Old George bought the black gloves for just $35 ten years ago. They were made of lamb skin, soft and warm and very strong. Until then, he had worn cheaper man-made material. Those gloves never lasted longer than three years. He first decided to buy the expensive gloves, because they would make him feel nice in front of others.

George never let a drop of water or rain touch his expensive gloves, so they looked new. Losing this favourite thing was almost like losing a child to him.

Bad luck! George lost his expensive gloves on New Year's Day.

…

Back home. George was at a loss. In deep winter, he could not do without a pair of gloves. If he bought cheap ones again, he would have to replace (更换) them very soon. If he bought a new leather pair, it would cost $50 now. He was upset that people no longer returned things they found on the road.

After the holiday, poor George decided to buy another leather pair. Before boarding the subway, he went into Value Mart again to see if his gloves had been returned to the Lost and Found Office (失物招领处).

"What colour are they?" the woman in the office asked again.

"Black," he gave the same answer. She looked into her drawer and drew out a pair of men's leather gloves. "Are they?"

"Yes! Those are mine!" George explained, with great joy in his eyes.

41. When did George buy the leather gloves?

A. On New Year's Day.             B. Before the holiday.

C. Ten years ago.                  D. In the winter.

42. Why did George decide to buy the expensive gloves?

A. Because they were black.           B. Because they made him feel good before others.

C. Because they had a long history      D. Because they were much cheaper.

43. The leather gloves looked new after years because _______.

A. George took very good care of them.   B. they were soft and warm.

C. they were expensive.                D. George washed them with water.

44. How did George feel when he got home on New Year's Day?

A. He was happy.     B. He felt nice     C. He was thankful    D. He felt upset

45. About old George, which of the following is true?

A. He was a very rich man

B. He never bought cheap gloves

C. He believed somebody would return the gloves to him

D. He hadn't ecpected to get his gloves back.

Robby was 11 years old when his mother sent him to have his first piano lesson. I prefer that students begin at an earlier age, but Robby said ____36____ had always been his mother’s dream to hear him play the piano. So I took him on __37__ my student.
Although Robby tried very hard, ___38____ he was not good at music. However, he continued and _____39____ the end of each weekly lesson he’d always say:“My mom is going to hear me play someday.” But it seemed hopeless. He didn’t have a talent for music.
One day, Robby stopped ____40____ to our lessons. He told me that his mom had been sick and unable to take him to piano lessons, but he was still practicing. He asked ____41____ he could take part in my concert and I agreed.
The night of the concert came. The high school gym ___42____ with parents, friends and relatives. The concert was going well. Then Robby came up on the stage, and began to play the piano.
He played _____43___ well that everyone was on their feet, clapping(鼓掌)excitedly. In tears, I ran up on the stage, “Oh, Robby! ____44____ did you do it?”.
“Well, Miss Green…remember I told you my mom was sick? Well, actually she had cancer and died this morning. And well…she was born deaf, so tonight was the ____45___ time she ever heard me play the piano. I wanted to make it special.

Michael Jackson’s sudden death really astonished(震惊) his fans, but soon they are glad to find another younger “King of Pop” has appeared.

Wang Yiming, who is known as Xiao Bao, has already been popular across the world with his wonderful dance moves. He once appeared on U.S. television show “Ellen” and performed successfully at the World Expo 2010.　　 About seven years ago, Xiao Bao was born prematurely（早产）, which made his mother really worried. He was so weak. What could he do? Doctors suggested that moving his body to music would help make him strong, but soon his parents were surprised by how quickly Xiao Bao fell in love with music!

“When he was young, we just started playing music to him and he started moving around like this. But we didn’t think that he had such a strong feeling for music. When he was just several months old, we would let him listen to music and he would stop crying and calm down at once,” the proud mother once said.

So far, Xiao Bao has learned the moonwalk and other Jackson’s moves well. His fans are crazy about his wonderful shows. He has drawn more people’s attention. He is fast becoming internationally popular.

There are lots of problems waiting for him, but Xiao Bao will never give up. He is serious about his dancing career(事业). Where there is a will, there is a way. We are sure that Xiao Bao’s dream will come true one day.

41. Xiao Bao has been famous for ___________.

　 A. his young age　　 B. his dance moves C. his television shows　　　　 D. his strong body

42. Why did doctors advise Xiao Bao to dance?

　 A. Because they knew Xiao Bao’s feeling for music.

　 B. Because Xiao Bao’s parents wanted them to do so.

　 C. Because Xiao Bao likes Michael’s dancing a lot.

　 D. Because they thought dancing would be good for his health.

43. How did Xiao Bao’s parents feel when they first saw his reaction(反应) to music?

　 A. Surprised.　　　 B. Happy.　　 　　　　 C. Proud.　　 　　　　　　　　　 D. Worried.

44. What can we learn from the passage?

　 A. People have paid little attention to Xiao Bao.

　 B. Xiao Bao’s fans are not satisfied with his moves.

　 C. Xiao Bao works seriously and never gives up dancing.

　 D. His parents worry about their son’s crazy love for music.

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

　 A. A Boy’s Dancing Career.　　　　　　 B. A Younger “King of Pop”.

　 C. Michael Jackson’s Moves.　　　　　　 D. Wang Yiming’s Hobby.