阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳答案。

As a young man, Al was a skilled artist.He had a wife and two fine sons.One night, his oldest son  21  a severe stomachache.Thinking it was only some   22  intestinal （肠内的）disorder, neither Al nor his wife took the condition very  23  . But the boy   24   suddenly that night.

       Knowing the death could have been   25   if he had only realized the seriousness of the situation, Al's emotional health became worse under the huge burden of his guilt. To make matters __26  , his wife left him a short time later, leaving him alone with his six-year-old younger son. The hurt and pain of the two   27    were more than Al could handle, and he   28    to alcohol.In time Al __29  an alcoholic.

       As the alcoholism progressed, Al began to lose everything he   30    — his home, his land, his art works everything.   31    Al died alone in a San Francisco motel room.

       When I heard of Al's death, I thought that Al's life was a complete  32  .  I thought. "What a totally wasted life".

       As time went by, I began to re-evaluate my earlier judgment.I knew Al's now adult son, Ernie.He is one of the kindest, most caring, most loving men I have  33  known. I watched Ernie with his children and saw the free   34   of love between them.I knew that kindness and caring had to come from somewhere.

I hadn't heard Ernie talk much about his father.One day I worked 35  my courage to ask him."I'm really  36  by something," I said."I know your father was  37  the only one to raise you.What on earth did he do that you became such a special person?"

       Ernie sat quietly and  38  for a few moments. Then he said, "From my earliest __39  as a child until I left home at 18, Al came into my room every night, gave me a kiss and said, ' I love you, son.' "

Tears came to my eyes as I realized what a fool I had been to  40  Al as a failure. He had not left any material possessions behind.But he had been a kind loving father, and he left behind one of the finest, most giving men I have ever known.

21.A.formed              B.developed               C.received                D.gained

22.A. average          B. normal               C. ordinary           D. common

23.A. slightly          B. secretly       C. seriously           D. terribly

24.A.died                   B.choked                   C.starved                        D.worsened

25.A.cured                  B.prevented               C.forbidden              D.saved

26.A.better               B.heavier                   C.worse                           D.happier

27.A.disasters            B.adventures               C. directions                    D.situations

28.A.got                   B.drank                    C.turned                         D.sank

29.A.turned               B.became                  C.followed                       D.created

30.A.needed              B.shared                   C.benefited               D.possessed

31.A.Eventually          B.Gradually                C.Therefore              D.Meanwhile

32.A.trouble                B.hardship                  C.failure                        D.waste

33.A. never                   B. even                 C. still                D. ever

34.A.win                B.fall                          C.space                    D.flow

35.A.up                   B.with                        C.on                             D.through

36.A.worried             B.puzzled                    C.interested               D.attracted

37.A.especially           B.basically                   C.merely                  D.specially

38.A.argued               B.searched                  C.analyzed                 D.reflected

39.A.thoughts            B.ideas                       C.minds                   D.memories

40.A.treat                 B.call                        C.judge                             D.feel

The host poured the tea into the cup and placed it on the small table in front of his guests, who were a father and daughter, and put the cover on the cup. Apparently thinking of something, he hurried into the inner room, leaving the thermos (热水瓶) on the table. His two guests heard a cupboard opening.

They remained sitting in the sitting room, the ten-year-old daughter looking at the flowers outside the window, the father just about to take his cup, when the crash came, right there in the sitting room. Something was hopelessly broken.

It was the thermos, which had fallen to the floor. The girl looked over her shoulder, shocked, staring. It was mysterious. Neither of them had touched it, not even a bit. True, it hadn't stood steadily when their host placed it on the table, but it hadn't fallen then.

The explosion caused the host to rush back. Gawking at the steaming floor, the host said "It doesn't matter! It doesn't matter!"

The father started to say something. Then he said softly, "Sorry, I touched it and it fell."

"It doesn't matter," the host said.

When they left the house, the daughter said, "Daddy, did you touch it?"

"No. But it stood so close to me. "

"But you didn't touch it. I saw your reflection in the window glass. "

The father laughed. "What then would you give as the cause of its fall?"

"The thermos fell by itself. The floor is not smooth. Daddy, why did you say that you …"

"That won't do, girl. It sounds more acceptable when I say I knocked it down. There are things which people accept less the more you defend them. The truer the story you tell, the less true it sounds. "

The daughter was lost in silence for a while. Then she said, "Can you explain it only in this way?"

"Only in this way," her father said.

56. Which statement is a possible theme of this story?

A. People rarely tell the truth.

B. You can't always make people believe the truth.

C. If you defend yourself, people will believe you.

D. People should take the blame for what they didn't do.

57. It can be inferred from the story that the father _______.

A. didn't know the host well                    B. felt satisfied that he didn't tell the truth

C. was sorry that he told the truth                        D. didn't think the host would believe the truth

58. From the story we know that the daughter ________.

A. thought her father should tell the truth         B. didn't know why the thermos fell

C. knocked over the thermos                  D. strongly objected to her father's explanation

59. The underlined "gawking at" probably means _______.

A. staring at with anger                  B. looking at curiously

C. glancing at hopelessly                 D. looking at in a dull way

When I was a little girl, my father loved to play catch(接球) with me. I wasn’t very good at it,   16   we would play anyway. He was always telling me “Keep your eye on the ball” as I would not be able to catch even the   17   of throws.

