Mini  Book  Excerpts（节选）
Biography
When Salinger learned that a car park was to be built on the land, the middle-aged writer was shocked and quickly bought the neighboring area to protect it… The townspeople never forgot the rescue and came to help their most famous neighbor.
J. D.  Salinger：A  Life by Kenneth Slawenski（Random House,$27）Mystery（疑案小说）
“You’re a smart boy. Benny’s death was no accident, and you’re the only who saw it happen. Do you think the murderer should get away with it ? ”The boy was staring stubbornly at his lap again.
A thought suddenly occurred to Ammika,“ Did you …You recognized the man in the car,   didn’t you?”
The boy hesitated, twisting his fingers,“ Maybe,” he said quietly.
Red Wolf by Liza Marklund（Atria Books, $25. 99）
Short Stories
She wants to say to him what she has learned, none of it in class：Some women are born stupid, and some women are too smart for their own good. Some women are born to give ,and some women only know how to take. Some women learn who they want to be from their mothers, some who they don’t want to be. Some mothers suffer so their daughters won’t. Some mothers love so their daughters won’t.
You Are Free by Danzy Senna （Riverhead Books,$15）
Humor
Do your kids like to have fun? Come to Fun Times! Do you like to watch your kids having fun? Bring them to Fun Times! Fun Times!’s “amusement cycling”is the most fun you can have, legally, in the United States right now. Why spend thousands of dollars flying to Disney World when you can spend less than half to that within a day’s drive of most cities?
Happy And Other Bad Thoughts by Larry Doyle（Ecco,$14. 99）
【小题1】. If the readers want to know about the life of Salinger , they should buy the book published by                   .

A．Ecco

B．Atria Books

C．Riverhead Books

D．Random House

【小题2】.  The book Happy And Other Bad Thoughts is intended for                .

A．young children	B．Disney World workers
C．middle school teachers	D．parents with young children

【小题3】.  Which book describes women with characters of their own?
A.  Happy And Other Bad Thoughts
B.  J.  D. Salinger: A Life
C.  You Are Free
D.  Red Wolf
【小题4】  After finishing the book Red Wolf, the readers would learn that               .

A．the boy helped arrest the murderer

B．Benny died of an accident

C．the murderer got away with the crime

D．Ammika carried out the crime

March, April and May are months full of festivals and events all over the world. Here are some wonderful festivals around the world that happen in spring.
SongKran--Thailand
Dates: 13^th-15th, April
In Thailand, it’s time to celebrate the coming monsoon season, which will bring the rain many people have been looking forward to. They celebrate it with a festival called Songkran, when people head out to the streets with water guns to spray(喷，洒）everyone who walks past. If you walk on the streets where the festival is celebrated, prepare to get soaked!
Naghol--Vanuatu
Dates: Every Saturday from April to May
Every year, villagers come together to celebrate the harvest of yams, an important part in the peopls’s diet in Vanuatu. The festival is most famous for its “land diving ceremony”. During the ceremony men and boys dive to the ground from high wooden towers with only two thin vines attached(附于)to their ankles(脚踝）. The divers’ heads have to lightly touch the ground when they jump---something very dangerous if the vines are not measured（测量）properly.
Cherry Blossom Viewing ---Japan
Dates: The cherry blossom season is different from year to year depending on the weather forecast.
The cherry blossom season has huge importance to the people of Japan, who celebrate the days when the flowers finally blossom. Only a few days later, the petals(花瓣） fall to the ground, like pink snowflakes. This is one of the most beautiful things to see. In Japan, almost everyone has picnics in the parks to view the flowers.
Sinhalese New Year--Sri Lanka
Dates: 13^th or 14^th, April
Just like in many other countries in South an South East Asia, this is the time when the Sinhalese celebrate the traditional New Year, an ancient celebration which marks the end of the harvest season and is one of two times of the year when the sun is straight above Sri Lanka. There are a lot of delicious foods during the celebration.
【小题1】. What does the underlined word “ soaked” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

A．tired

B．wet

C．crazy

D．interested

【小题2】The writer thinks that the “land diving ceremony” can be dangerous for the divers because ___________.

A．the divers may fall onto the ground if the thin vines break

B．the divers may bump into （撞在…上）the wooden tower on the way down

C．the divers’ ankles may get injured if the vines are tied too tightly

D．the divers may injure（伤害）their heads if the vines aren’t measured properly

【小题3】We can learn from the passage that__________________.

