It was a dark and cold night. The car driver didn’t have even one passenger all day. When he went by the railway station, he saw a young man coming out with two bags in his hands. So he quickly opened the door of the car and asked, “Where do you want to go, sir?”

 “To the Star Hotel,” the young man answered. When the car driver heard that, he didn’t feel happy. The young man would give him only three dollars because the hotel was not far from the railway station. But suddenly, he had an idea. He took the passenger through many streets of the big city.

After a long time, the car finally arrived at the hotel. “You should pay me fifteen dollars,” the car driver said to the young man. “What! Fifteen dollars? Do you think I’m a fool? Only last week I took a car from the railway station to this same hotel and I only gave the driver thirteen dollars. I know how much I have to pay for the trip. I won’t pay you one dollar more than I paid to the other car driver last week. ”

Which of the following is true?____________

A.  The young man went past the railway station.

B.  The young man was working in the railway station

C.  The young man had just got off a train.

D.  The young man was waiting for his friend there.

What do you think of the car driver?__________

A.  He was a nice and clever man.    B. He liked to work very hard.

C. He was good at driving         D. He was not an honest person.

The driver felt very _________ when he saw the young man coming out of the railway station.

A.  sad        B. sorry         C. happy         D. worried

From the passage we know that the young man__________.

A.  knew clearly how far it was from the station to the hotel.

B.  Had been to the hotel several times.

C.  Didn’t want to stay in this city.

D.  Must be a stranger and didn’t know the city very well.

The driver took the passenger through many streets so as to_________.

A.  make the young man happy

B.  let the young man think it was very far from the station to the hotel.

C.  Let the young man have a good look at the city.

D.  Get more than twenty dollars.

Childhood was an illusion (错觉）and the illusion was this: everything was bigger. No, I mean everything, not just houses and shops and grown-ups, but colors and flowers and journeys, especially journeys which seemed endless. “Are we there yet, Daddy?”

Funfairs (游乐场） were huge things that spread for miles around you with noise and lights and exciting danger. Rainy days at home when you were ill seemed to last for ever. Being a grown-up yourself was an unthinkable distant possibility. Every sound was louder, every game was grander, every pain unbearable.

     As I’ve grown old, life has become smaller. Tastes have dulled. Surprises have turned into shocks. Days go by unnoticed. How can I regain childhood when it was an illusion?

     I have only one repeatable and wonderful way and even in this way I can regain only part of that larger world. I can play upon the stage like a child and make the crowd laugh and laugh with them, sometimes helplessly like a child, and then, even though I’m a sixty-one-year-old man, I can almost catch the colors and sounds and stillness of those bigger years when I was little.

1.How does the author feel about his childhood?

A. It was endless.                   B. It was unpleasant.

C. He is glad that it is over.         D. He misses it as a grown-up

2.The author thinks that everything was bigger in childhood because ________

A. children could not make proper judgments.

B. children were curious and eager about life

C. things appeared really big in children’s eyes

D. to grow up seemed so long for children

3.The world seems to have become smaller to the author because _______.

A. life is disappointing               B. time goes by too fast

C. he has had too many surprises      D. foods no longer taste delicious

4.The author enjoys playing on the stage so as to _______.

A. act like a child            B. live an unusual life

C. make the crowd laugh     D. regain his childhood

 

Dear XXX,　

As we drove off from Columbia, I wanted to write a letter to you to tell you all that is on my mind.

Do your best in classes, but don’t let pressure get to you. If you graduate and learn something in your four years, we would feel happy. Your Columbia degree will take you far, even if you don’t graduate with honors. So please don't give yourself pressure. The only thing that matters is that you learned. The only measurement you should use is that you tried.

Most importantly, make friends and be happy. College friends are often the best in life, because during college you are closer to them physically than to your family. Also, going through independence and adulthood is a natural bonding (结合的) experience. Pick a few friends and become really close to them — pick the ones who are genuine and sincere to you. Don’t worry about their hobbies, grades, looks, or even personalities. If you think you like someone, tell her. You have very little to lose. People are not perfect, so as long as they are genuine and sincere, trust them and be good to them. They will give back. This is my secret of success — that I am genuine with people and trust them (unless they do something to lose my trust).

