A month after Hurricane Katrina, I returned home in New Orleans. There   1   my house, reduced to waist-high ruins, smelly and dirty.

       Before the trip, I had had my car fixed .When the office employee of the garage was writing up the bill, she  2     my Louisiana license plate. “You from New Orleans?” she asked .I said I was, “No   3    .” She said, and firmly shook her   4   when I reached for my wallet. The next day I went for a haircut, and    5   happened.

       As my wife was studying in Florida ,we decided to move there and tried to find a(n)   6   house that we could afford while   7   paying off a mortgage（抵押贷款）on our ruined house .We looked at many places, but   8   was satisfactory. We had begun to accept that we would have to live in    9   reduced circumstances（条件）for a while,   10   I got a very curious e-mail from a James Kennedy in California. He had read some pieces I had written about our    11   for Slate, the online magazine and wanted to give us a new   12   across the lake for New Orleans.

       It sounded too good to be true ,   11   I replied ,thanking him for his exceptional generosity（大方）,   14   we had no plans to go back .Then a poet at the University of Florida offered to    15   his house to me, while he went to England on his one-year paid leave. The rent was rather   16   .I mentioned the poet’s offer to    17   , and the next day he sent a   18   covering our entire rent for eight months .Throughout this painful experience, the kindness of strangers has done much to    19   my faith in humanity .It’s almost    20   losing your worldly possessions to be reminded that people are really nice when given half a chance.

1．A．stood                    B．lay                      C．went                   D．left

2．A．watched                B．looked                 C．overlooked          D．noticed

3．A．smoking                B．problem               C．charge                D．damage

4．A．head                     B．body                   C．hand                   D．arm

5．A．a strange thing       B．different things     C．another thing       D．the same thing

6．A．rental                    B．expensive            C．perfect                D．beautiful

7．A．ever                      B．never                  C．also                    D．only

8．A．little                      B．much                  C．nothing               D．none

9．A．specially                B．gradually             C．extremely            D．usually

11．A．happiness            B．sufferings            C．kindness              D．fortune

12．A．house                  B．job                      C．field                    D．chance

11．A．so                       B．or                       C．as                       D．but

14．A．that                     B．which                 C．what                   D．why

15．A．sell                     B．present                C．give                    D．let

16．A．terrible                B．reasonable           C．much                  D．high

17．A．my wife              B．Katrina                C．the university       D．James Kennedy

18．A．note                    B．bill                      C．check                 D．letter

19．A．bring back           B．bring down          C．bring forward      D．bring up

20．A．worthy                   B．worth              C．useless                   D．good

I never know how well Mother could keep a trust until I was going through her things after she died. I discovered something I had    36  forgotten, something that happened to me as a child.

One night, as I lay in bed   37  my sister and I had said our prayers, I recalled the events of the day and how   38  I had behaved towards Mother. “I must make things right before going to sleep,” I thought.

Quickly I  39  out of bed and picked up a pencil and paper, then tiptoed into the hall. The   40  from the living room shone dimly. I knew Mother was downstairs mending socks.

I quickly   41  a note asking Mother to forgive me for being so   42  . I didn’t want my brothers and sisters to know our   43   so I added a postscript: “Please don’t let anyone see this. ” Then I quietly moved   44  my parents’ bedroom and put the letter under Mother’s pillow.

The next morning, when I   45  my bed after breakfast, I unexpectedly   46 a note under my pillow. Mother wrote that she loved me and   47  me.

This became my   48   of apologizing whenever I talked back or disobeyed. Mother always left a note, but she never  49  our under-the-pillow messages in front of the family. Even when we were   50  , she never mentioned them when we brothers and sister recalled our childhood.

When Mother  51  , I had to go through her personal belongings. In her desk was a bundle of notes tied with a faded ribbon（布条）. On top was a message in her handwriting. It read, “In the event of my death, please   52  these. ”

I   53  the packet and glanced at the handwriting on the bottom. To my surprise, I   54  my childish writing, “P. S. Please don’t let anyone see this. Love, Edie. ”

I gently placed the unopened bundle in the   55   along with other things for the rubbish burner. “Lord,” I prayed, “make me like my mother. ”

I never know how well Mother could keep a trust until I was going through her things after she died. I discovered something I had    1  forgotten, something that happened to me as a child.

One night, as I lay in bed   2  my sister and I had said our prayers, I recalled the events of the day and how   3  I had behaved towards Mother. “I must make things right before going to sleep,” I thought.

Quickly I  4  out of bed and picked up a pencil and paper, then tiptoed into the hall. The   5  from the living room shone dimly. I knew Mother was downstairs mending socks.

I quickly   6  a note asking Mother to forgive me for being so   7  . I didn’t want my brothers and sisters to know our  8  so I added a postscript: “Please don’t let anyone see this.” Then I quietly moved   9 my parents’ bedroom and put the letter under Mother’s pillow.

The next morning, when I   10  my bed after breakfast, I unexpectedly   11  a note under my pillow. Mother wrote that she loved me and   12  me.

This became my  13   of apologizing whenever I talked back or disobeyed. Mother always left a note, but she never  14  our under-the-pillow messages in front of the family. Even when we were   15 , she never mentioned them when we brothers and sister recalled our childhood.

When Mother  16  , I had to go through her personal belongings. In her desk was a bundle of notes tied with a faded ribbon （布条）. On top was a message in her handwriting. It read, “In the event of my death, please  17  these.”

I   18  the packet and glanced at the handwriting on the bottom. To my surprise, I 19  my childish writing, “P.S. Please don’t let anyone see this. Love, Edie.”

I gently placed the unopened bundle in the   20   along with other things for the rubbish burner. “Lord,” I prayed, “make me like my mother.”

