14．Londoners are great readers．They buy vast numbers of newspapers and magazines and of books---especially paperbacks，which are still comparatively cheap in spite of ever-increasing rises in the costs of printing．They still continue to buy"proper"books，too，printed on good paper and bound（装订）between hard covers．
There are many streets in London containing shops which specialize in book-selling．Perhaps the best known of these is Charring Cross Road in the very heart of London．Here bookshops of all sorts and sizes are to be found，from the celebrated one which boasts of being"the biggest bookshop in the world"to the tiny，dusty little places which seem to have been left over from Dickens'time．Some of these shops stock，or will obtain，any kind of book，but many of them specialize in second-hand books，in art books，in foreign books，in books on philosophy，politics or any other of the countless subjects about which books may be written．One shop in this area specializes only in books about ballet!
Although it may be the most convenient place for Londoners to buy books，Charring Cross Road is not the cheapest．For the really cheap second-hand books，the collector must venture off the beaten track，to Farringdon Road，for example，in the East Central district of London．Here there is nothing so impressive as bookshops．The booksellers come along each morning and pour out their sacks of books onto small hand carts．And the collectors，some professionals and some amateurs，have been waiting for them．In places like this they can still，occasionally，pick up for a few pence an old one that may be worth many pounds．
5．"Londoners are great readers"means thatD．
A．Londoners are great because they read a lot．
B．There are a great number of readers in London
C．Londoners are readers who read only great books
D．Londoners read a lot
6．According to this passage，Charring Cross RoadB．
A．is in the suburbs of London
B．is famous for its bookshops
C．contains various kinds of shops
D．is the busiest street in London
7．In this passage，what does the underlined part"venture off the beaten track"mean？B．
A．buy books in a most busy street
B．move away from a busy street
C．waste time looking for books
D．take a risk of losing one's life
8．On Farringdon Road，C．
A．you can find fine bookshops for the latest books
B．there are only small bookshops for the second-hand books
C．you can see book sellers selling books on hand-carts
D．the same books as the ones in the bookshops of Charring Cross Road are sold．
分析 文章主要讲述伦敦人都爱读书，伦敦市区到处是书店，从出名的书店到街边小推车都是一些买书的好地方．
解答 5．D 句意推测题．根据文章大意及第一段They buy vast numbers of newspapers and magazines and of books及They still continue to buy"proper"books可知伦敦人会买大量的报纸、杂志和书，由此可以推测出伦敦人喜欢阅读．故D正确．
6．B 细节理解题．根据文章第二段There are many streets in London containing shops which specialize in book-selling．Perhaps the best known of these is Charring Cross Road in the very heart of London．可知此地以它的书店而出名．故B正确．
7．B 词义推测题．Although it may be the most convenient place for Londoners to buy books，Charring Cross Road is not the cheapest．可知在Charring Cross Road买书很方便，但是书不便宜，要想买便宜的二手书需要venture off the beaten track，应该指的是离开这个繁忙地带，故B正确．
8．C 细节理解题．根据第三段的"The booksellers come along each morning and pour out their sacks of books onto small handcarts．"可知在你可以看到售书人在手推车上卖书，故答案为C．
点评 阅读理解题测试考生在阅读基础上的逻辑推理能力，要求考生根据文章所述事件的逻辑关系，对未说明的趋势或结局作出合理的推断；或根据作者所阐述的观点理论，对文章未涉及的现象、事例给以解释．考生首先要仔细阅读短文，完整了解信息，准确把握作者观点．
