Kincaid looked at his watch: eight-seventeen. The truck started on the second try, and he backed out, shifted gears, and moved slowly down the alley under hazy sun. Through the streets of Bellingham he went, heading south on Washington 11, running along the coast of Puget Sound for a few miles, then following the highway as it swung east a little before meeting U.S Route 20.
Turning into the sun, he began the long, winding drive through the Cascades. He liked this country and felt unpressed stopping now and then to make notes about interesting possibilities for future expeditions or to shoot what he called “memory snapshots.” The purpose of these causal photographs was to remind him of places he might want to visit again and approach more seriously. In later afternoon he turned north at Spokane, picking up U.S Route 2, which would take him halfway across the northern United States to Duluth, Minnesota.
He wished for the thousandth time in his life that he had a dog, a golden retriever, maybe, for travels like this and to keep him company at home. But he was frequently away; overseas much of the time and it would not be fair to the animal. Still, he thought about it anyway. In a few years he would be getting too old for the hard fieldwork. “I must get a dog then.” He said to himself.
Drives like this always put him into a sentimental mood. The dog was part of it. Robert Kincaid was alone as it’s possible to be – an only child, parents both dead, distant relatives who had lost track of him and he of them, no close friends.
He thought about Marian. She had left him nine years ago after five years of marriage. He was fifty–two now, that would make her just under forty. Marian had dreams of becoming a musician, a folksinger. She knew all of the Weavers’ songs and sang them pretty well in the coffeehouse of Seattle. When he was home in the old days, he drove her to the shows and sat in the audience while she sang.
His long absences – two or three months sometimes – were hard on the marriage. He knew that. She was aware of what he did when they decided to get married, and both of them had a vague (not clear) sense that it could all be handled somehow. It couldn’t when he came from photographing a story in Iceland and, she was gone. The note read, “Robert, it didn’t work out, I left you the Harmony guitar. Stay in touch.”
He didn’t stay in touch. Neither did she. He signed the divorce papers when they arrived a year later and caught a plane for Australia the next day. She had asked for nothing except her freedom.
46. Which route is the right one taken by Kincaid?
A. Bellingham – Washington 11 – Puget Sound – U.S Route 20 – U.S Route 2 – Duluth
B. U.S. Route 2 – Bellingham – Washington 11 – Puget Sound – U.S Route 20 – Duluth
C. U.S. Route 2 – U.S Route 20 – Duluth – Bellingham – Washington 11
D. Bellingham – Washington 11 –U.S. Route 2 –U.S Route 20 –Duluth
47. Which statement is true according to the passage?
A. Kincaid’s parents were dead and he only kept in touch with some distant relatives.
B. Kincaid would have had a dog if he hadn’t been away from home too much.
C. Kincaid used to have a golden retriever.
D. Kincaid needed a dog in doing his hard fieldwork.
48. Why did Kincaid stop to take photos while driving?
A. To write “memory snapshots”.
B. To remind himself of places he might want to visit again.
C. To avoid forgetting the way back.
D. To shoot beautiful scenery along the road.
49. What can you know about Marian?
A. She died after five years of marriage.
B. She was older than Kincaid.
C. She could sing very well and earned big money.
D. She was not a professional pop singer.
50. We can draw a conclusion from the passage that _____
A. Marian knew what would happen before she married Kincaid.
B. Kincaid thought his absence would be a problem when he married Marian.
C. It turned out that Marian could not stand Kincaid’s absence and left him.
D. After Marian left him, they still kept in touch with each other.
I was in a strange city I didn’t know at all, and what’s more, I could not speak a word of the language. On my second day I got on the first bus that passed, rode on it for several stops, then got off and walked on. The first two hours passed pleasantly enough, then I decided to turn back to my hotel for lunch. After walking about for some time, I decided I had better ask the way. The trouble was that the only word I knew of the language was the name of the street in which I lived, and even that I pronounced badly. I stopped to ask a newspaper-seller. He handed me a paper. I shook my head and repeated the name of the street and he put the paper into my hands. I had to give him some money and went on my way. The next person, I asked was a policeman. He listened to me carefully, nodded and gently took me by the arm. There was a strange look in his eyes as he pointed left and right and left again. I nodded politely and began walking in the direction he pointed.
