When I was fifteen, I announced to my English class that I was going to write my own books. Half the students smiled       , and even worse, the rest nearly fell out of their chairs laughing. “Don’t be        . Only geniuses can become writers.” the English teacher said, “And you are getting a D this term.” I was so       that I burst into tears. That night I wrote a short          poem about broken dreams and mailed it to the newspaper. To my      , they published it and sent me two dollars. I was a published and paid writer. I showed my teacher and fellow students. They laughed, “Just plain dumb luck,” the teacher said. I tasted       ; I’d sold the first thing I’d ever written. That was more than any of them had done and if it was just dumb luck, that was fine with me.

During the next two years, I sold dozens of poems and letters. By the time I graduated from high school, I had scrapbooks (剪贴簿)       with my published works. I never       my writing to my teachers, friends or my family again  because they were dream        .

 I had four children at the time. While the children slept, I typed on my ancient typewriter. I wrote what I felt. It took nine months. I chose a       and mailed it. A month later I received a contract, an advance on payments, and a request to start       another book. Crying Wind, which became a best seller, was translated into fifteen languages and sold worldwide. My first book also became required        in native American schools in Canada.

      In the       year I ever had as a writer I earned two dollars. In my best year I earned 36,000 dollars. People ask what college I       , what degrees I have and what qualifications I have to be a writer. The answer is: “None.” I just write. I’m not a genius. I use an electric typewriter that I paid a hundred and twenty nine dollars for six years ago. I do all the housework and fit my writing in a few minutes here and there. I’ve written eight books. To all those who dream of writing, I’m shouting at you: “Yes, you can. Don’t listen to them.” I don’t write right but I’ve succeeded. Writing is        ; it’s fun and anyone can do it. Of course, a little dumb luck doesn’t hurt.

1.A. unkindly     B. happily C. willingly         D. crazily

2.A. curious       B. depressed     C. excited D. silly 

3.A. unlucky      B. ashamed        C. moved  D. unconfident

4.A. sad     B. innocent        C. disappointing         D. puzzling

5.A. puzzlement         B. expectation  C. astonishment         D. disappointment

6.A. coldness    B. failure   C. success D. prejudice

7.A. furnished   B. linked   C. combined      D. filled

8.A. remembered     B. concluded     C. described      D. mentioned

9.A. killers         B. makers C. designers      D. creators

10.A. writer       B. reporter        C. publisher       D. manager

11.A. working on       B. going on        C. turning on     D. putting on

12.A. writing     B. reading C. selling   D. buying

13.A. busiest     B. unluckiest     C. worst    D. highest

14.A. worked    B. attended       C. admitted        D. participated

15.A. easy          B. hard      C. convenient   D. practical

 

假设英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。

增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（)，并在其下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线（\)划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词； .

2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

Last week I went to visit to my former neighbor, Mr. Yang. He and I used to living next to

each other for many years. About half a year ago, an order came which the old building, along

with many other similar ones, were going to be pulled down to make room for a main street.

So I had to move apart. Mr. Yang now lives in the suburbs near a beautiful park. His new

apartment is much big than before. The only problem is that it took quite a long time to get to

the downtown area. Therefore, Mr. Yang doesn’t seem to worry about the long distance. He

says that new subway line is to be built in a few year and he is sure life will be better in

the future.

 

Welcome to my Message Board!
Subject: Slimming down classics?
Mr. Handsome 2007-5-12 6: 34 AM	Orion Books, which decides there is a market in creating cut-down classics (经典著作), is slimming down some novels by such great writers as L. Tolstoy, M. Mitchell and C. Bronte. Now, each of them has been whittled down to about 400 pages by cutting 30 to 40 pages percent of original, with words, sentences, paragraphs and, in a few cases, chapters removed. The first six shortened editions, all priced at ￡6.99 and advertised as great reads “in half the time”, will go on sale next month, with plans for 50 to 100 more to follow. The publishing house believes that modern readers will welcome the shorter versions.
Mr. Edwards 2007-5-12 9: 40 AM	Well, I’m publisher of Orion Group. Thanks for your attention, Mr. Handsome. I must say, the idea developed from a game of “shame” in my office. Each of us was required to confess (承认) to the most embarrassing blanks in his or her reading. I admitted that I had never read Anna Karenina and tried but failed to get through Gone with the Wind several times. One of my colleagues acknowledged skipping (跳读) Jane Eyre. We realized that life is too short to read all the books you want to and we never were going to read these ones. As a leading publishing house, we are trying to make classics convenient for readers but it’s not as if we’re withdrawing the original versions. They are still there if you want to read them.
Ms. Weir 2007-5-12 11:35 AM	I’m director of the online book club www.lovereading.co.uk. Mr. Edwards, I think your shortened edition is a breath of fresh air. I’ m guilty of never having read Anna Karenina, because it’s just so long. I’d much rather read two 300-page books than one 600-page book. I am looking forward to more shortened classics!
Mr. Crockatt 2007-5-12 4:38 PM	I’m from the London independent bookshop Corckatt & Powell. In my opinion, the practice is completely ridiculous. How can you edit the classics? I’m afraid reading some of these books is hard work, and that is why you have to develop as a reader. If people don’t have time to read Anna Karenina, then fine. But don’t read a shortened version and kid yourself it’s the real thing.

