I grew up in a house where the TV was seldom turned on and with one wall in my bedroom entirely lined with bookshelves, most of my childhood was spent on books I could get hold of. In fact, I grew up thinking of reading as natural as breathing and books unbelievably powerful in shaping perspectives (观点) by creating worlds we could step into, take part in, and live in.
With this unshakable belief, I, at fourteen, decided to become a writer. Here too, reading became useful. Every writer starts off knowing that he has something to say, but being unable to find the right ways to say it. He has to find his own voice by reading widely and discovering which parts of the writers he agrees or disagrees with, or agrees with so strongly that it reshapes his own world. He cannot write without loving to read, because only through reading other people’s writing can one discover what works, what doesn’t and, in the end, together with lots of practice, what voice he has.
Now I am in college, and have come to realize how important it is to read fiction (文学作品)．As a law student, my reading is in fact limited to subject matter—the volume (量) of what I have to read for classes every week means there is little time to read anything else. Such reading made it all the clearer to me that I live in a very small part in this great place called life. Reading fiction(小说) reminds me that there is life beyond my own. It allows me to travel across the high seas and along the Silk Road, all from the comfort of my own armchair, to experience, though secondhand, exciting experiences that I wouldn't necessarily be able to have in my lifetime

1. 1.

   What does the underlined word in paragraph 1 mostly probably mean?

   1. A.
      even
   2. B.
      almost
   3. C.
      tiredly
   4. D.
      gradually
2. 2.

   What can be inferred about the author as a child?

   1. A.
      He never watched TV
   2. B.
      He read what he had to
   3. C.
      He found reading unbelievable
   4. D.
      He considered reading part of his life
3. 3.

   The underlined word "voice" in the second paragraph most probably means “________________ ”

   1. A.
      an idea
   2. B.
      a sound quality
   3. C.
      a way of writing
   4. D.
      a world to write about
4. 4.

   What effect does reading have on the author?

   1. A.
      It helps him to realize his dream
   2. B.
      It opens up a wider world for him
   3. C.
      It makes his college life more interesting
   4. D.
      It increases his interest in worldwide travel
5. 5.

   Which of the following can be the best title of this text?

   1. A.
      Why do I read?
   2. B.
      How do I read?
   3. C.
      What do I read?
   4. D.
      When do I read?

Think of some of your favorite singers．When you listen, they can make you happy or sad, peaceful or angry．They can make you relax or want to get up and dance．Gifted singers have the power to affect us in many ways—emotionally, physically and mentally．

       But becoming a great singer isn’t as easy as listening to one．It takes practice, devotion and strong lungs! Just ask the well-known American opera（歌剧）star Carol Vaness．

       At the Metropolitan Opera in New York City where she often sings, Carol’s voice must be loud enough to be heard by four thousand people．It must reach every person in the theater, without a microphone, even when she’s singing softly．The reason Carol can project her voice that far is the way she breathes．

       “When you breathe, it’s like a swimmer taking a deep breath before going underwater,” Carol explains．“You have to take a lot of air into your lungs．”

       According to Carol, the main difference between pop singing and opera is “how you breathe, how much air you take in, and how you control it coming out．Regular singing is more like speaking, and it’s lot softer．When I sing for children, they’re often surprised by how the vibrations strike their ears—like waves on a beach, ”Carol says．“In opera, the air doesn’t just go out of your mouth—it vibrates in your chest，the way a guitar vibrates when it’s played．”

       Ever since she started piano lessons at the age of ten, Carol has loved music．As she got older, she decided to become a music teacher．When she went to college, she took singing lessons as part of her studies．Her voice teacher discovered that nineteen-year-old Carol had an exceptionally beautiful soprano voice-the highest singing voice for women．

       Carol decided to make opera her goal, not only because she loved to sing but also because she loved the drama．Opera is a play in which the characters sing the words instead of speaking them．The stories of opera can be tragic or comical．They can be personal stories about two people falling in love or grand stories about kings and queens who lived long ago．As the characters in an opera sing, the emotions（情感）expressed by words and music come to life．

       Today, Carol performs throughout the United States and Europe and she has song for almost twenty years．But she has never forgotten where she started singing in the first palace．

       “Put your heart into your singing and enjoy it,” says Carol, “because singing is a great joy．That’s why I sing．In fact, that’s why everybody sings．”

1．According to the passage,  the Metropolitan Opera in New York City      ．

       A．is a five-story building                          B．can seat 4,000 people

       C．has no microphone in it                        D．can project the singer’s voice

2．Which statement is true?

       A．A pop singer’s lungs are usually stronger than those of an opera singer’s

       B．Opera singing is more like speaking．

       C．A pop singer takes in much more air than an opera singer when singing．

       D．An opera singer breathes differently from a pop singer when singing．

3．From the passage you can conclude all the following EXCEPT that      ．

       A．Carol once learned to play the piano

       B．Carol worked as a music teacher

       C．Carol has been singing opera for 20 years or so

       D．Carol is popular with Americans and Europeans

It was because he was ill ______ we decided to return home.

A．why              B．that              C．when             D．where

--------Why didn't Nick come to school yesterday?

--------_______ he was ill.