About an hour passed and I noticed that the houses were getting fewer and fewer and green fields were appearing on either side of me. I had come all the way into the countryside. The only thing left for me to do was find the nearest railway station.The writer preferred to walk back to his hotel because ________.
A.he had no money to buy a ticket |
B.he wanted to lose himself in the city |
C.he tried to know the city in this way |
D.it was late and there were no buses passing by |
The newspaper-seller______.
A.didn’t know where the hotel was |
B.didn’t understand what the writer said |
C.could understand what the writer said |
D.didn’t want to take the money from the writer |
From the story we know that the policeman______.
A.was kind but didn’t understand the writer |
B.told the writer where to take a train |
C.knew what the writer really meant |
D.was cold-hearted and didn’t help the writer |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A.The writer got close to the hotel where he stayed. |
B.The writer got to the hotel with the policeman’s help. |
C.The writer found he was much farther away from the hotel. |
D.The writer found the hotel in the direction the policeman pointed. |
In your opinion, what was the writer’s real trouble?
A.He didn’t know the city at all. |
B.He couldn’t speak the language. |
C.He went too far in the wrong bus. |
D.He followed the policeman’s direction. |
People have strange ideas about food. For example, tomato is a kind of very delicious vegetable. It is one of useful plants that can be prepared in many ways. It has rich nutrition(营养) and vitamin in it. But in the 18th century, Americans never ate tomatoes. They grew them in their gardens because tomato plants are so pretty. But they thought the vegetable was poisonous(有毒的). They called tomatoes “poison apples”.
President Thomas Jefferson, however, knew that tomatoes were good to eat. He was a learned man. He had been to Paris, where he learned to love the taste of tomatoes. He grew many kinds of tomatoes in his garden. The President taught his cook a way for a cream of tomato soup. This beautiful pink soup was served at the President party. The guests thought the soup tasted really good. They never thought their president would serve his honored guests poison apples. Jefferson never spoke to his honored guests about the fact.Tomato is a kind of ___________.
A.poisonous fruit | B.poisonous vegetable |
C.tasty fruit | D.tasty vegetable |
After you read the passage, which of the following do you think is true?
A.Americans never ate tomatoes after they began to plant them. |
B.Americans didn’t eat tomatoes before 19th century. |
C.Even now Americans don’t eat tomatoes. |
D.In the 18th century Americans ate a lot of tomatoes. |
Jefferson learned that tomatoes were good to eat ____.
A.while he was in Paris | B.when he was a little boy |
C.because his parents told him so | D.from books |
From the passage we know all the honored guests invited by Jefferson were____.
A.people from other countries | B.from France |
C.people of his own country | D.men only |
According to the passage, which of the following is NOT TRUE?
A.None of the guests knew the soup that was served at the President’s party was made of tomatoes. |
B.All of the guests thought the soup which was prepared by the President’s cook was nice. |
C.President Thomas Jefferson knew that tomatoes were good to eat and not poisonous at all. |
D.All of the guests didn’t know that their president would serve his honored guests poison apples. |
The pen is more powerful than the sword. There have been many writers who use their pens to write things that were wrong. Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe was one of them.
She was born in the U. S. A. in 1811. One of her books not only made her famous but has been described as one that excited the world, and was helpful in causing a civil war and freeing the enslaved race. The civil war was the American Civil War of 1861, in which the Northern States fought the Southern States and finally won.
This book that shook the world was called Uncle Tom's Cabin. There was a time when every English-speaking man, woman, and child had read this novel that did so much to stop slavery. Not many people read it today, but it is still very interesting, if only to show how a warm-hearted writer can arouse people's sympathies. The author herself had neither been to the Southern States nor seen a slave. The Southern Americans were very angry at the book, which they said did not at all represent the true state of affairs, but the Northern Americans were widely excited over it, and were so inspired by it that they were ready to go to war to set the slaves free.Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe became famous for .