As I got   18  , we didn’t play catch as much. If I had a problem and would go to my father to ask for his   19  , he would try to   20   with me and say “Keep your eye on the ball”. We would both laugh   21   usually that advice was not useful to the problem, but he would try to make me   22  .

My father became   23   in 1995 when I was 23. There weren’t any more conversations, as he suffered from a stroke(中风).   24   could not speak. He could only give   25   words, which were sometimes hard to understand. I seemed to be pretty good at   26   his lips(唇) after a while, even better than the   27   who were caring for him there.

During one of our last conversations, I was telling him about a problem I was having with my boyfriend.   28  , I could read his lips: “Keep your eye on the ball.” We both smiled.

That was the last time I saw my father   29   he passed away.

Sometimes, all these years later, when I get in trouble, I just   30   myself “Keep your eye on the ball”.

1.A. so                            B. and                                    C. but                                   D. or

2.A. fastest                          B. easiest                             C. slowest                            D. highest

3.A. taller                            B. heavier                            C. younger                          D. older

4.A. words                           B. advice                    C. answer                            D. thought

5.A. joke                     B. play                                  C. discuss                             D. stay

6.A. because             B. when                               C. since                                D. though

7.A. cry                       B. sad                                   C. shout                               D. smile

8.A. tired                             B. ill                                      C. angry                               D. free

9.A. We                      B. I                               C. He                                    D. They

10.A. throat                        B. finger                     C. body                                D. mouth

11.A. feeling                       B. reading                            C. hearing                            D. keeping

12.A. children           B. nurses                             C. parents                            D. friends

13.A. However                   B. Therefore                       C. Once again            D. Many times

14.A. after                           B. before                             C. as                                      D. until

15.A. comfort            B. believe                            C. tell                                    D. enjoy

It was several years since Adolf Hitler came into power in Germany. And now his army was marching into some parts of Europe. He must be in the prime(顶峰) of his career.

  One day Hitler went to an exhibition where the works of school children were on show. He seemed to have great interest in the exhibits—inventions as well as carvings, drawings. After having walked around the hall and examined everything, he said he was ready to meet the young artists. And soon a group of children came into the room to salute(向-----敬礼) him.

  “Well, well. You did very good work.” nodded Hitler in satisfaction. “I promise on my honor I’d satisfy you with whatever you want. What’d you wish to be if I were your father?”

  “A sailor sailing the sea” one of the boys answered.

  “Good. I’ll have you join my navy and some day you will rule the oceans.”(海洋)

  “Ask for anything? What’d you wish to be if I were your father?” he asked a second boy.

  “A painter as great as Rembruant.”

  “Good. You are to be sent to the Fine Art School and surely you will make an even greater painter.”

  When Hitler caught sight of a sad-looking boy be frowned(皱眉), then quickly forced a smile, “There my boy, in spite of my point of view towards the Jews(犹太人), I’d do you a favor and your dream will come true. What’d you wish to be if I were your father?”

  The boy looked straight at the man.

  “An orphan(the child who has no parents).” he murmured.（嘟哝）

Hitler promised to satisfy(满足) the children with whatever they want because       .

A. he wanted all the children to live a happy life  B. he wanted to make a good impression on the children

C. he liked paintings very much               D. he liked all the children

Hitler frowned when he saw the sad-looking boy because       .

A. the boy was recognized to be a Jew           B. the boy didn’t come to the front to salute him

C. the boy didn’t want to ask for anything        D. the boy was sad-looking

Judging by what the boy said we can see that       .

A. the boy’s parents had died                 B. the boy had no brothers or sisters

C. the boy hated Hitler very much             D. the boy wanted himself to be an orphan

Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. Hitler wanted to be the father of the children.  B. The boy was both clever and courageous(勇敢的).

C. Rembruant was a great painter.             D. Hitler did not like Jews.

When I was a little girl, my father loved to play the game of “catch the ball” with me. I wasn’t good at it 21  he didn’t mind at all. He was always telling me to 22  my eyes on the ball; otherwise I would not be able to 23  it when he threw it to me.
As I got older, we didn’t play the game as 24  as before. If I had a   25  , I would go to my father and   26   his advice. He would try to make a joke and say, “Keep your eyes on the ball.” We would both laugh   27   that advice was not usually able to   28   the problem, but he would just try to make me   29  .
My father became   30   in 1995 when I was 23. There were not any more conversations, as he was   31   from a terrible disease. He couldn’t   32  ; he could only move his   33   without making a sound, which was sometimes   34   to understand. I seemed to be   35   good at reading his lips after a while, even better than the nurses that were   36   him.
During one of our last   37   I was telling him about a difficulty I was   38  . Once again, I could read his lips. “Keep your eyes on the ball,” he said. We both smiled. That was the last time I saw my father   39   he passed away.
Sometimes now, all those years later when I get into a   40   situation, I just tell myself, “Keep your eyes on the ball.”