The sharing economy has grown in recent years to include everything from apartment' sharing to car sharing to community tool sharing. Since 2009, a new form of sharing economy has been emerging in neighborhoods throughout the US and around the world-Little Free Library. The libraries are boxes placed in neighborhoods from which residents can withdraw(取出) and deposit(存入) books. Little Free Libraries come in all shapes and sizes. Some libraries also have themes, focusing on books for children, adults, or tour guides.
In 2009. Tod Bol built the first Little Free Library as a gift to his mother, who was a devoted reader. When he saw the people of his community gathering around it, exchanging conversation as well as books, he knew he wanted to take his simple idea further. "I think Little Free Libraries open the door to conversations we want to have with each other," Bol said. .
Since then, his idea has become a movement, spreading from state to state and country to country. According to Little FreeLibrary.org, there are now 18,000 0f the little structures around the world, located in each of the 50 US states and 70 countries in Europe, Africa and Asia.
The Internet has helped to spread Little Free Libraries. But an Atlantic article says the little, structures serve as a cure for a world of e-reader downloads . The little wooden boxes are refreshingly physical and human. For many people, the sense of discovery is Little Free Libraries' main appeal. "A girl walking home from school might pick up a graphic novel that gets her excited about reading; a man on his way to the bus stop might find a volume of poetry that changes his outlook on life," says the Atlantic article. "Every book is a potential source of inspiration "
How do Little Free Libraries get their books?
A.Citizens shared them. |
B.Tod Bol donated them. |
C.US government provided them. |
D.The communities bought them. |
Why did Tod Bol want to build more Little Free Libraries?
A.He wanted to promote his idea worldwide. |
B.He was inspired by the sharing economy. |
C.They can offer neighbors more chances to talk. |
D.They are a gift to please his mother. |
What does the author of the Atlantic article believe?
A.The Internet has helped to spread Little Free Libraries. |
B.Little Free Libraries are physical and human. |
C.E-reader downloads are undoubtedly beneficial. |
D.Little Free Libraries are more popular than e-reader downloads. |
Little Free Libraries attract readers most in that ______.
A.they connect strangers together |
B.they are located all over the world |
C.they are in various shapes and sizes |
D.they may give readers a sense of discovery |
When George was thirty-five, he bought a small plane and learned to fly it. He soon became very good and made his plane do all kinds of tricks (特技).
George had a friend, whose name was Mark. One day George offered to take Mark up in his plane.
Mark thought, “ I’ve traveled in a big plane several times, but I’ve never been in a small one, so I’ll go. ”
They went up, and George flew around for half an hour and did all kinds of tricks in the air.
When they came down again, Mark was glad to be back safely, and he said to his friend in a
shaking voice, “Well , George, thank you very much for those two trips in your plane.”
George was very surprised and said, “ Two trips? ”
“ Yes, my first and my last. ” answered Mark. Which of the following statements is false?
A.George learned to fly a plane very quickly . |
B.It took George a short time to learn to fly a plane. |
C.George had some difficulty learning to fly a plane. |
D.Mark decided to fly in George’s small plane. |
When George did some tricks with his small plane, Mark was _____.
A.unhappy | B.excited | C.frightened | D.surprised |
Mark went up in George’s plane _____.
A.twice | B.only once |
C.several times | D.once or twice |
One day, Wilson was walking quietly along the road when someone hit him hard on the back of his neck.He looked behind him, and saw a young man whom he had never seen before.
“How dare you hit me like that?” shouted Wilson.
The young man said he had mistaken Wilson for a friend of his and that he thought Wilson was making a lot of noise about nothing.
This insult (侮辱) made Wilson even angrier, of course, and he at once decided to bring the young man before a judge.
Now, the judge, who heard the case, was a friend of the young man’s father’s, and, although he pretended to be quite fair, he was thinking about what he could do to protect the young man from being punished while at the same time not to be appearing unfair.
Finally he said to Wilson, “I understand your feelings in this matter very well.Would you be satisfied if I let you hit the young man as he hit you?”
Wilson said he would not be.The young man had insulted him and should be properly punished.
“Well, then,” said the judge to the young man, “I order you to pay ten coins to Wilson.”
Ten coins was very little for such a crime, but the young man did not have it with him, so the judge allowed him to go and get it.
Wilson waited for him to return with the money.He waited an hour, and then two hours, while the judge took care of other business.
When it was nearly time for the court to close, Wilson chose a moment when the judge was especially busy, came up quietly and hit him hard on the back of the neck.Then he said to him, “I am sorry, but I can’t wait any longer.When the young man comes back, tell him that I have passed my right to the ten coins on to you.”Why did the young man hit Wilson from behind?
A.Wilson had hit him before. |
B.He had mistaken Wilson for a friend of his. |
C.Wilson was a stranger there. |
D.Wilson made a lot of noise when he was walking. |
Which of the following explanations has the closest meaning with the underlined word “properly”?
A.completely | B.correctly | C.immediately | D.finally |
The best title for this passage is ________.
A.I’ve passed my right on to you |
B.The judge and Wilson |
C.Wilson and the young man |
D.The young man was set free |
“I've changed my mind. I wanted to have a telescope, but now I want my daddy back." Lucien Lawrence’s letter to Father Christmas written after his schoolteacher father had been knifed to death outside his school gate, must have touched every heart. Lucien went on to say that without his father he couldn't see the stars in the sky. When those whom we love depart from us, we cannot see the stars for a while.