College is the four years where you have:

　　•the greatest amount of free time

　　•the first chance to be independent

　　•the most flexibility to change

　　•the lowest risk for making mistakes

So please treasure your college years – make the best of your free time, become an independent thinker in control of your destiny. May Columbia become the happiest four years in your life, and may you blossom into just what you dream to be.

                                                                   Love,

                                                                  XXX

1.What is the most probable relationship between the writer and the receiver of the letter?

A. Friends.                                                                                    B. A parent and his or her daughter.

C. A teacher and a student.                                                  D. Sisters.

2.Which of the following suggestions is not given to the receiver in the letter?

A. How to adapt to the college life quickly.                 

B. To make new friends.

C. To learn to be independent in thinking.                 

D. Not to make herself under much pressure in grades.

3.According to the writer of the letter, college is a time _______.

A. during which one may make mistakes      

B. during which one has little free time

C. during which it is hard for one to change    

D. during which one needs to learn to be independent

 

It was a dark and cold night. The car driver didn’t have even one passenger all day. When he went by the railway station, he saw a young man coming out with two bags in his hands. So he quickly opened the door of the car and asked, “Where do you want to go, sir?”

“To the Star Hotel,” the young man answered. When the car driver heard that, he didn’t feel happy. The young man would give him only three dollars because the hotel was not far from the railway station. But suddenly, he had an idea. He took the passenger through many streets of the big city.

After a long time, the car finally arrived at the hotel. “You should pay me fifteen dollars,” the car driver said to the young man. “What! Fifteen dollars? Do you think I’m a fool? Only last week I took a car from the railway station to this same hotel and I only gave the driver thirteen dollars. I know how much I have to pay for the trip. I won’t pay you one dollar more than I paid to the other car driver last week. ”

1.Which of the following is true?

A. The young man went past the railway station.

B. The young man was working in the railway station.

C. The young man had just got off a train.

D. The young man was waiting for his friend there.

2.What do you think of the car driver?

A. He was a nice and clever man.            B. He was good at driving.

C. He was a dishonest person.               D. He liked to work very hard.

3.The driver felt very ____ when he saw the young man coming out of the railway station.

A. sorry          B. happy           C. proud           D. worried

4. From the passage we know that the young man__________.

A. didn’t want to stay in this city.

B. had been to the hotel several times.

C. knew clearly how far it was from the station to the hotel.

D. must be a stranger and didn’t know the city very well.

5.The driver took the passenger through many streets so as to_________.

A. make the young man happy

B. get more than twenty dollars.

C. let the young man think it was very far from the station to the hotel.

D. let the young man have a good look at the city.

 

It was a dark and cold night. The car driver didn’t have even one passenger all day. When he went by the railway station, he saw a young man coming out with two bags in his hands. So he quickly opened the door of the car and asked, “Where do you want to go, sir?”

 “To the Star Hotel,” the young man answered. When the car driver heard that, he didn’t feel happy. The young man would give him only three dollars because the hotel was not far from the railway station. But suddenly, he had an idea. He took the passenger through many streets of the big city.

After a long time, the car finally arrived at the hotel. “You should pay me fifteen dollars,” the car driver said to the young man. “What! Fifteen dollars? Do you think I’m a fool? Only last week I took a car from the railway station to this same hotel and I only gave the driver thirteen dollars. I know how much I have to pay for the trip. I won’t pay you one dollar more than I paid to the other car driver last week. ”

 

1. Which of the following is true?____________

A. The young man went past the railway station.

B.  The young man was working in the railway station

C.  The young man had just got off a train.

D.  The young man was waiting for his friend there.

2.What do you think of the car driver?__________

A. He was a nice and clever man.    B. He liked to work very hard.

C. He was good at driving         D. He was not an honest person.

3. The driver felt very _________ when he saw the young man coming out of the railway station.

A.  sad        B. sorry         C. happy         D. worried

4. From the passage we know that the young man__________.

A.  knew clearly how far it was from the station to the hotel.

B.  Had been to the hotel several times.

C.  Didn’t want to stay in this city.

D.  Must be a stranger and didn’t know the city very well.

5. The driver took the passenger through many streets so as to_________.

A.  make the young man happy

B.  let the young man think it was very far from the station to the hotel.

C.  Let the young man have a good look at the city.

D.  Get more than twenty dollars.