A．the Cherry Blossom Celebration usually lasts a long time in Japan

B．the Cherry Blossom Celebration is the most important festival in Japan

C．the time for the Cherry Blossom Celebration in Japan can be different yearly

D．people usually stay at home for celebration during the cherry blossom season.

Concern with money, and then more money, in order to buy the conveniences and luxuries of modern life, has brought great changes to the lives of most Frenchmen. More people are working harder than ever before in France. In the cities the traditional leisurely midday meal is disappearing. Offices, shops, and factories are discovering the great efficiency of a short lunch hour in company lunch rooms. In almost all lines of work emphasis now falls on ever increasing output. Thus the “typical” Frenchman produces more, earns more, and buys more consumer goods than his counterpart of only a generation ago. He gains in creature comfort and ease of life. What he loses to some extent is his sense of personal uniqueness, or individuality.
Some say that France has been Americanized. This is because the United States is a world symbol of the technological society and its consumer products. The so called Americanization of France has its critics. They fear that “assembly line life” will lead to the disappearance of the pleasures of the more graceful and leisurely (but less productive) old French style. What will happen, they ask, to taste, elegance, and the cultivation of the good things in life to joy in the smell of a freshly picked apple, a stroll by the river, or just happy hours of conversation in a local café?
Since the late 1950s life in France has indeed taken on qualities of rush, tension, and the pursuit of material gain. Some of the strongest critics of the new way of life are the young, especially university students. They are concerned with the future, and they fear that France is threatened by the triumph of this competitive, goods-oriented culture. Occasionally, they have reacted against the trend with considerable violence.
In spite of the critics, however, countless Frenchmen are committed to keeping France in the forefront of the modern economic world. They find that the present life brings more rewards, conveniences, and pleasures than that of the past. They believe that a modern, industrial France is preferable to the old.
【小题1】Which of the following is a feature of the old French way of life?

A．Leisure, elegance, and efficiency

B．Elegance, efficiency, and taste

C．Leisure, elegance, and taste

D．Elegance, efficiency, and leisure

【小题2】Which of the following is NOT true about Frenchmen?

A．Many of them prefer the modern life style.

B．They actually enjoy working at the assembly line.

C．They are more concerned with money than before.

D．They are more competitive than the old generation.

【小题3】The passage suggests that _________.

A．in pursuing material gains the French are suffering losses elsewhere

B．it’s now unlikely to see a Frenchman enjoying a stroll by the river

C．the French are fed up with the smell of freshly picked apples

D．great changes have occurred in the life style of all Frenchmen

【小题4】Which of the following is true about the critics?

A．Critics are greater in number than people enjoying the new way of life.

B．Students critics are greater in number than critics in other fields.

C．Students critics have, on occasion, resorted to violent means against the trend.

D．Critics are concerned solely with the present and not the future.

【小题5】Which of the following best states the main idea of the passage?

A．Changes in the French Way of Life

B．Criticism of the New Life Style

C．The Americanization of France

D．Features of the New Way of Life

“Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton (骨骼) in the closet (衣橱)?” Jessica asked. “A skeleton in the closet?” her mother paused thoughtfully. “Well, it’s something that you would rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad’s family had been arrested for stealing a horse, it would be ‘a skeleton in his family’s closet’. He really wouldn’t want any neighbor to know about it.”
“Why pick on my family?” Jessica’s father said with anger. “Your family history isn’t so good, you know. Wasn’t you great-great grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?” “Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners.” “Gosh, sorry for my asking. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut in before things grew worse.
After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica’s parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper, pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica’s closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica’s mother sank into a faint (晕倒), waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.
“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school’s skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They’re both crazy,” she thought.
【小题1】According to Jessica’s mother, “a skeleton in the closet” means ______.

A．a family honor

B．a family secret

C．a family story

D．a family treasure

【小题2】 What can we learn about some Australian’s ancestors from Paragraph 2?

A．They were brought to Australia as prisoners.

B．They were the earliest people living in Australia.

C．They were involved in some crimes in Australia.

D．They were not regarded as criminals in their days.

【小题3】 Jessica’s mother fell down into a faint because she was ______.

A．knocked

B．frightened

C．injured

D．surprised

【小题4】 Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?

A．She was very curious about it.

B．She planned to keep it for fun.