A.one of her books |
B.she was a very heartedly person |
C.she was a kind wife |
D.she worked for the war |
How old was Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe when her world famous book was published?
A.About sixty years old. |
B.Over fifty years old. |
C.In her forties. |
D.Around twenty years old. |
What do we learn about Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe from the passage?
A.Before the civil war she had been a slave. |
B.Before the civil war she had lived in the north of America. |
C.She had a good school education. |
D.She was better at writing than swinging a sword. |
Why could Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe's book cause a civil war in America? Because .
A.she disclosed the terrible wrongs done to the slaves in the Southern States |
B.she wrote so well that the Americans loved her very much |
C.the Americans were too excited when they reads the book |
D.the Southern Americans hated the book, while the Northern Americans liked it |
What can we learn from the passage?
A.No wor can be won without such a book as Uncle Tom's Cabin. |
B.We must understand the importance of literature and art. |
C.We needn't use weapons to fight things that are wrong. |
D.A writer is more helpful in war than a soldier. |
I moved to Chicago ten years ago. As I was new to the area, I had friends and seldom went out to parties. But a month later, I was invited to a party and there I an elderly couple.
The wife and I for a long time. She told me how she was about her husband who was a heart operation. At that time I was working as a researcher in the same where the husband would be going for his operation, I told her to take down my phone number and me to let me know when he was there.
She phoned a few weeks later as and told me that her husband was admitted to the hospital and
waiting. I told her that I would go and check on him every day while I was at . I thought that if it was my dad, I would do the same, so I decided to give them some .
Weeks turned into months and it just became my to see them and keep track of how things were going before, during and after the heart operation. Sometimes I'd bring a for him to read, or some food that we would share . As time went by, it seemed like I became part of the . Even after the husband returned from the hospital, we still often each other on holidays.
Now, ten years later, I my own family. Since our parents don’t close by, this couple has become my son’s “local” grandparents. My wife and I often feel truly to have this couple as our “local” parents! Sometimes family comes out of the most unexpected place.
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Two Chinese living in South Africa were killed in a robbery (抢劫) on February 5, bringing the total number of Chinese killed in the country to four in less than a month.
Chen Jianqing, 35, from Southeast China's Fujian Province, who ran a shop with her husband in a small town 45 kilometers away from South African capital Johannesburg, was shot dead.
"One of her business partners died later in the hospital," the Chinese consulate (领事馆) officials in Johannesburg said yesterday. "Local police are trying to find more information about the case. And we have told the victims' (遇难者的) relatives and are helping them come to Johannesburg," Consul Wu Gang told China Daily. Chen's husband was injured during the robbery but did not suffer seriously, said Wu.
The robbery happened at about 5:45 pm local time and the armed robbers ran away after taking more than 50,000 South African rand (US $8,200) and some jewelry, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The killing happened just three days after Chen Jingmin, a 23-year-old man from Qingdao, Shandong Province, was shot dead north outside Johannesburg by armed robbers. On January 10, a Hong Kong businessman was attacked and robbed at his home in Johannesburg and died the next day in the hospital. All these happened just in less than a month.
According to records, there were more than 40 robberies attacking Chinese in South Africa last year, in which eight were killed. More than 100,000 Chinese are doing various kinds of businesses in South Africa, according to a Chinese official in the country. An increasing number of them are becoming targets (目标) of robbers after buying big houses or luxury cars, the official said.. The passage is probably ______.
A.a business story | B.a scientific article |
C.a newspaper report | D.an official document |
. Who were killed on February 5 in a small town near Johannesburg?
A.Chen Jianqing and her husband. |
B.Chen Jianqing and one of her partners. |
C.Chen Jingmin and a Hong Kong businessman. |
D.Chen Jingmin and one of his relatives. |
. How many Chinese were killed in South Africa since January ?
A.2 | B.4. |
C.5. | D.8. |
. _______are more likely to be robbed in South Africa.
A.Those Chinese who depend too much on local police |
B.Those Chinese who live near the capital of South Africa |
C.Those Chinese who open shops selling Chinese goods |
D.Those Chinese who leave others the impression of being rich |