Short and shy, Ben Saunders was the last kid in his class picked for any sports team. "Football, tennis
Cricket-anything with a round ball, I was useless, "he says now with a laugh. But back then he was the
object of jokes in school gym classes in England's rural Devonshire. 
     It was a mountain bike he received for his 15th birthday that changed him. At first the teen went biking
alone in a nearby forest. Then he began to cycle along with a runner friend. Gradually, Saunders set his mind
building up his body, increasing his speed, strength and endurance. At age 18, he ran his first marathon.
      The following year, he met John Ridgway, who became famous in the 1960s for rowing an open boat
across the Atlantic Ocean. Saunders was hired as an instructor at Ridgway's school of Adventure in Scotland,
where he learned about the older man's cold-water exploits (成就). Intrigued, Saunders read all he could about
Arctic explorers and North Pole expeditions, then decided that this would be his future.
     Journeys to the Pole aren't the usual holidays for British country boys, and many people dismissed his
dream as fantasy."John Ridgway was one of the few who didn't say, 'You are completely crazy,' Saunders
says.
     In 2001, after becoming a skilled skier, Saunders started his first long-distance expedition toward the North
Pole. He suffered frostbite, had a closer encounter (遭遇) with a polar bear and pushed his body to the limit.
     Saunders has since become the youngest person to ski alone to the North Pole, and he's skied more of the
Arctic by himself than any other Briton. His old playmates would not believe the transformation.
      This October, Saunders, 27, heads south to explore from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back, an 1800-mile journey that has never been completed on skis.

1. The turning point in Saunders' life came when  _____.

A. he started to play ball games
B. he got a mountain bike at age 15
C. he ran his first marathon at age 18
D. he started to receive Ridgway's training

2. We can learn from the text that Ridgway _______.

A. dismissed Saunders' dream as fantasy
B. built up his body together with Saunders
C. hired Saunders for his cold-water experience
D. won his fame for his voyage across the Atlantic

3. What do we know about Saunders?

A. He once worked at a school in Scotland.
B. He followed Ridgway to explore the North Pole.
C. He was chosen for the school sports team as a kid.
D. He was the first Briton to ski alone to the North Pole.

4. The underlined word "Intrigued" in the third paragraph probably means _____.

A. Excited  
B. Convinced
C. Delighted
D. Fascinated

5. It can be inferred tat Saunders' journey to the North Pole ______.

A. was accompanied by his old playmates
B. set a record in the North Pole expedition
C. was supported by other Arctic explorers
D. made him well-known in the 1960s

     November not only marks the publication of Toni Morrison's eagerly anticipated (期待) eighth novel,
Love, but it is also the tenth anniversary of her Nobel Prize for Literature. Morrison is the first black
woman to receive a Nobel, and so honored before her in literature are only two black men: Wole Soyinka,
the Nigerian playwright, poet and novelist, in 1986; and Derek Walcott, the Caribbean-born poet, in 1992.
But Morrison is also the first and only American-born Nobel prizewinner for literature since 1962, the year
novelist John steinbeck received the award.
     Like Song of Solomon, Love is a multigenerational story, revealing the personal and communal legacy
of an outstanding black family. As Morrison scholars will tell you, Love is the third volume of a literary
master's trilogy (三部曲) investigating the many complexities of love. This trilogy began with Beloved
(1988), which deals with a black mother's love under slavery and in freedom. Jazzy (1993), the second
volume, tells a story of romantic love in 1920s Harlem. This latest novel looks back from the 1970s to the
1940s and 50s.
     The emotional center of Love is Bill Cosey, the former owner and host of the shabby Cosey's Hotel and
Resort in Silk, North Carolina, described in the novel as "the best and best-known vacation sport for colored
folk on the East Coast." We get to know Cosey through the memories of five women who survive and love
him: his granddaughter, his widow, two former employees, and a homeless young girl.
     The latest novel, Love, had been described in the promotional material from her publisher as "Morrison's
most accessible work since Song of Solomon." This comparison to her third novel, published in 1977, was
an effective selling point.