C．She needed it for her school task.

D．She intended to scare her parents.

【小题5】 Jessica’s parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because ______.

A．they were quite crazy

B．they realized their misunderstanding

C．they were overexcited

D．they both thought they had won the quarrel

                            B
　　What is language for? Some people seem to think it's for practicing grammar rules and learning lists of words—the longer the lists，the better. That's wrong. Language is for the exchange（交流）of ideas and information. It's meaningless knowing all about a language if you can't use it freely. Many students I have met know hundreds of grammar rules, but they can't speak correctly or fluently. They are afraid of making mistakes. One shouldn't be afraid of making mistakes when speaking a foreign language. Native speakers make mistakes and break rules, too. Bernard saw once wrote, "Foreigners often speak English too correctly." But the mistakes that native speakers make are different from those that Chinese students make. They're English mistakes in the English language. And if enough native speakers break a rule, it is no longer a rule. What used to be wrong becomes right. People not only make history, they make language. But a people can only make its own language. It can't make another people's language. So Chinese students of English should pay attention to grammar, but they shouldn't overdo（做过头）it. They should put communication first.　
【小题1】Language is used to ________.
A. express oneself　　　        B. practice grammar rules
B. talk with foreigners only    D. learn lists of words
【小题2】Generally, when an American or an Englishman speaks English, he ________.

A．never makes mistakes	B．often makes mistakes
C．can't avoid making mistakes	D．always makes mistakes

【小题3】"Foreigners often speak English too correctly. "This sentence means that ________.

A．foreigners speak correct English

B．foreigners speak incorrect English

C．foreigners speak English according to the grammar rules

D．foreigners never make mistakes when they speak English

【小题4】If too many native speakers break a rule, ________.

A．what they use will become right	B．they are against the law
C．they should say sorry to others	D．they will become heroes

【小题5】When we speak a foreign language, we should ________.

A．speak in Chinese way	B．speak by the rules
C．speak to native speakers	D．not be afraid of making mistakes

English Language and Culture Program
If you wish to improve your English-language skills as well as your understanding of the Canadian cultural context, the courses offered by ELC Evening are for you. Whether your goals are academic, business or immigration-related, there is a course to meet your needs．
Evening course tuition:$490,0．
All evening courses run for 10 weeks．A $50 discount is available to returning students or students attending two or more courses．
ELC 550
Mondays, July 7 - September 22, 2008August 4 & September 11- HOLIDAY
Mondays, October 6-December 15．2008 October 13-HOLIDAY
This course is designed for non-native Englisli speakers who wish to take the 1ELTS （International English Language Testing System） exam．Each week, participants （参加者）focus on specific modules of the test （speaking, reading, listening, and writing） to develop and improve the skills they need to succeed on the exam．
ELC 552
Tuesdays, Aprils8-June 10,2008
Tuesdays, October 7 - December．16, 2008 November 11 - HOLIDAY
This course is designed for participants who wish to improve their fluency and expressiveness in English．Production skills will be targeted, including pronunciation, intonation, rhythm, and stress．Participants are required to complete weekly in-class assignments （任务）, including speeches, monologues, interviews, and role-plays．
ELC 554
Wednesdays, July 9 - September 10．2008
Wednesdays, October 8 -December 10．2008
This course is designed for non-native English-speaking university and college participants who wish to improve their academic leading and writing skills．This course gives participants the tools required for presenting information and building persuasive arguments in clear and cohesive written forms．
ELC 555
Thursdays, July 10 - September 11, 2008
Thursdays, October 9 - December 11, 2008
This course is designed for non-native English speakers who are either working or planning to work in a business environment．Areas of focus include handling telephone conversations, networking, participating in meetings, negotiating, making presentations, and conducting interviews．
【小题1】One only needs to pay $440 if he ______．

A．attends 10 weeks' evening course

B．attends the evening courses for a second lime

C．finds others to take the evening course together

D．recommends another person to take one ot the evening courses

【小题2】Which is the proper time for one who wants to find a job in business field?

