Alan took an early interest in gardening---first on his grandfather’s Yorkshire allotment in Ilkley, and then in his parents’ back garden. Small polythene（聚乙烯）greenhouses appeared in the back garden, and cacti（仙人掌）were bought from church markets.
Alan left school at fifteen with one `O’ level in Art and took a job as an apprentice（学徒）gardener in Ilkley Parks Department nursery, studying for his City and Guilds in Horticulture（园艺）in the evening.
He went on to horticultural college at Oaklands in Hertfordshire where he studied for one year full-time, being awarded the National Certificate in Horticultural. This was followed by three years at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, resulting in the award of the Kew Diploma.
After two years as supervisor of staff training at Kew, Alan entered journalism where he became first a gardening books editor, and then Deputy Editor of Amateur Gardening magazine. He appeared regularly on BBC Radio and Television in programs such as Nationwide , Breakfast Time, Open Air, Pebble Mill, Songs of Praise, Titchmarsh’s Travels, and the Chelsea Flower Show. He presented the 100th edition of The Word for Channel 4, and hosted the quiz show Ask the Family.
Gardeners’ World and the hugely popular Ground Force, second only to Easterners in the BBC1 ratings, are broadcast as far as Australia, New Zealand and North America. After leaving both programs, Alan worked on two other series for the BBC to be transmitted in 2003 and 2004, one of them a landmark series on the natural history of Britain. Alan writes for the Daily Express, Sunday Express, Radio Times and BBC Gardeners’ World magazine, and has more than thirty gardening books to his credit. His four novels, as well as a book about his own life, have been best sellers.
Alan, 53, gardens organically, and lives with his wife, two daughters and a medley of animals.
【小题1】We know that Alan ______in his school days.

A young boy loved football with all his heart. But being half the size of the other boys, this hopeful athlete  36   the bench and hardly ever played.

This young man was still the  37   of the class when he entered high school. He decided to try his best at every  38   , and perhaps he could play later. All through high school he   39   neither a practice nor a game, but   40    a bench-warmer all four years.

When the young man went to   41   , the coach kept him on the roster(候选名单)   42   he always put his heart and soul to every practice, and at same time,    43   the other members with the spirit they badly needed. But during his four years at college, he never   44   to play in a game,

In the last football match, the game was not going  45   . When the team was ten points  46   , the silent young man came to the coach and said “Coach, please let me  47   . Believe me.”  The coach pretended not to hear him . There was no  48   he wanted the worst player in this close playoff(决赛) game.

But the young man  49   , and finally the coach, feeling sorry for him,  50   . “All right,” he said. “You can go in.” Soon, the coach, the players and everyone in the   51   could not believe their eyes. This little   52  man, who had never played before, was doing everything right. The opposing team could not   53   him. He ran, he passed, blocked like a star.

The   54   was(were) soon tied, In the closing seconds of the game, he intercepted(拦截) a  55   and ran all the way for the winning touchdown(触地得分). The fans applauded(鼓掌) and his teammates raised him onto their shoulders. Such cheering he never heard.

1.A. stood by          B. sat on         C. carried up     D. moved away

2.A. smallest          B. smartest             C. bravest         D. biggest

3.A. risk              B. step             C . practice       D. match

4.A. missed             B. hated          C. joined            D. watched

5.A. forgot                B. earned               C. displayed      D. remained

6.A. his hometown          B. his coach’s   C. college          D. school

7.A. before               B. though               C. when        D. because

8.A. charged            B. applied         C. provided       D. changed

9.A. managed          B. persuaded   C. promised      D. wanted

10.A. any more                 B. badly         C. well           D . anyway

11.A. later                    B. above       C. behind           D. over

12.A. go             B. play           C. stay          D. think

13.A. idea                     B. doubt        C. way           D. need

14.A. won                     B. tolerated     C. scared           D. insisted

15.A. took in            B. broke in        C. sent in           D. gave in

16.A. families          B. stands      C. corners         D. queues

17.A. puzzled           B. unknown      C. boring            D. polite

18.A. accept            B. believe          C. defeat           D. stop

19.A. ball             B. judges      C. score        D. fans

20.A. fly               B. jump         C. pass           D. pause

Alan took an early interest in gardening---first on his grandfather’s Yorkshire allotment in Ilkley, and then in his parents’ back garden. Small polythene（聚乙烯）greenhouses appeared in the back garden, and cacti（仙人掌）were bought from church markets.

Alan left school at fifteen with one `O’ level in Art and took a job as an apprentice（学徒）gardener in Ilkley Parks Department nursery, studying for his City and Guilds in Horticulture（园艺）in the evening.

He went on to horticultural college at Oaklands in Hertfordshire where he studied for one year full-time, being awarded the National Certificate in Horticultural. This was followed by three years at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, resulting in the award of the Kew Diploma.

 After two years as supervisor of staff training at Kew, Alan entered journalism where he became first a gardening books editor, and then Deputy Editor of Amateur Gardening magazine. He appeared regularly on BBC Radio and Television in programs such as Nationwide , Breakfast Time, Open Air, Pebble Mill, Songs of Praise, Titchmarsh’s Travels, and the Chelsea Flower Show. He presented the 100th edition of The Word for Channel 4, and hosted the quiz show Ask the Family.

Gardeners’ World and the hugely popular Ground Force, second only to Easterners in the BBC1 ratings, are broadcast as far as Australia, New Zealand and North America. After leaving both programs, Alan worked on two other series for the BBC to be transmitted in 2003 and 2004, one of them a landmark series on the natural history of Britain. Alan writes for the Daily Express, Sunday Express, Radio Times and BBC Gardeners’ World magazine, and has more than thirty gardening books to his credit. His four novels, as well as a book about his own life, have been best sellers.