1. A. long                         B. just                   C. never                D. often

2. A. before                  B. after                  C. until                  D. since

3. A. well                   B. politely              C. happily              D. badly

4. A. jumped                 B. fell                    C. moved                     D. slipped

5. A. moon                   B. light                  C. needle               D. thread

6. A. found           B. sent              C. wrote                D. took

7. A. lazy                   B. late                   C. careless             D. naughty

8. A. mistake                 B. business            C. relation              D. love

9. A. out of                   B. around                     C. into                   D. behind

10. A. searched             B. left                    C. made                D. went to

11. A. wrote                  B. left                    C. found                D. gave

12. A. missed                B. understood        C. supported          D. forgave

13. A. way                    B. secret                C. favorite             D. trick

14. A. spoke about         B. passed round     C. gave out            D. read aloud

15. A. happy                 B. curious              C. grown               D. interested

16. A. went away          B. passed away      C. die away           D. break away

17. A. destroy               B. keep                  C. hide                  D. read

18. A. picked up            B. handed in           C. looked through   D. turned over

19. A. recognized          B. lost                   C. realized             D. liked

20. A. drawer                B. wastebasket              C. bedroom           D. bookshelf

"I've been writing a book, John. Do you think anyone would be interested in __1__ it?" said the old lady.

John took __2__ the papers from her shaking hand and seated her in a chair. He remembered her rich __3__ in the early days of the Old West. He looked through the papers, "It's good, Grandma," he said gently. Then realizing that she couldn't hear him, he shouted __4__ her ears. "I think it's very good. I'll __5__ it to a publisher."

Ten days later, he reported that the publisher had had time to read only a few__6__. But he was so impressed that he had sent $100 for an option(买版权).

__7__money would be given as an advance(预付款). Every month John __8__ $100 for her with a letter from the publisher telling about the progress of the book.

One morning, three months after her 100th birthday. Grandma didn't get up. The doctor told her that she couldn't__9__more than a few days. She was ready to go, but she first wanted her book to be in __10__. John promised that he would get it very soon.

Grandma __11__ on until the day the book came into her hands with the title and her name on the cover. Though she couldn't see it, she could __12__ it. She __13__ felt her name with her fingers, tears in her eyes. Two hours later, she died peacefully, __14__ holding her book.

Her granddaughter took up the book and opened it. "Why, it's just blank pages!" she cried in __15__.

John's face turned __16__. Then the girl understood. There __17__ was a book. Grandma couldn't hear the little bell when the typewriter came to the __18__ of the line. She would keep on working, not knowing the whole sentences and sometimes the paragraphs were __19__. John did not tell her, for he couldn't take away her only __20__. It was John himself who had written the letters and sold his car to pay the advance.

1. A. buying B. publishing C. reading D. lending

2. A. away B. over C. on D. off

3. A. sufferings B. experiences C. thoughts D. neighbors

4. A. between B. out of C. into D. up

5. A. throw B. put C. send D. lift

6. A. novels B. copies C. pages D. books

7. A. Some B. Much C. Enough D. More

8. A. brought B. borrowed C. spent D. stole

9. A. die B. read C. last D. write

10. A. time B. bookstore C. sale D. print

11. A. talked B. wrote C. gave D. held

12. A. read B. sell C. hear D. touch

13. A. proudly B. quickly C. careful D. slow

14. A. still B. yet C. always D. then

15. A. anger B. joy C. surprise D. tears

16. A. white B. red C. angry D. surprise

17. A. indeed B. certainly C. hardly D. never

18. A. middle B. last C. end D. beginning

19. A. missing B. finished C. completed D. ended

20. A. hope B. book C. life D. paper

She was dancing. My lame grandmother was dancing. I stood in the living room doorway, looking at her beautiful movements, absolutely shocked. She was the pet of the dancing world. And then she’d had her accident and it was all over. I had read that in an old newspaper article.
‘‘So… Your leg? I mean, how did your leg heal (恢复健全)?”
“To tell you the truth — my legs have been well all my life,” she sighed.
“But I don’t understand!” I said, “Your dancing career (事业)… You pretended all these years?”
‘‘Very much so, and for a very good reason.”
She thought for a while and then continued. “We were talking about engagement (订婚) when your grandfather had to go to war. I was so afraid of losing him that the only way I could stay normal was to dance. I put all my energy and time into practicing and I became very good. Critics praised me, the public loved me, but all I could feel was the ache in my heart, not knowing whether the love of my life would ever return. Then one day a letter came. There were only three sentences: ‘I have lost my leg. I am no longer a whole man and now give you back your freedom. It is best you forget about me.’’’
“I made my decision there and then. I traveled away from the city. When I returned I had bought myself a stick. I told everyone I had been in a car crash and that my leg would never completely heal again. My dancing days were over. No one doubted the story — I had learned to limp (一瘸一拐地走) convincingly before I returned home. And I made sure the first person to hear of my accident was a reporter I knew well. Then I traveled to the hospital. They had pushed your grandfather outside in his wheelchair. I took a deep breath, leaned on my stick and limped to him.”
“I showed him newspaper articles of my accident. ‘There is a whole life waiting for us out there! But I am not going to carry you. You are going to walk yourself.’”
“I limped a few steps toward him and showed him what I’d taken out of my pocket. ‘Now show me you are still a man.’ I said. He bent to take his stick from the ground and struggled out of that wheelchair. He managed it on his own and walked to me and never sat in a wheelchair again in his life.”
“What did you show him?” I had to know. Grandma looked at me and smiled. “Two engagement rings, of course. I had bought them the day after he left for the war and I was not going to waste them on any other man.”
【小题1】What does the underlined word “it” in the first paragraph refer to?