Betty is not a traditional American beauty. She is unfashionable, has thick red glasses, untidy hair and large metal braces (牙套) on her teeth. But this hasn’t stopped her from becoming one of America’s favorite TV characters. So how did she manage to do it?
The answer is that charm can be more attractive than beauty. Betty is the main character in a TV show Ugly Betty. The show is about her life as an office worker at a fashion magazine in New York.
The TV show has just started. Betty has many exciting experiences and romantic stories. Betty is often looked down on and laughed at by the people around. But she manages to do better than others with her hard work, charm and wisdom. The show tells us about how a girl goes from an ugly young duck into a beautiful swan.
Though you may know the ending of the show from the beginning and the story is familiar to many of us, it has still been a big success in the USA. It has attracted a large number of viewers and won two Golden Globes awards, one of the highest honors for a television program in the USA. “I think you can see a bit of Betty in all of us, and I mean men as well, because it’s about the underdog (弱者) ”, says Ashley Jensen, who plays one of the characters on the show.
The program is so popular because of the performance of the 23-year-old actress America Ferrera who plays the role of Betty. She brings the character alive on the screen.
【小题1】Betty is popular because of                   .

A．her clothes

B．her charm

C．her personality

D．her appearance

【小题2】In Paragraph 4, the underlined word “it” refers to (指的是)                   .

A．the beginning

B．the ending

C．the story

D．the show

【小题3】Which is the reason for the success of the show?

A．A large number of viewers.

B．Her life as an office worker.

C．The wonderful performance.

D．Two Golden Globes awards.

【小题4】Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Betty is a girl of wisdom.

B．Betty acts as a beautiful swan on the show.

C．Betty is an American favourite TV character.

D．Betty is often looked down on by the people around.

【小题5】What can be the best title for the passage?

A．Beauty from within.	B．A romantic story.
C．An ugly girl.	D．An exciting experience.

America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon. They don ’t feel hurt. If the same two people meet again, even years later, they pick up the friendship .This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand .Friendships between us develop more slowly but may become lifelong feelings, extending（延伸）deeply into both families.
There is another difficult point for us to understand . Although Americans treat friends warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to them if it requires a great deal of time. But in China ,we are usually generous with our time. We, as hosts, will appear at an airport even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off from our work to act as guides to our friends .It is opposite in America , Americans can not manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily plans. They will probably expect the visitors to get themselves from the airport to the hotels. And they expect the visitors will phone them from there. Once the visitors arrive at their homes , the welcome will be full , warm and real. For Americans , it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to restaurants, except for business matters. Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. So accept their hospitality（好客）at home and enjoy your visit in America!
【小题1】The underlined phrase “pick up” in Paragraph 1 may mean “_______”.

A．keep out

B．give up

C．pay no attention to

D．continue

【小题2】Which of the following is the typical （典型的）way of  American hospitality?

A．Treating friends at home.

B．Taking days off to be with friends.

C．Meeting friends at the airport at midnight.

D．Sharing everything they have.

【小题3】Which of the following statements is True according to the passage?

A．Americans are always generous with their time.

B．Americans don’t feel hurt if their friendships disappear soon.

C．Chinese friendships develop more slowly but will never disappear.

D．Chinese friendships are more sincere than American friendships.

Henry was an office worker in a big city. He worked very hard and enjoyed traveling in his holidays.
He usually went to the seaside, but one year he saw an advertisement in a newspaper. “Enjoy country life. Spend a few weeks at West Hill Farm. Good food，Fresh air，Horse riding，Walking，Fishing，Cheap and interesting.”
“This sounds a good idea,” he thought. “I’ll spend a month at West Hill Farm. I think I can enjoy horse riding, walking and fishing. They’ll make a change from sitting by the seaside and swimming.”
He wrote to the farmer. In the letter he said that he would like to spend all of July there. Then on the first of July, he left for West Hill Farm.
But four days later, he returned home.
“What was wrong with West Hill Farm?” his best friend, Ed, asked him. “Didn’t you enjoy country life?”
“Country life was very good,” Henry said. “But there was another problem.”
“Oh. What?”
“Well,” he said, “the first day I was there a sheep died, and we had roast mutton for dinner.”
“What's wrong with that?” Ed asked. “Fresh meat is the best.”
“I know, but on the second day a cow died, and we had roast beef for dinner.”
“Lucky you!”
“You don't understand,” Henry said. “On the third day a pig died and we had roast pork for dinner.”
“A different meat every day,” Ed said loudly, “ and you are complaining!”
“Let me finish,” Henry said. “On the fourth day the farmer died, and I didn't dare (敢)stay for dinner!”
【小题1】How did Henry find out about the farm?

A．He saw it in a newspaper advertisement.

B．His best friend told him.

C．He wrote to the farmer.

D．Maybe he learned it from the radio.

【小题2】Henry came back home several days later because ______________.

A．he didn't like the country life at all

B．the farmer wasn’t friendly to him

C．his holiday was over

D．he thought he might have to eat the farmer

【小题3】“…and you are complaining!”, the word “complain” means __________.

A．夸奖

B．说三道四

C．抱怨

D．故弄玄虚

【小题4】Which of the following sentences is true?

A．Ed could eat a different kind of meat every day.

B．Henry thought he could enjoy a change.

C．Henry couldn't think of anything else to do, so he went to the farm.

D．The farmer died because of the bad meat he ate.

【小题5】Which is the best title for the passage?

A．What a beautiful farm!	B．Have a good time.
C．A short holiday	D．Henry and the farmer.