Jack Baines is a self-made millionaire, but his beginning was very lowly (平凡的，普通的)。He was the youngest of eight children. His father　　1　　in the cotton mills of Blackburn, Lancashire in the 1920s, but he was often　　2　　to work because of poor health. The family couldn't　　3　　to pay the rent, and the children often went　　4　 . After leaving school at the age of 14, Jack was wondering　　5　　to do when Mr. Walker, his old teacher, offered to lend him $ 100 to start his own　　6　 .

　　It was just after the war. Raw materials were not plentiful, and Jack (without　　7　　his parents' advice ) saw a future in scrap metal. He bought bits of metal and stored them in an old garage. When he had built up a sizeable amount, he sold it and　　8　　plenty of money.

　　Jack　　9　　working hard. After one year he succeeded in　　10　　the $ 100 and he also　　11　　to give Mr. Walker 100% interest to thank him for his generosity.

　　By the time Jack was 30 years old he　　12　　his first million, and he wanted to celebrate this progress　　13　　doing something“great”.With all his money　　14　　was possible to build a beautiful home for himself and his parents. In 1959,“Baines Castle”was built in the　　15　　of the Lancashire countryside. It was one of the finest buildings in the country.

　　Jack has recently sold“Baines Castle”for $5 million,　　16　　Jack still can't get used to　　17　 . He can often be found drinking with the locals at the local pub.

　　“I remember being very　　18　　as a child, but　　19　　unhappy as a child,”says Jack,“and I will never forget　　20　　I came from and who I am.”

　　Lancashire people are proud of their local hero.

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He must have been completely lost in something he was reading because I had to tap on the windshield to get his attention.

“Is your taxi  1  ?” I asked when he finally looked  2  at me. He nodded, then said  3  as I settled into the back seat, “I'm sorry, but I was reading a  4  .” He  5  as if he had a cold .

“I am not in a hurry,” I told him. “Go ahead and finish your letter.” He  6  his head. “I've read it several times already. I guess I  7  know it by heart.”

“Letters from home always mean a lot,” I said. “From a child?”

“This isn't  8  ,” he replied. “Although it  9  just as well have been family. Old Ed was my oldest friend. In fact, we used to call each other 'Old Friend' when we'd meet. I'm not much good at  10 .”

“I don't think any of us keep  11  our correspondence (通信) too well,” I said. “I know I don't. But I take it he's someone you've  12  quite a while?”

“All my life. We were kids together, went to school together and all the  13  through high school.”

“There are not too many people who've had such a long friendship,” I said.

“ 14 ,” the driver went on, “I hadn't seen him more than once or twice a year over the past 25 or 30 years because I  15  away from the old neighbourhood and you kind of lose touch  16  you never forget.”

“You said 'was'. Does that mean—?” He nodded. “ 17  a couple of weeks ago.”

“I'm sorry,” I said. “It's no fun to lose any friend—and losing a real old one is  18  tougher.”

He didn't  19  to that, and we rode on in silence for a few minutes. But I realized that Old Ed was still on his mind when he spoke again, almost more to himself than to me: “I should have kept in touch.”

“Well,” I agreed, “we should all keep in touch with old friends more than we do. But things  20  and we just don't seem to find the time.”

When I got to my hotel room I didn't unpack right away. First I had to write a letter and mail it.

1. available    B. acceptable          C. beneficial       D. occupied

2. A.       down      B.    up    C.    to    D. off

3. A.       unexpectedly      B. curiously        C. apologetically D.  definitely

4. A.       booklet       B. novel              C.       book          D. letter

5. A.       sounded   B. spoke  C.    seemed    D. continued

6. A.       hung      B.       nodded       C. shook       D. kept

7. A.       anyhow   B.    hardly     C.    almost     D. really

8. A.       friendship       B.    family     C.    leadership       D. colleague

9. A.       could      B. might  C.    maybe     D. would

10. A.     writing    B.    reading    C.    talking    D. earning

11. A.      up    B.    with C.    on    D. in

12. A.     found      B.    written    C.    known     D. seen

13. A.     curriculum      B.    coincidence     C.    life  D. way

14. A. Eventually   B.    Actually  C.    Additionally   D. Besides

15. A. removed      B.    left  C.    headed    D. moved

16. A.     even though    B.    as though C.    when       D. whereas

17. A.     Died       B. Suffered     C. Choked      D. Survived

18. A.     ever B.    even C.    fairly      D. quite

19. A.     appeal          B. reply    C.    adapt       D. talk

20.   A.    take up         B. pick up          C. come up             D. break up

What am I doing with my daughter at home? Rather than read aloud from books, we

go to dinner and have a very good time. This is usually when her Mom isn't around, and this is when my little girl and I relate better. They're alone together so much. We're seldom alone. When we're alone together, she and I somehow behave differently. We learn about each other. She learns that I'm her father. I learn that she's my daughter. It's a strange feeling, but any parent knows what I'm talking about when I say that I often look at my daughter and wonder just whose kid she is. Where'd she suddenly come from? And why on earth did she pick Laura and me for parents?