But Lucien, the stars are still there, and one day, when you are older and your tears have gone, you will see them again. And, in a strange way, I expect that you will find your father is there too, in your mind and in your heart. I find that my parents, long dead now, still figure in many of my dreams and that I think of them perhaps more than I ever did when they were alive. I still live to please them and I' m still surprised by their reactions. I remember that when I became a professor, I was so proud, or rather so pleased with myself, that I couldn't wait to cable my parents. The reply was a long time in coming, but when it did, all Mother said was “I hope this means that now you will have more time for the children!” I haven' t forgotten. The values of my parents still live on.
It makes me pause and think about how I will live on in the hearts and minds of my children and of those for whom I care. Would I have been as ready as Philip Lawrence have been to face the aggressors (挑衅者),and to lay down my life for those in my care? How many people would want me back for Christmas? It's a serious thought, one to give me pause.
I pray silently, sometimes, in the dead of night, that ancient cry of a poet “Deliver my soul from the sword (剑), and my darling from the power of the dog.” Yet I know the death comes to us all, and sometimes comes suddenly. We must therefore plan to live forever, but live as if we will die tomorrow. We live on, I'm sure, in the lives of those we loved, and therefore we ought to have a care for what they will remember and what they will treasure. If more parents knew this in their hearts to be true, there might be fewer knives on our streets today.According to the whole text we can see that the first paragraph ________.
A.explains the importance of a telescope |
B.shows the writer's pity on the kid |
C.acts as an introduction to the discussion |
D.makes a clear statement of the writer's views |
In the second paragraph the author mainly wants to explain to us ________.
A.how much he misses his parents now |
B.why his parents often appear in his dream |
C.when Lucien will get over all his sadness |
D.how proud he was when he succeeded in life |
In the writer's opinion, the value of a person’s life is ________.
A.to leave behind a precious memory to the people related |
B.to have a high sense of duty to the whole society |
C.to care what others will remember and treasure |
D.to share happiness and sadness with his family |
What feeling did the author’s mother express in her reply?
A.Proud. | B.Happy. | C.Disappointed. | D.Worried |
A year ago, August, Dave Fuss lost his job driving a truck for a small company in west Michigan. His wife, Gerrie, was still working in the local school cafeteria, but it was hard for Dave to find work, and the price of everything was rising. The Fusses were at the risk of joining the millions of Americans who have lost their homes in recent years. Then Dave and Gerrie received a timely gift—$7,000, a legacy(遗产) from their neighbors Ish and Arlene Hatch, who died in an accident. “It really made a difference when we were meeting difficulty.” says Dave.
But the Fusses weren’t the only folks in Alto and the neighboring town of Lowell to receive unexpected legacy from the Hatches. Dozens of other families were touched by what the Hatches had done. In some cases, it was a few thousand dollars; in others, it was more than $100,000.
It surprised nearly everyone that the Hatches had so much money, more than $3 million—they were an elderly couple who lived in an old house on what was left of the family farm.
Children of the Great Depression, Ish and Arlene were known for their habit of saving. They preferred comparison shopping and would go from store to store, checking prices before making a new purchase.
Through the years, the Hatches paid for local children to attend summer camps when their parents couldn’t afford it. “Ish and Arlene never asked if you needed anything,” says their friend Sandy Van Weelden, “They could see things they could do to make you happier, and they would do them.”
Even more extraordinary was that the Hatches gave away their farmland. It was the Hatches’ wish that their legacy—a legacy of kindness as much as one of dollars and cents—should enrich the whole community and last for generations to come.
Neighbors helping neighbors—that was Ish and Arlene Hatch’s story.According to the text, the Fusses ________.
A.were employed by a truck company | B.led a difficult life |
C.worked in a school cafeteria | D.lost their home |
What can we learn about the Hatches?
A.They had their children during the Great Depression. |
B.They left the old house to live on their family farm. |
C.They gave away their possessions(财产)to their neighbors. |
D.They helped their neighbors to find jobs. |
What Sandy Van Weelden said mainly tells us that the Hatches were _________.
A.understanding | B.kind | C.childlike | D.wealthy |
Early to bed, Early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
This is an old English saying. Have you heard it before? It means that we must go to bed early and get up early in the morning. If we do, we shall be healthy. We shall also be rich(wealthy) and clever(wise).
Is this true? Perhaps it is. the body must have enough sleep. Children need ten hours’ sleep every night. If you do not go to bed early, you cannot have enough sleep. Then you cannot think properly(适当地) and you cannot do your work properly. You will not be wise and you may not become wealthy!
Some people go to bed late at night and get up late in the morning. This is not good for them. We must sleep at night when it is dark. The dark helps us to sleep properly. When the daylight comes, we must get up. This is the time for exercise. Exercise means doing things with the body. Walking, running, jumping, swimming, and playing games are all exercise. If the body is not used, it becomes weak. Exercise keeps it strong. Exercise helps the blood to move ,brains(头脑) in our heads also need blood. We think with our brains. If we keep our bodies healthy, and take exercise, we can think better.
Our bodies also need air to breathe. Without air we die. We must have a lot of clean, fresh(新鲜的) air to breathe if we want to be healthy.A habit is something we do .
A.every month | B.twice a day | C.every week | D.very often |
Children need .
A.ten hours’ sleep | B.two hours’ exercise |
C.three hours’ homework | D.four hours’ games |
The best time to sleep is .
A.when it is dark | B.when you are tired |
C.after supper | D.after watching TV |