1. What would be the best title for the text?

A. Toni Morrison's latest novels
B. Toni Morrison and her trilogy
C. Toni Morrison and her novel Love
D. Toni Morrison, the Nobel prizewinner

2. What can we learn about John Steinbeck?

A. He was a black writer.
B. He was born in America.
C. He received the Nobel Prize after Morrison
D. He was the first American novelist to win a Nobel

3. The similarity between Love and Song of Solomon is that they both _____.

A. belong to the same trilogy together with Beloved
B. concern families of more than one generation
C. deal with life of blacks under slavery
D. investigate life in 1920s Harlem

4. The novel Love mainly describes ______.

A. the best-known vacation spot for blacks
B. the life of an outstanding black family under slavery
C. the miserable experience of the five women in Harlem
D. the memories of five women about Bill Cosey

     LONDON Thursday Just Read-Eddy missed his girlfriend so made he flew back to Britain from Australia
to propose (求婚) to her. The problem is she did the same in the opposite direction.
     He and Anna even managed to miss each other when they sat in the same airport waiting room in Singapore
at he same time to wait for connecting flights.
     Anna, heartbroken, when she arrived at Eddy's Sydney flat to find he had flown to London, told The times:"It
was as though someone was playing a cruel joke on us."
     "He is the most romantic person I have ever known. I think our problem is that we are both quite impulsive
(冲动的) people. We are always trying to surprise each other."
     After an 11,000-mile flight across the globe, she was greeted by Eddy's astonished roommate asking what
she was doing.
     Eddy, a 27-year-old engineer taken year off to travel round Australia. But he was missing Anna, a 26-year
secretary, so much he got a job on a Sydney building site (工地) and started saving for a surprise.
     He then flew home to Britain and went to her flat armed with an engagement (订婚) ring, wine and flowers. 
     "I really missed Anna and I'd been thinking about her all the time. I was so excited when she phoned me
from Australia," he said.
     Eddy then asked Anna to marry him on the phone. "I didn't know whether to laugh or cry but I accepted,"
she said.
     Anna was given a tour of Sydney by Eddy's friends before going back home. Eddy and to stay in Britain
for two weeks because he could not change his ticket.

1. What does the last sentence of the first paragraph tell us?

A. Anna flew to Britain from Australia to marry him.
B. Anna flew to Australia from Britain to marry him.
C. Anna flew to Britain from Australia to propose to him.
D. Anna flew to Australia from Britain to propose to him.

2. The underlined word "miss"in paragraph 2 most probably means _____.

A. escape from
B. fail to understand
C. fail to meet
D. long to see

3. Eddy got a job on a Sydney building site because he _____.

A. wanted to travel round Australia
B. needed money to pay his daily cost
C. was an engineer at this building site
D. hoped to make money from this job

4. Which of the following is TRUE about Eddy and Anna according to the text?

A. Eddy proposed to Anna on the phone and Anna accepted.
B. Anna stayed in Australia waiting for Eddy's arrival.
C. Anna bad a good time touring Sydney with Daddy.
D. Eddy met Anna in the airport waiting room by chance.

     When I was in the third grade, I was picked to be the princess (公主) in the school play. For weeks
my mother had helped me practice my lines. But once onstage, every word disappeared from my head.
Then my teacher told me she had written a narrator's (解说者的) part for the play, and asked me to change
roles. Though I didn't tell my mother what had happened that day, she sensed my unhappiness and asked
if I wanted to take a walk in the yard.
     It was a lovely spring day. We could see dandelions (蒲公英) popping through the grass in bunches, as
if a painter had touched our landscape with bits of gold. I watched my mother carelessly bend down by one
of the bunches."I think I am going to dig up all these weeds," she said."From now on, we'll have only roses
in this garden." 
     "But I like dandelions," I protested. " All flowers are beautiful-even dandelions!"
     My mother looked at me seriously. "Yes, every flower gives pleasure in its own way, doesn't it?" she
asked thoughtfully. I nodded. " And that is true of people, too,"she added.
     When I realized that she had guessed my pain, I started to cry and told her the truth. 　　
     "But you will be a beautiful narrator," she said, reminding me of how much I loved to read stories aloud
to her.
     Over the next few weeks, with her continuous encouragement, I learned to take pride in the role. The big
day finally came. A few minutes before the play, my teacher came over to me. "Your mother asked me to give
this to you," she said, handing me a dandelion. After the play, I took home the flower, laughing that I was
perhapes the only person who would keep such a weed.

