Like many lovers of books, Mary and her husband, Richard Goldman, seldom walked past a bookstore without stopping to look inside. They often talked of opening their own store one day.
When Mary was in hospital with heart trouble in 1989, they decided it was time to get serious. Richard, who worked for a business company, wanted to work for himself, and Mary needed to slow down from her job.
They started by talking to bookstore owners and researching(调查) the industry. “We knew it had to be a specialty store because we couldn’t match the big chains dollar for dollar,” says Mary. One figure caught her attention: She’d read somewhere that roughly 20 percent of books sold were mysteries(推理小说), and many buyers spent more than $300 a year on books. She and Richard were themselves mystery readers.
On Halloween 1992, they opened the Mystery Lovers Bookshop and Café near their home. With three children in college, the couple could not spend all the family’s money to start a shop. To cover the whole $ 100, 000 cost, they drew some of their savings, borrowed from relatives and from a bank.
The store broke even in its first year, with only $ 120,000 in sales. But Mary was always coming up with new ways to attract customers. The shop had a coffee bar and it offered gifts to mystery lovers and served dinners for book clubs that met in the store. She also invited dozens of writers to discuss their stories.
Today Mystery Lovers makes sales of about $ 420,000 a year. After paying taxes, business costs and the six part-time sales clerks, Richard and Mary together earn about $ 34,000.
“The job you love may not go hand in hand with a million-dollar income,” says Richard. “This has always been about an enjoyable life for ourselves, not about making a lot of money.” After Mary got well from her illness they began _________.
| A．to study industrial management (工业管理) |
| B．to buy and read more mystery books |
| C．to do market research on book business |
| D．to work harder to save money for the bookstore |
How did their bookstore do in the first year?
| A．They had to borrow money to keep it going. |
| B．They made just enough to cover all the costs. |
| C．They succeeded in earning a lot of money. |
| D．They failed though they worked hard. |
According to Richard, the main purpose(目的) of running the bookstore is _________.
| A．to pay for children’s education |
| B．to get to know more writers |
| C．to set up more bookstores |
| D．to do what they like to do |
Zhang Lin is a middle school student. He is a good boy. Uncle Wu lives next to him. Uncle Wu has no child and can’t see anything. He works in the factory (工厂) near Zhang Lin’s school. He goes to work at 7:30 in the morning and comes home at 4:30 in the afternoon. Zhang Lin walks to school at 8:00 in the morning and comes home at the same time as Uncle Wu in the afternoon. On weekdays Zhang Lin gets up early to take Uncle Wu to the factory. After school he takes him home. On Sundays Zhang Lin helps Uncle Wu clean the house and do some cooking. Uncle Wu thanks Zhang Lin very much. He says, “Zhang Lin is a good boy. He is like my son.”On weekdays, Zhang Lin gets up early to .
| A．go to school | B．run |
| C．take Uncle Wu to the factory | D．cook |
School is over at .
| A．3：30 | B．4：30 | C．5：00 | D．7：00 |
Which of the following is right ?
| A．Zhang Lin likes Uncle Wu’s son. |
| B．Zhang Lin is Uncle Wu’s son. |
| C．Zhang Lin looks like Uncle Wu’s son. |
| D．Zhang Lin is like Uncle Wu’s son. |
Tom is a young man. He has a very big dog and he has a very small car, too. He likes playing tennis. Today he plays tennis for two hours at the club and then he wants to go home by car. His dog comes after him, but it does not jump into the same car. It jumps into the next car. "Come here, foolish(愚蠢的) dog!" Tom shouts at it, but the dog still stays in the next car. Tom puts his key into the lock（锁）of the car, but the key does not turn（转动）. Then he looks at the car again. It is not his car! He is in the wrong car! And the dog is in the right car!Today Tom plays ________ for two hours.
| A．soccer | B．tennis |
| C．volleyball | D．football |
When Tom puts his key into the lock of the car, the key ________.
| A．doesn't turn | B．turns |
| C．is lost | D．isn’t lost |
In fact （事实上），________ is in the right car.
| A．Tom | B．Tom's bag |
| C．Tom's dog | D．Tom’s lock |
A man made a nice talking machine（机器）.It could weigh people’s weight .The man wanted to try the machine before he could make a lot of machines.
He put the machine into the waiting room of a station. There were always lots of people in and out.
The first one who used the machine was an Indian woman. She stood on the machine, the machine thought for a few seconds to decide which language to speak. “Good morning, Madam.” it said in Indian. “Your weight is 72 kilograms. That’s three kilograms more .If you eat more fruit and vegetables, you will be soon all right. Please have a nice day.”
The second one to use the machine was a Chinese girl .She stood on the machine and waited to hear her weight. “Good morning, Miss.” the machine said in Chinese. “Your weight is 45 kilograms. It’s all right for your age. Keep eating what you eat every day. Please have a nice day.”
The third one to use the machine was a very fat American woman. She thought for a long time to stand on the machine. The machine spoke quickly in English, “Good morning. Will one of you get off?”The machine in this passage could _______ .
| A．weigh and talk to people |
| B．tell people what they should eat |
| C．speak all kinds of languages |
| D．make people laugh |
The man put his first machine _______ .
| A．in the station |
| B．in a train |
| C．in the doctor’s waiting room |
| D．in the women’s room |
The machine told the Indian woman _______ .
| A．she was a little lighter |
| B．she was a little heavier |
| C．it couldn’t speak Indian |
| D．to eat what she wanted to eat |
How was the American woman?
| A．She was healthy. | B．She liked thinking. |
| C．She was too heavy. | D．The machine didn’t like her. |
American schools begin in September after the long summer holidays. There are two terms in a school year; the first term is from September to January, and the second is from February to June. Most American children go to public schools.
High school students study only four or five subjects at a time. They usually go to the same classes every day, and they have an assignment(课外作业) for every class. After class they have many activities.
After high school, many students go to college. They can go to a small one or a large one. They usually have to pay a lot of money for college education (教育). But there are scholarships (奖学金) for good students, and many college students work part time in order to get money for their education.Most American children go to ______ .
| A．English schools | B．high schools |
| C．public schools | D．colleges |
______ can get scholarships.
| A．Many college students | B．All the students |
| C．Good high school students | D．Good college students |
Many college students work part time because ______ .
| A．they have many activities |
| B．they have a lot of free time |
| C．they like doing things |
| D．they have to pay a lot of money for their education |
Most American families are smaller than the families in other countries. Most American families have one or two parents and one or two children each.
Children in the US will leave their parents’ home when they grow up. They usually live far from their parents because they want to find good jobs. They often write to their parents or telephone them. And they often go to visit their parents on holiday.
Parents usually let their children choose their own jobs. Americans think it important for young people to decide on their lives by themselves.
Children are asked to do some work around their house. And in many families, children are paid for doing some housework so that they learn how to make money for their own use.The size of most American families is ________ that of other countries.
| A．larger than | B．smaller than |
| C．as big as | D．as small as |
When children grow up, they leave their parents’ home to _________.
| A．get married | B．be free |
| C．find good jobs | D．study |
Which of the following statements is WRONG?
| A．Children can choose their jobs by themselves. |
| B．Parents don’t ask their children to do the housework. |
| C．Parents think it important for children to choose their own jobs. |
| D．When children grow up, they usually live far away from their home. |