Do you ever run out of great books to read? So what should I read next? Is fast-paced crime fiction your thing?
Try the new Patricia Cornwell book, Scarpetta（Putnam）. She is such an able writer and handles complex forensic（法庭的） intelligence with ease. You need to be prepared, though, for the world you're entering—this isn't for the faint of heart, let's say.
If peace is more your thing, try Mary Pipher's wonderful new book, Seeking Peace: Chronicles of the Worst Buddhist in the World （Riverhead）. Mary is a lovely, comfortable writer who takes the reader through her personal awakening after reputation and fortune came her way. Even if you've never experienced life as a bestselling writer （as she has done, in her book years back, Reviving Ophelia）, you'll totally understand and sympathize with her renewed need for privacy, distance and quiet.
What if you want a straightforward, totally thrilling read with vivid characters, set about World War II? You cannot go wrong with Jim Lehrer's new novel, Oh, Johnny（Random House）, about a young Marine whose life is changed forever when he meets a woman on his way to war. His relationship with her lasts him through danger and hardship, and there's an impressive ending. See our interview with the productive novelist/newsman in the current issue of Reader's Digest （March, on stands now）, by the way, for insight into the very talented Mr. Lehrer and what interests him.
Well, what about something wickedly funny and totally offbeat? Does the name Carrie Fisher do anything for you? Try her vivid and new life in Hollywood and elsewhere, Wishful Drinking（Simon & Schuster）. Be prepared for humor as sharp as knives. What does the writer want to tell us by the underlined sentence?
| A．The world is complex and hard. | B．Scarpetta is a thriller. |
| C．The fiction is hard to understand. | D．Society is hard to fit into. |
Which of the following is true of Mary Pipher?
| A．She is an adventurous writer. | B．She doesn’t care about fortune. |
| C．Her books normally sell well. | D．She can help you achieve writing skills. |
To get further information about Jim Lehrer, you may________.
| A．go to Reader’s Digest issued in March | B．go to Random House |
| C．analyze the characters in Oh, Johnny | D．read the novel Oh, Johnny |
Which book isn’t directly based on the writer’s own life?__________________
| A． Seeking Peace. | B．Reviving Ophelia. |
| C．Wishful Drinking. | D．Oh, Johnny. |
Do you know Australia? Australia is the largest island in the world. It is a little smaller than China. It is in the south of the earth. Australia is big, but its population is not large. The population of Australia is nearly as large as that of Shanghai.
The government has made enough laws to fight pollution. The cities in Australia have got little air or water pollution. The sky is blue and the water is clean. You can clearly see fish swimming in the rivers. Plants grow very well.
Last month we visited Perth, the biggest city in Western Australia, and went to a wild flowers’ exhibition. There we saw a large number of wild flowers we had never seen before. We had a wonderful time. Perth is famous for its beautiful wild flowers. In spring every year Perth has the wild flowers’ exhibition. After visiting Perth, we spent the day in the countryside. We sat down and had a rest near a path at the foot of a hill. It was quiet and we enjoyed ourselves. Suddenly we heard bells ringing at the top of the hill. What we saw made us pick up all our things and run back to the car as quickly as we could. There were about three hundred sheep coming towards us down the path.
Australia is famous for its sheep and kangaroos(袋鼠). After a short drive from any town, you will find yourself in the middle of white sheep. Sheep, sheep, everywhere are sheep. Australia is _______.
| A．the largest country in the world | B．as large as Shanghai |
| C．not as large as China | D．the largest island in the north of the earth |
The government had made _______.
| A．too enough laws to fight pollution |
| B．so many laws that it can fight pollution |
| C．enough laws that it can hardly fight pollution |
| D．enough laws because the pollution is very serious |
Which of the following is NOT true？
| A．Perth is famous for its beautiful wild flowers. |
| B．Perth is bigger than any other city in Western Australia. |
| C．Perth lies in the west of Australia. |
| D．No other city is larger than Perth in Australia. |
In Perth you may visit a wild flowers’ show in _______season.
| A．a cool | B．a warm | C．the coldest | D．the hottest |
Which of the following is true？
| A．Australia is famous for its sheep, kangaroos and wild flowers. |
| B．We ran back to the car because we were in the middle of white sheep. |
| C．Three hundred sheep came towards us because they saw us. |
| D．If you go to the countryside in Australia, you will see a large number of white sheep. |
Are you carrying too much on your back at school? I’m sure lots of children of your age will say “Yes”. Not only the students in China have this problem, but children in the United States also have heavy school bags.
