I am a person who does not like to wait．I don' t like lines, being put on hold when making a phone call, arriving at an appointment to find that my companion will be delayed and of course, I don * t like waiting rooms．
However, I realize that my agony(痛苦） will not be good for me, as an increasingly, crowded world can only mean one thing—more waiting．
Owing to this, I have taken a measure and decided to turn my disappointment to productive ends．In short, I am looking for what I call "waiting in line books"．
These are books that contain material designed for being read in shortened words, so there is no extended story line to lose track of．Another requirement is that they be small enough to slip neatly into my back pocket．
The other day I went to the supermarket．Convinced that the rain would keep most people away, I was surprised to see that the place was crowded with shoppers．Every checkout was open—and jammed! But I could take out my pocket book and go to work．
The more the world demands that I wait, the more I learn from my waiting library．Look at these titles: One Hundred Things Every American Should Know; The Poetry of Robert Frost; Living Thoughts of Leading Thinkers; Still More Toasts．I have learned interesting and enriching things and much knowledge from these books．
On a recent visit to the general store, I placed my order at the counter along with six or seven other people．The one female employee seemed to have her hands full as she rushed about．"Just be patient," she said to me．
No problem．I quietly opened my dictionary of prose （散文） and poetical quotations． Perhaps the other customers regarded me as a bookish, lonely soul．But little did they realize that I was enjoying the company of Shakespeare, Thoreau, Homer and Ben Johnson．According to the passage, the world ______．
| A．needs to produce many materials to use | B．is becoming more and more crowded |
| C．loses tracks of story line increasingly | D．is crowded with shoppers everywhere |
How did the author overcome his agony of waiting?
| A．By reading books designed to be read in shortened words． |
| B．By arriving early for an appointment． |
| C．By taking measures to produce some books for readers． |
| D．By keeping most people away from the supermarket for some reasons． |
Which of the following can't be carried in the author's pocket?
| A．One Hundred Things Every American Should Know |
| B．The Poetry of Robert Frost |
| C．Living Thoughts of Leading Thinkers |
| D．Homer and Ben Johnson |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．The author succeeded in changing his agony into fun． |
| B．The author was a bookish and lonely soul. |
| C．Six or seven employees in the store were busy in rushing about． |
| D．There were fewer customers in the supermarket on rainy days． |
How I Turned to Be Optimistic
I began to grow up that winter night when my parents and I were returning from my aunt＇s house, and my mother said that we might soon be leaving for America. We were on the bus then. I was crying, and some people on the bus were turning around to look at me. I remember that I could not bear the thought of never hearing again the radio program for school children to which I listened every morning.
I do not remember myself crying for this reason again. In fact, I think I cried very little when I was saying goodbye to my friends and relatives. When we were leaving I thought about all the places I was going to see—the strange and magical places I had known only from books and pictures. The country I was leaving never to come back was hardly in my head then.
The four years that followed taught me the importance of optimism, but the idea did not come to me at once. For the first two years in New York I was really lost—having to study in three schools as a result of family moves. I did not quite know what I was or what I should be. Mother remarried, and things became even more complex for me. Some time passed before my stepfather and I got used to each other. I was often sad, and saw no end to “the hard times. ”
My responsibilities in the family increased a lot since I knew English better than everyone else at home. I wrote letters, filled out forms, translated at interviews with Immigration officers, took my grandparents to the doctor and translated there, and even discussed telephone bills with company representatives.
From my experiences I have learned one important rule: Almost all common troubles eventually go away! Something good is certain to happen in the end when you do not give up, and just wait a little! I believe that my life will turn out all right, even though it will not be that easy. How did the author get to know America?
| A．From her relatives | B．From her mother |
| C．From Books and pictures | D．From radio programs |
Upon leaving for America the author felt .
| A．confused | B．excited | C．worried | D．amazed |
What can we learn about the author from Paragraph 4?
| A．She worked as a translator |
| B．She attended a lot of job interviews |
| C．She paid telephone bills for her family |
| D．She helped her family with her English |
The author believes that .
| A．her future will be free from troubles |
| B．it is difficult to learn to become patient |
| C．there are more good things than bad things |
| D．good things will happen if one keeps trying |
When you practice reading with passages shorter than book length, do not try to take in each word separately, one after the other. It is much more difficult to grasp the broad theme of the passage this way, and you will also get the stuck on individual words which may not be absolutely essential to a general understanding of the passage. It is a good idea to skim through the passage very quickly first to get the general idea of each paragraph. Titles, paragraph headings and emphasized word can be a great help in getting this skeleton outline of the passage. It is surprising how many people do not read titles, introductions or paragraph headings. Can you, without looking back, remember the title of this passage and the heading of this paragraph?
Most paragraphs of a passage or chapter have a 'topic sentence' which expresses the central idea. The remaining sentence expand or support that idea. It has been estimated that between 60% and 90% of all expositive（说明的）paragraphs in English have the topic sentence first. Always pay special attention to the first sentence of a paragraph; it is most likely to give you the main idea.
Sometimes , though , the first sentence in the paragraph does not have the feel of 'main idea' sentence. It does not seem to give us enough new information to justify a paragraph. The next most likely place to look for the topic sentence is the last sentence of the paragraph.