When my daughter and I are alone she'll hold my hand and say, “I just love you so much, Daddy!” She's so used to my leaving that when I tell her she and I are going to hang out all night, she gets this great look on her face and says, “We've got so much to do, Dad!” There's nothing like it in the world.

I want my relationship with my daughter to keep growing, so I've been giving my wife a couple of hundred dollars each week and making her go to the shopping center with her girlfriends, or something—anything!

But this closeness is not without its problems. When I'm sitting there playing with her Barbie doll(巴比娃娃)， washing her hair, a voice in me suddenly says, “I've got to get a drink and get out of here.” Right in the middle of all this pleasantness, the voice goes, “Look at yourself! You're washing dolls!”

1.Why does the husband give his wife so much money each week?

A. He wants her to buy more things for the family. 

B. She can do whatever she likes with the money. 

C. He can spend more time with his daughter. 

D. She can spend more time with her friends.   

2. Which of the following statements is true?

A. The father spends more time with the daughter than the mother does. 

B.The daughter is happy when the father tells her he will be away.

C.The father is happy, hearing “We've got so much to do, Dad!” 

D.The father is sure that the daughter is not his own.   

3.What does the last paragraph tell us about the father?

A.He doesn't enjoy being with his daughter. 

B.He doesn't like washing his daughter's hair. 

C.He likes to enjoy himself by going out for a drink. 

D.He has mixed feelings when he is with his daughter.   

阅读理解

　　Herb was at home alone one night while his parents were out for the evening. He had often stayed alone before, so he wasn't afraid. As he waited for his parents to return home, he watched the late movie on television. His eyelids became heavier and heavier as the time passed.

　　Suddenly Herb's eyes popped open. What was that noise in the next room? Herb strained his ears and heard the window slowly being inched open. For a minute Herb was so frightened that he could not move, his body felt like stone.

　　He knew that he mustn't lose his head and began to think of things he could do. He couldn't reach the telephone without passing the window where he had heard the noise, and he couldn't reach the door. Again he heard the sound of someone trying to enter his home through the window.

　　Herb's drums were standing in the corner near the TV. “A maybe there is something I can do,” thought Herb.

　　He grabbed the drumsticks and beat on his drums as he had never beaten before. The commotion was so awesome that Herb astonished even himself. He also surprised the person in the window, who turned tail and ran for all he was worth. The burglar was nipped in the bud.

　　Herb had just used his drums in a very unusual way, “Maybe drums aren't such a bad instrument after all,”thought Herb with a sign of relief.

1．The burglar flee when he heard the drum noise because ________.

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A．he thought he would be hit by a drumstick

B．he knew a frightened boy was inside

C．he liked piano music better

D．he felt that he was in danger

2．________ awakened Herb.

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3．What will probably happen next?

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A．Herb will sell his drums.

B．Herb will call the police and tell them a burglar is nearby.

C．The burglar will climb in the window.

D．Herb's father will scold him for disturbing the neighbors.

4．Which of these is NOT a figure of speech?

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5．How do we know that Herb's plan worked?

[　　]

A．The burglar ran away.

B．The burglar listened to the music.

C．The burglar robbed the family's home.

D．The burglar stepped on some flower buds

阅读理解

　　Herb was at home alone one night while his parents were out for the evening. He had often stayed alone before, so he wasn't afraid. As he waited for his parents to return home, he watched the late movie on television. His eyelids became heavier and heavier as the time passed.

　　Suddenly Herb's eyes popped open. What was that noise in the next room? Herb strained his ears and heard the window slowly being inched open. For a minute Herb was so frightened that he could not move, his body felt like stone.

　　He knew that he mustn't lose his head and began to think of things he could do. He couldn't reach the telephone without passing the window where he had heard the noise, and he couldn't reach the door. Again he heard the sound of someone trying to enter his home through the window.

　　Herb's drums were standing in the corner near the TV. “A maybe there is something I can do,” thought Herb.

　　He grabbed the drumsticks and beat on his drums as he had never beaten before. The commotion was so awesome that Herb astonished even himself. He also surprised the person in the window, who turned tail and ran for all he was worth. The burglar was nipped in the bud.

　　Herb had just used his drums in a very unusual way, “Maybe drums aren't such a bad instrument after all,”thought Herb with a sign of relief.

1．The burglar flee when he heard the drum noise because ________.

[　　]

A．he thought he would be hit by a drumstick

B．he knew a frightened boy was inside

C．he liked piano music better

D．he felt that he was in danger

2．________ awakened Herb.

[　　]

3．What will probably happen next?

[　　]

A．Herb will sell his drums.

B．Herb will call the police and tell them a burglar is nearby.

C．The burglar will climb in the window.

D．Herb's father will scold him for disturbing the neighbors.

4．Which of these is NOT a figure of speech?

[　　]

5．How do we know that Herb's plan worked?

[　　]

A．The burglar ran away.

B．The burglar listened to the music.

C．The burglar robbed the family's home.

D．The burglar stepped on some flower buds