A．Mondays, October 6 - December 15, 2008．

B．Tuesdays, October 7 - December 16,2008．

C．Wednesdays, October 8 - December 10, 2008．

D．Thursdays, October 9 - December 11, 2008．

【小题3】ELC 554 is most suitable for ______．

A．a newspaper reporter	B．a university student
C．a businessman	D．a high school student

【小题4】ELC 550 mainly focuses on ______．

A．college preparations

B．fluency and expressiveness in English

C．the skills needed to pass an exam

D．basic English knowledge

【小题5】A student who mainly wants to improve his spoken English can attend           ．

A．ELC 550

B．ELC 552

C．ELC 554

D．ELC 555

If Confucius（孔子）were still alive today and could celebrate his September 28 birthday with a big cake, there would be a lot of candles． He’d need a fan or a strong wind to help him put them out．
While many people in China will remember Confucius on his special day, few people in the United States will give him a passing thought． It’s nothing personal． Most Americans don’t even remember the birthdays of their own national heroes．
But this doesn’t mean that Americans don’t care about Confucius． In many ways he has become a bridge that foreigners must cross if they want to reach a deeper understanding of China．
In the past two decades, the Chinese studies programs have gained huge popularity in Western universities． More recently, the Chinese government has set up Confucius Institutes in more than 80 countries． These schools teach both Chinese language and culture． The main courses of Chinese culture usually included Chinese art, history and philosophy． Some social scientists suggest that Westerners should take advantage of the ancient Chinese wisdom to make up for the drawbacks of Westerners philosophy． Students in the United States, at the same time, are racing to learn Chinese． So they will be ready for life in a world where China is an equal power with the United States． Businessmen who hope to make money in China are reading books about Confucius to understand their Chinese customers． 
So the old thinker’s ideas are still alive and well．
Today China attracts the West more than ever, and it will need more teachers to introduce Confucius and Chinese culture to the West．
As for the old thinker, he will not soon be forgotten by people in the West, even if his birthday is．
【小题1】The opening paragraph is mainly intended to _______．

A．provide some key facts about Confucius

B．attract the readers’ interest in the subject

C．show great respect for the ancient thinker

D．prove the popularity of modern birthday celebrations

【小题2】We can learn from Paragraph 4 that American students_______．

A．have a great interest in studying Chinese

B．take an active part in Chinese competitions

C．try to get high scores in Chinese exams

D．fight for a chance to learn Chinese

【小题3】What is the best title for the passage?

A．Forgotten Wisdom in America

B．Huge Fans of the Chinese Language

C．Chinese Culture for Westerners

D．Old Thinker with a Big Future

【小题4】The passage is likely to appear in _______．

A．a biography	B．a history paper
C．a newspaper	D．a philosophy textbook

LONDON: The Edinburgh Festival, the biggest arts festival of its kind in the world, got under way in the Scotland capital on Sunday with a concert that included Hector Berlionz's To Deum, under the direction of Christoph von Dohnanyi.
The festival, which runs until August 31 this year, includes as its high points Peter Stein’s staging of Wagner’s Parsifal, with Claudio Abbado directing the Gustav Mahler youth orchestra. The concert programme includes American pianist Richard Goode, bass baritone Thomas Quasthoff and violinist Christian Tetzlaff. New to the programmes this year will be 25 late evening classical music concerts.
Earlier this month, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the largest show-case in the world for performance art, officially got under way with theatre, dance, poetry and music presentations.
Many of the fringe artists, who can enter the fringe festival upon payment of a small fee, were inspired this year by the event of September 11.
Thousands of people flock to Edinburgh from around the world during the festival, which is over 50 years old. It aims to promote and encourage arts and to reflect international culture. It consists of various dance, music, opera, and theatre presentation taking place across the city during the three-week run.
【小题1】Who will perform in the concert on Sunday?

A．Hector Berlionz	B．Christoph von Dohnanyi
C．Claudio Abbado	D．Christian Tetzlaff

【小题2】When did the Edinburgh Festival begin?

A．August 10.	B．August 15.
C．August 31.	D．September 11.

【小题3】 What did the Edinburgh Festival never have before?

A．Youth orchestra’s performances.

B．Poetry and music presentations.

C．Late evening classical music concerts.

D．Performances of American pianists and violinists.

【小题4】Which of the following statements about the Edinburgh Festival is true?

A．It is the only festival of its kind in the world.

B．The artists who want to take part in the festival have to pay a small amount of money.

C．People who attend the festival are all from Scotland.

D．It is actually a dance festival.