Doctors are starting to worry that younger and younger students are having back and neck problems as a result of school bags being too heavy for them.
“It’s hard for me to go upstairs with my bag because it’s so heavy,” said Rick Hammond, an 11-year-old student it the US.
Rick is among students who have common school bags with two straps(带子)to carry them, but many other students choose rolling(有滚轮的)bags.
But even with rolling bags, getting up stairs and buses is still a problem for children. Many of them have hurt their backs and necks because of the heavy school bags.
But how much is too much? Doctors say students should carry no more than 10% to 15% of their own body weight(重量).
Scott Batch, a back doctor, said children under Grade 4 should stay with 10%. But it is also important that older children don’t stay with over 15%, because their bodies are still growing.“
Children are losing their balance(平衡)and falling down with their school bags,” he said.
Parents and teachers are starting to tell children to only take home library books they will be reading that night. Some teachers are using pieces of paper or thin workbooks for students to take home.
One of the best answers is, as some children said, to have no homework at all!From the passage we can know that .
| A．only children in China carry too heavy school bags |
| B．children in other countries don’t carry too heavy bags |
| C．both children in China and the US carry too heavy school bags |
| D．only children in the US carry too heavy school bags |
Children feel it hard for them to go upstairs because .
| A．they are too young |
| B．their school bags are too heavy |
| C．they don’t know how to go upstairs |
| D．their parents don’t always go upstairs with them together |
If a child carries a heavy school bag, .
| A．his back and neck will be hurt | B．his head and arms will be hurt |
| C．his hands will be hurt | D．his feet will be hurt |
According to the doctor, Scott Batch, if a child in Grade 5 weighs(重)about 30 kilos, the school bag he carries should not be over .
| A．5 kilos | B．3 kilos | C．5.5 kilos | D．4.5 kilos |
Some students think the best answer to this problem is that .
| A．they should have a little homework to do after they get home |
| B．their teachers had better not ask them to do any homework |
| C．they should only take home library books they will read that night |
| D．they should use thin workbooks instead of think ones |
John Smith，an office worker，lives in Washington．He inherited (继承) a million dollars when he was 23，but he wasn’t happy at all．When his college friends were looking for their jobs，he didn’t have to．Jack decided to living a simple life like everyone else．He gave $l0,000 of his money to a charity (慈善机构) to help poor children live a better life．Today he is 36．He still wears cheap shoes and clothes and drives a small car only，but he is very happy．
Up to now John has helped some children from poor countries all over the world，by sending them each $200 a month．The money was used for the children’s study, food, medicine and clothing．John receives a report each year on the children’s progress．They can write to each other, but usually the children do not speak English．
When John first heard about these children，he wanted to help them．“It was nothing special,” he said．“Until I went to these countries and met the children I was helping，I didn’t know anything about their life．” Once John went to meet a little girl in Africa．He said that the meeting was very exciting．“When I met her．I felt very ,very happy．"he said．“And I saw that the money was used for a good cause．It brought me happiness．I want to do everything I can to go on helping those children.”John didn’t need to look for a job ___________.
| A．before he went to college | B．after he went to Africa |
| C．because he got a lot of money | D．before he received a report |
John has sent them each $200 a month to help some poor children _______．
| A．near Washington | B．in European countries |
| C．only in Africa | D．throughout the world |
John learned about the children’s progress by ________.
| A．visiting them each year | B．getting a report every year |
| C．staying with them | D．talking to them in English |
The underlined words “for a good cause ”means“________” in Chinese．
| A．施舍 | B．行善 | C．优惠 | D．赏赐 |
What’s the main idea of the story?