1. The girl did not play the role of the princess mainly because _____.

A. she felt nervous on the stage.
B. she lost her interest in that role.
C. she preferred the role of the narrator
D. she had difficulty memorizing her words

2. Why did the mother suggest a walk in the garden?

A. To remove the dandelions
B. To enjoy the garden scene
C. to have a talk with her daughter.
D. to hlep her daughter with the play.

3. What is the main idea of the story?

A. Everybody can find his or her own way to success.
B. Everybody has his or her own value in the world.
C. Everybody should learn to play different roles
D. Everybody has some unforgettable memory.

     Andy rode slowly on his way to school, day-dreaming about the fishing trip that his father had promised
him. He was so busy dreaming about all the fish he would catch that he was unaware of everything else
around him.
     He rode along until a strange sound drew him to the present. He came to a stop and looked curiously up
to the heavens. What he saw shocked and terrified him. A huge swarm of bees filled the sky like a black
cloud and the buzzing mass seemed to be heading angrily towards him.
     With no time to waste, Andy sped off in the opposite direction, riding furiously-but without knowing how
to escape the swarm. With a rapidly beating heart and his legs pumping furiously, he sped down the rough
road. As the bees came closer, his panic increased. Andy knew that he was sensitive to bee stings (蜇). The
last sting had landed him in hospital-and that was only one bee sting! He had been forced to stay in bed for
two whole days. Suddenly, his father's words came to him. "When you are in a tight situation, don't panic.
Use your brain and think your way out of it."
     On a nearby hill, he could see smoke waving slowly skywards from the chimney of the Nelson family
home. "Bees don't like smoke," he thought. "They couldn't get into the house." Andy raced towards the Nelson
house, but the bees were gaining ground. Andy knew he could not reach the house in time. He estimated that
the bees would catch up with him soon.
     Suddenly, out of the corner of his eyes, he spotted a small dam used by Mr. Nelson to irrigate his vegetable
garden. Off his bike and into the cool water he lived, disappearing below the surface and away from the savage
insects. After holding his breath for as long as he could, Andy came up for air and noticed the bees had gone.
Dragging himself out of the dam, he struggled up the hilly slope and rang the doorbell. Mrs. Nelson took him
inside and rang his mother.
     "You'll really need that fishing break to help you recover," laughed his mother with relief. "Thank goodness
you didn't panic!" But Andy did not hear her. He was dreaming once again of the fish he would catch
tomorrow.

1. Why did Andy fail to notice the swarm of bees earlier?

A. He was riding to school.
B. He was listening to a strange sound.
C. He was going fishing with his father.
D. He was lost in the thought of the fishing trip.

2. Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the swarm of bees in the passage?

A. They crowded like a black cloud.
B. They shocked and terrified Andy.
C. They tried to attack Andy in a mass.
D. They made Andy stay in hospital for two days.

3. How did Andy avoid the bees in the end?

A. He asked Mr. Nelson for help.
B. He did himself under the water.
C. He rushed into the Nelson house.
D. He rode off in the opposite direction.

4. Which of the following can best describe Andy's escape from the bees?

A. No pains, no gains.
B. Once bitten, twice shy.
C. Where there is a will, there is a way.
D. In time of danger, one's mind works fast.