A．He assumed Heathcliff would hurt the kids. |
| B．He hated Heathcliff as he had nicer clothes. |
| C．He didn’t see Heathcliff as a family member. |
| D．He pushed Edgar Linton to insult Heathcliff. |
| A．Not able to tell right from wrong. |
| B．Not caring about other peopled feelings. |
| C．Not affected by physical effects of changes. |
| D．Not clever enough to make quick responses. |
| A．She dropped her fork on the floor by accident. |
| B．She was trying to wipe away her tears secretly. |
| C．She felt rather bored to eat with those children. |
| D．She knew she was being observed by someone. |
| A．Heathcliff occupied an important place in Catherine’s heart. |
| B．Heathcliff used to being laughed at by other kids. |
| C．Isabella was very angry to see his brother badly injured. |
| D．Nelly took pity on Heathcliff and supported his revenge. |