| A．Help others，and you will feel happy． |
| B．It’s necessary to write letters to poor children． |
| C．Live a simple life，and you can give others help． |
| D．It’s the most important to help the children in Africa |
If you do not use your arm or your legs for some time, they become weak; when you start using them again, they slowly become strong again. Everybody knows that. Yet many people do not seem to know that memory works in the same way. When someone says that he has a good memory, he really means that he keeps his memory in practice by using it. When someone else says that his memory is poor, he really means that he does not give it enough chance to become strong. If a friend says that his arms and legs are weak, we know that it is his own fault(过错). But if he tells us that he has a poor memory, many of us think that his parents are to blame(受责备), and few of us know that it is just his own fault. Have you ever found that some people can’t read or write but usually they have better memories? This is because they cannot read or write and they have to remember things; they cannot write down in a little notebook. They have to remember days, names, songs and stories; so their memory is the whole time being exercised. So if you want to have a good memory, learn from the people: Practice remembering.The main reason for one is poor memory is that _______.
| A．his father or mother may have a poor memory |
| B．He does not use his name or legs for some time |
| C．his memory is not often used |
| D．he can’t read or write |
If you do not use your arms or legs for some time _______.
| A．you can’t use them any more |
| B．they will become stronger |
| C．they become weak and won’t become strong until you use them again. |
| D．they will become neither stronger nor weaker |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．Your memory works in the same way as your arms or legs. |
| B．Your memory, like your arms or legs, becomes weak if you don’t give it enough chance for practice. |
| C．Don’t learn how to read and write if you want to have a better memory. |
| D．A good memory comes from more practice. |
Some people can’t read or write, but they usually have better memories, because _______.
| A．they have save much trouble |
| B．they have saved much time to remember things |
| C．they have to use their memories all the time |
| D．they can’t write everything in a little notebook |
Which is the best title for this passage?
| A．Don’t Stop Using Your Arms Or Legs |
| B．How To Have a Good Memory |
| C．Strong Arms And Good Memories |
| D．Learn From the People |
Mr. Lang worked in a factory. As a driver, he was busy but he was paid much. His wife was an able woman and did all the housework. When he came back, she took good care of him and he never did anything at home. So he had enough time when he had a holiday. A few friends of his liked gambling(赌博) and he learned it soon. So he was interested in it and hardly forgot anything except gambling. He lost all his money and later he began to sell the television, watches and so on. His wife told him not to do it but he didn’t listen to her. She had to tell the police. He and his friends were punished for it. And he was hardly sent away. After he came out of lockup(拘留所), he hated her very much and the woman had to leave him.
It was New Year’s Day. Mr. Lang didn’t go to work. He felt lonely and wanted to gamble again. He called his friends and they came soon. But they were afraid the police would come. He told his five-year-old son to go to find out if there were the policemen outside. They waited for a long time and didn’t think the police would come and began to gamble. Suddenly opened the door and in came a few policemen.
“I saw there weren’t any policemen outside, daddy,” said the boy, “so I went to the crossing and asked some to come.”Mr. Lang was paid much because _______.
| A．he was a driver |
| B．he worked in a factory |
| C．he had a lot of work to do |
| D．he had worked there for a long time |
Mrs. Lang did all housework because _______.
| A．she couldn’t find any work |
| B．she thought her husband was tired |
| C．her husband spent all time in gambling |
| D．she wouldn’t stop her husband gambling |
_______, so he was put into lockup.
| A．Mr. Lang often gambled |
| B．Mr. Lang was late for work |
| C．Mr. Lang didn’t help his wife at home |
| D．Mr. Lang wasn’t polite to the police |
The woman had to leave Mr. Lang because _______.
| A．he didn’t love her any longer |
| B．he wouldn’t stop gambling |
| C．he had been put into lockup |
| D．he was hardly sent away by the factory |
Which of the following is right?
| A．The boy hoped his father to be put into lockup again. |
| B．The boy thought his father needed some policemen. |
| C．The boy hoped his father to stop gambling soon. |
| D．The boy hoped his mother to come back. |
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