Remember that the opening and closing paragraphs of a passage or chapter are particularly important . The opening paragraph suggests the general direction and content of the piece, while the closing paragraph often summarizes the very essence （精髓）.It is a good idea to skim through a passage quickly first ________.
| A．at about 350 w. P.m.(words per minute) |
| B．to get the general idea of each paragraph |
| C．so that you can take in each word separately |
| D．to make sure you get to the end at least once |
The topic sentence of an expository paragraph in English_______.
| A．usually comes in the middle |
| B．is most likely to be found at the end |
| C．is most often at the beginning |
| D．is usually left out in expository writing |
Most expository paragraphs in English have a clearly defined topic sentence. In such paragraphs the topic sentence comes first ________.
| A．in about 40% of cases | B．in about 80% of cases |
| C．in about 20% cases | D．very rarely |
Some times we know the first sentence is not the topic sentence because ________.
| A．it does not seem to give us enough new information |
| B．it is not long enough |
| C．it does not come at the beginning |
| D．it does not make complete sentence |
Mark Twain left school when he was twelve. He had little school education. In spite of this, he became the most famous writer of his time. He made millions of dollars by writing. His real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens, but he is better known all over the world as Mark Twain, his penname.
Mark Twain was born in 1835 and he was not a healthy baby. In fact, he was not expected to live through the first winter. But with his mother’s care, he managed to survive. As a boy, he caused much trouble for his parents. He used to play jokes on all his friends and neighbors. He didn’t like to go to school, and he often ran away from home. He always went in the direction of the nearby Mississippi(密西西比河). He was nearly drowned nine times.
After his father’s death, Mark Twain began to work for a printer, who only provided him with food and clothing. Then, he worked as a printer, a river-boat pilot and later joined the army. But shortly after that he became a miner. During this period, he started to write short stories. Afterwards he became a full time writer.
In 1870, Mark Twain got married. In the years that followed he wrote many books including Tom Sawyer in 1876, and Huckleberry Finn in 1884, which made him famous, and brought him great fortune.
Unfortunately, Mark Twain got into debts in bad investments(投资) and he had to write large numbers of stories to pay these debts. In 1904, his wife died, and then three of his children passed away.
At the age of 70, his hair was completely white. He bought many white suits and neckties. He wore nothing but white from head to foot until his death on April 21, 1910.In his childhood, Mark Twain, ________.
| A．learned a lot at school |
| B．he often went swimming with other boys |
| C．his mother often worried about his safety |
| D．he often played games with other boys |
Which of the following shows the right order about Mark Twain?
a. He became a miner. b. He worked as a printer.
c. He got into debts. d. His father died.
e. He became a full-time writer. f. He joined the army.
| A．a—d—b—c—e—f | B．d—b—f—a—e—c |
| C．d—a—f—e—b—c | D．c—b—d—f—e—a |
In order to make a living, Mark Twain _______.
| A．first worked as a printer |
| B．did many kinds of work |
| C．wrote stories in the beginning |
| D．joined the army after he worked in a mine |
Before his death, Mark Twain _______.
| A．became a white man | B．was in low spirits |
| C．liked to buy all kinds of clothes | D．had nothing on |
Hobbs was an orphan（孤儿）. He worked in a factory and every day he got a little money. Hard work made him thin and weak. He wanted to borrow a lot of money to learn to paint pictures, but he did not think he could pay off the debts.
One day a lawyer said to him, “One thousand dollars, and here is the money.” As Hobbs took the package of notes, he was very dumbfounded. He didn’t know where the money came from and how to spend it. He said to himself, “I could go to find a hotel and live like a rich man for a few days; or I give up my work in the factory and do what I’d like to do: painting pictures. I could do that for a few weeks, but what would I do after that? I should have lost my place in the factory and have no money to live on. If it were a little less money, I would buy a new coat, or a radio, or give a dinner to my friends. If it were more, I could give up the work and pay for painting pictures. But it’s too much for one and too little for the other.”
“Here is the reading of your uncle’s will（遗嘱）,” said the lawyer, “telling what is to be done with this money after his death. I must ask you to remember one point. Your uncle has said you must bring me a paper showing exactly what you did with his money, as soon as you have spent it.”
“Yes, I see. I’ll do that,” said the young man.Hobbs wanted to borrow money to _______.
| A．study abroad | B．work abroad |
| C．pay off the debts | D．learn to paint pictures |
What does the underlined word “dumbfounded” （in Paragraph 2） probably mean?
| A．Surprised. | B．Frightened. |
| C．Satisfied. | D．Excited. |
With the money he got, at first Hobbs _______.
| A．planned to have a happy life for a few days |
| B．decided to give up his work in the factory |
| C．was to give a dinner to his friends |
| D．had no idea what to do |
Hobbs was asked to _______.
| A．tell the lawyer what he did with the money after spending it |
| B．read his uncle’s will |
| C．tell the lawyer what was to be done with the money |
| D．buy some pictures |
Air is an odorless (无气味的), invisible (看不见的) gas that surrounds the earth. It is everywhere on the planet. An “empty” drinking glass and an “empty” room, to give two examples, are not really empty. Each is filled with air. When the glass is filled with water, the water pushes the air out of the glass.
Air, as a gas, has no definite (明确的) shape, but, because it is matter, it takes up space. It is easy to prove that air is something that takes up space. Stuff a dry handkerchief into the bottom（底部） of a glass so that it will not fall out when the glass is turned upside-down. Push the upside-down glass; hold it straight into a jar of water till the glass is completely covered. When the glass is taken out of water, the handkerchief will be dry. The air inside the glass takes up space and keeps the water from coming in.What does the underlined word “Stuff” (in Paragraph 2) mean?
| A．Press tightly. | B．Take out. |
| C．Put down. | D．Turn fully. |
The writer tells us that _______.
| A．the experiment is done in the laboratory |
| B．the experiment is done outside the room |
| C．the experiment is easily done |
| D．the experiment is carried out indoors |
Which of the following pictures gives us the correct result?
( W—water; A—air; H—handkerchief )
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