 
76. According to the message board, Orion Books ____________ .  
A. opposes the reading of original classics           B. is embarrassed for cutting down classics
C. thinks cut-down classics have a bright future       D. is cautious in its decision to cut down classics
77. In Mr. Edwards’ opinion, Orion Group is shortening classics to ____________.
A. make them easier to read                     B. meet a large demand in the market
C. increase the sales of literary books              D. compete with their original versions
78. By describing the shortened classics as “a breath of fresh air”, Ms. Weir____________.
A. speaks highly of the cut-down classics          B. shows her love for original classics
C. feels guilty of not reading the classics           D. disapprove of shortening the classics
79. Mr. Crockatt seems to imply that ____________.
A. reading the classic works is a confusing attempt
B. shortening the classics does harm to the original
C. publishing the cut-down classics is a difficult job
D. editing the classic works satisfies children’s needs
80. How many classics are involved in the massage board?
A. Two.          B. Three.               C. Four.         D. Five.

A gentle breeze blew through Jennifer's hair. The golden red sun was setting. She was on the beach, looking up at the fiery (火红的) ball. She was amazed by its color, deep red in the middle, softly fading into yellow. She could hear nothing but the waves and the seagulls flying up above in the sky.    
The atmosphere relaxed her. After all she had been through, this was what she needed. "It's getting late," she thought, "I must go home. My parents will be wondering where I am."
She wondered how her parents would react, when she got home after the three days she was missing. She kept on walking, directing herself where she spent every summer holiday. The road was deserted. She walked slowly and silently. Just in a few hundred meters she would have been safe in her house.
It was really getting dark now. The sun had set a few minutes before and it was getting cold too. She wished she had her favorite sweater on: it kept her really warm. She imagined having it with her. This thought disappeared when she finally saw her front door. It seemed different. Nobody had taken care of the outside garden for a few days. She was shocked: her father was usually so strict about keeping everything clean and tidy, and now... It all seemed deserted. She couldn't understand what was going on.    
She entered the house. First, she went into the kitchen where she saw a note written by her father. It said: "Dear Ellen, there is some coffee ready. I went looking." Ellen was her mother but－where was she? On the right side of the hallway was her parents' room. She went in. Then she saw her. Her mother, lying on the bed, was sleeping. Her face looked so tired, as if she hadn't slept for days. She was really pale. Jennifer would have wanted to wake her up but she looked too tired. So Jennifer just fell asleep beside her. When Jennifer woke up, something was different－she wasn't in her mother's room and she wasn't wearing the old clothes she ran away in. She was in her cozy bed in her pajamas.     
It felt so good being back home. Suddenly she heard a voice, "Are you feeling better now, dear? You know you got us very, very scared."
【小题1】Three days later Jennifer came back home     .

A．at sunrise

B．at sunset

C．at night

D．at midday

【小题2】 What does the underlined phrase "This thought" most probably mean?

A．The idea of going back home.

B．Her anxiety about her parents.

C．The feeling of being warm in her favorite sweater.

D．The feeling of getting back home safely.

【小题3】 Her father didn't take care of the garden because     .

A．he was busy looking for her

B．he had to look after his wife

C．he was not strict with his job

D．he no longer enjoyed working in the garden

【小题4】

A flock of wild ducks were flying in formation, heading south for the winter. They formed a beautiful V in the sky, and were admired by everyone who saw them from below.

One day, Wally, one of the wild ducks in the formation, spotted something on the ground. It was a barnyard with a flock of _    ducks who lived on the farm. They were waddling around on the ground, quacking merrily and eating _    that was thrown on the ground for them every day. Wally liked what he saw. "It sure would be nice to have some of that corn," he thought to himself. "And all this flying is very tiring. I'd like to just __   around for a while."

So after thinking it over a while, Wally left the formation of wild ducks, made a sharp __  , and   for the barnyard. He landed _    the tame ducks, and began to waddle around and quack    . He also started eating corn. The formation of wild ducks continued their journey South, but Wally didn't care. "I'll __   them when they come back North in a few months," he said to himself.

Several months went by and __  enough, Wally looked up and spotted the flock of wild ducks in formation, heading north. They looked beautiful up there. And Wally was tired of the   . It was muddy and   he waddled, there was nothing but duck doo. "It's time to leave." said Wally.

So Wally _  his wings furiously and tried to get airborne. But he had gained some   from all his corn-eating, and he hadn't exercised his wings much either. He finally    the ground, but he was flying too _    and slammed into the side of the barn. He fell to the ground with a thud and said to himself, "Oh, well, I'll just wait until they fly __   in a few months. Then I'll rejoin them and become a wild duck again."

When the flock flew overhead once more, Wally again tried to    himself out of the barnyard. But he simply didn't have the strength. Every winter and every spring, he saw his wild duck friends flying overhead, and they would    to him. But his attempts to leave were all    .

    Eventually Wally no longer paid any attention to the wild ducks flying overhead. He hardly even noticed them. He had   , become a barnyard duck.

1.A. tame                              B. ugly                                   C. beautiful                            D. wild

2.A. food                              B. grain                                 C. corn                                    D. vegetable

3.A. rest                                B. waddle                    C. walk                                    D. fly

4.A. turn                   B. dive               C. land                                     D. circle

5.A. hurried                B. looked             C. left                                      D. headed

6.A. between               B. among             C. behind                                D. within

7.A. loudly                                B. sadly               C. merrily                               D. eagerly

8.A. see                   B. recognize           C. leave                                       D. rejoin

9.A. strange                B. lucky              C. sure                                    D. natural

10.A. barnyard          B. corn               C. waddling                         D. quacking

11.A. every day             B. every time                 C. everywhere                            D. nowhere

12.A. flapped           B. spread                    C. removed                           D. opened

13.A. strength         B. skills                      C. friends                             D. weight

14.A. got off          B. got to               C. got up                                          D. got back

15.A. slowly          B. fast                   C. high                                     D. low

16.A. back            B. south                C. north                                      D. overhead

17.A. lift             B. fly                        C. struggle                              D. rise

18.A. call out          B. come back                          C. come over                         D. call back

19.A. in return              B. in need                            C. in vain                                 D. in place

20.A. after all                B. above all                    C. therefore                          D. however