When I first got an email account ten years ago, I received communications only from family, friends, and colleagues. Now it seems that every time I check my e-mail, I have an endless series of advertisement and other correspondence that do not interest the at all. If we want e-mail to continue to be useful, we need special laws that make spamming(发送垃圾邮件) a crime.
If lawmakers do not do something soon to prohibit spam, the problem will certainly get much worse. Computer programs allow spammers to spend hundreds of millions of e-mails almost instantly. As more and more advertisers turn to spam to sell their products, individual e-mail boxes are often flooded with spam e-mails. Would people continue to use e-mail if they had to deal with an annoying amount of spam each time?
This problem is troubling for individuals and companies as well. Many spam emails contain computer viruses that can shut down the entire network of a company. Companies rely on e-mail on for their employees to communicate with each other. Spam frequently causes failures in their local communications networks, and their employees are thus unable to communicate effectively. Such a situation results in a loss of productivity and requires companies to repeatedly repair their networks. These computer problems raise production costs of companies, which are, in the end, passed on to the consumer.
For these reasons, I believe that lawmakers need to legislate (立法) against spam. Spammers should be fined, and perhaps sent to prison if they continue to disturb people. E-mail is a tool which helps people all over the world to communicate conveniently, but spam is destroying this convenience.
【小题1】What does the underlined word “correspondence” in the Paragraph 1 probably mean?                                                          

A．messages

B．ideas

C．connections

D．programs

【小题2】According to the text, what is the major cause of the flooding spam?       

A．Companies rely on e-mail for communications.

B．More people in the world communicate by e-mail.

C．Many computer viruses contain spam e-mail.

D．More advertisers begin to promote sales through spam.

【小题3】According to Paragraph 3,who is the final victim of spam?         

A．The business	B．The advertiser
C．The employee	D．The consumer

【小题4】What is the purpose of the text?        

A．To inform

B．To educate

C．To persuade

D．To instruct

Facebook means never having to say goodbye． The social media website has earned a reputation for reconnecting old friends． Last week,  a guy whom I hadn't seen since my bachelor party five years ago sent me a friend request． I accepted and waited for "Easy E" to send me a greeting of some kind． He had sought me out,  after all．
I learned from his profile that he was in a relationship and had a son． However,  I'm pretty sure we won't ever write wall-to-wall, let alone e-mail each other． But he'll remain a friend of' online until one of us makes a point of' removing the other from his official list．
My pool of friends consists of family members, college buddies, co-workers from past and present,  and friends of' friends． There are 35 in all． If I spent some time uploading old e-mail addresses, I'm confident that I could increase my friend count actually．
A person could make a mission out of' reconnecting with childhood friends, former classmates,  distant cousins, and those one would like to get to know better． And some people can  even handle hundreds of no-screen relationships, keeping up with the daily happenings of'  their small army of' companions． After all, there are worse fates than having too many friends．
Thanks to e-mail, the inability to schedule face-to-face meetings no longer means a friendship must come to a close． But even with e-mail,  people will lose touch if' one or both parties stop writing back． That's normal． People move from school to school,  job to job, city to city．You never have to feel guilty for breaking away．
Every day,the masterminds of' Web 2．0 find new ways of' making human communication easier． However, convenience can be a crutch （拐杖）． Some things shouldn't be simplified．When it comes to friendship,  there can be no shortcuts．
【小题1】According to Paragraph l,  the website is famous because          ．

A．it has an interesting name of'“ Facebook”

B．it helps people get in touch with old friends

C．it can send people a greeting of' some kind

D．it reminds people of 'events in the past

【小题2】From the second paragraph we can learn that the writer         ．

A．would write to the friend quite often

B．asked the friend to e-mail him

C．did get some information about the friend

D．would keep in touch with the friend forever

【小题3】Which of 'the following statements is NOT true?

A．There are 35 people in the author's list of' friends right now．

B．The author communicates with all the 35 friends by e-mails．

C．The list of'35 friends doesn't include the old e-mail addresses．

D．It is not difficult for the author to increase his friend count．

【小题4】What does the write mean by saying “However, convenience can be a crutch（拐杖）”?

A．The masterminds of Web 2．0 also sell crutch online．

B．Taking a crutch is a new way of' making friends online．

C．Convenience is dangerous for human communication．

D．Convenience is not really good for human communication．

【小题5】What does the author think of' the convenience of' communicating online'?

A．The technology could not keep true friendship forever．

B．The social website of Facebook means nothing at all．

C．There will be no ways of making real friends online．

D．People will not lose friends with the help of' the Facebook．