Alan, 53, gardens organically, and lives with his wife, two daughters and a medley of animals.

1.We know that Alan ______in his school days.

A. was good at writing novels            B. loved Horticulture very much even

C. didn’t do so well in his studies      D. decided to be an apprentice

2.According to this passage, we can learn that______.

A. Alan accepted little education     B. Alan wrote many books about food

C. Alan had never been married         D. Alan was first a gardening books editor

3.Though the author doesn’t tell us directly, we can conclude that______.

A. Alan’s school teachers were not good at teaching the subject: Botany

B. when Alan was successful he was working as a journalist of the time

C. Alan had had four years of training in Horticulture before being a journalist

D. born as a man of many talents, Alan didn’t realize the fact until years later

4.Which of the following four programs is more popular than Ground Force in the BBC1 ratings?

   A. Breakfast Time.  B. Radio Time.  C. Gardeners’ World.  D. Easterners.

5. What’s the best title for the passage?

A. A Man of Many Talents.     B. Botany Makes Him What He Is Today.

C. No Pains, No Gains.        D. Can’t a Poorly-graded Student Be Successful?

Sixteen years ago, Eileen Doyle's husband, an engineer, took his four children up for an early morning cup of tea, packed a small case and was never seen or heard of again. Eileen was astonished and in a state of despair. They had been a happy family and, as far as she knew, there had been nothing wrong with their marriage.
Every day of the year a small group of men and women quietly pack a few
belongings and without so much as a note or a good--bye close the front door for the last time, leaving their debts, their worries and their confused families behind them.Last year, more than 1,200 men and nearly as many women were reported missing
from home--the highest in 15 years. Many did return home within a year, but others
rejected the past completely and are now living a new life somewhere under a
different identity.
To those left behind, this form of desertion is a terrible blow to their pride and self-confidence. Even the finality of death might be preferable. At least it does not imply rejection or failure. Worse than that, people can be left with an unfinished marriage, not knowing whether they will have to wait seven years before they are free to start a fresh life.
Clinical psychologist Paul Brown believes most departures of this kind to be well
planned rather than impulsive. "It's typical of the kind of personality which seems
able to ignore other people's pain and difficulties. Running away, like killing yourself,is a highly aggressive act. By creating an absence the people left behind feel guilty,upset and empty."
51. When her husband left home, Eileen Doyle________.
A. could not forgive him for taking the children
B. had been expecting it to happen for some time
C. could not understand why
D. blamed herself for what had happened
52. Most people who leave their families behind them___________.
A. do so without warning
B. do so because of their debts
C. come back immediately
D. change their names
53. Some people would even prefer the death to the running away of their spouse
Because_________.
A. their spouse would feel no pain during the death
B. their spouse death would not blow their pride and confidence
C. a desertion would not bring a feeling of rejection or failure
D. their spouse death would make them feel less painful
54. Which might be the best tire of the passage?
A. Broken Marriage      B. New life after Desertion
C. A New Social Problem  D. Desertion and its Influence
55. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Many people choose to leave home quietly because they hate their family.
B. Paul Brown regards leaving home as an act of selfishness.
C. Those who are left behind will lose confidence and won't marry again.
D. Eileen's husband, together with his four kids, were probably killed in an accident.                  

The new mayor of Hillsdale, Michigan, is a man of the people, ready to listen to their problems, but only until 6 p.m. Then he has to do his homework. Michael Sessions, 18, beat former mayor Douglas Ingles, 51, by just two votes and became the new mayor of Hillsdale. He is America's youngest mayor.

As Sessions was too young to enter the election in the spring of 2005, he registered- to vote on Sept. 22, one day after his 18-year-old birthday. The day after that he started his write-in campaign, which means he should persuade voters to remember his name and write it by hand on the voting ballots（选票）.

To help get his name known, Sessions earned＄700 by selling apples over the summer. He spent the money on posters and put them on the Hillsdale's lawns.

Sessions' month-long campaign included going door to door, explaining his ideas of the town's future in the kitchens of his neighbors. "They'd look at me, and say‘How old are you again? How much experience do you have?'And I say‘I'm still in high school', "he said. Sessions promised Hillsdale's voters he would renew local economy. “I was hopeful the whole time, ”he explained. One day he spent so long out on the streets knocking on the doors that he ended up in a hospital emergency room.

Sessions said that his schoolwork will not get in the way of his job as a mayor. “From 7:50 a.m. to 2:30p.m., I'11 be a student. From 3 to 6, I'11 be the mayor of Hillsdale," he said.

“He did a very brave thing that couldn't have been easy for him to do, "said Jack Vettel, a councilman in Hillsdale, a city of 8,200 about 75 miles southwest of Detroit. "He does care about this town. He's been here all his life. ”

Sessions will receive＄3, 600 a year during his four-year term, and will work out of his bedroom since the town does not provide the mayor with an office.

1.What is TRUE of Sessions' election campaign according to the text?

A．Sessions launched his election campaign on Sept. 22.

B．Sessions worked so hard that he once tried to persuade people in a hospital.

C．Sessions won the election campaign by a very close outcome.

D．Sessions felt disappointed when asked about his age and experience.

2.In order to gain more support from the voters Sessions had to do all these things EXCEPT＿.

A．put up posters'                         B．renew the economy

C．sell apples                             D．talk to neighbors in kitchens

3.What can we infer from the passage?

A．American mayors usually work from 3 p. m. to 6 p. m.

B．In America, young people are encouraged to get involved in politics.

C．All teenagers are allowed to enter political elections.

D．American mayors receive a salary of 3, 600 a year during their 4-year term.

4.Which of the following would best summarize the text?

A．Schoolboy becomes American's youngest mayor.

B．How to become a teenage mayor.

C．Hard work is the ticket to success.

D．Never too young to shake the world.