【2011·辽宁锦州市质检二】A

I used to believe in the American dream that meant a job, credit, success. I wanted it and worked toward it like everyone else, all of us separately chasing the same thing.

One year, through a series of unhappy events, it all fell apart. I found myself homeless and alone. I had my truck and $56. I searched the countryside for some place I could rent for the cheapest possible amount. I came upon a deserted cottage in a small remote valley. I hadn’t been alone for 25 years. I was scared, but I hoped the hard work would distract and heal me.

I found the owner and rented the place for $50 a month. The locals knew nothing about me. But slowly they started teaching me the art of being a neighbor. They dropped off blankets, tools and canned deer meat and began sticking around to chat. They would ask if I wanted to meet cousin Albie or go fishing. They started to teach me a belief in a different American dream, not the one of individual achievement but of neighborliness. Men would stop by with wild berries, ice cream, truck parts to see if I needed some. The women on that mountain worked harder than any I'd ever met. They taught me how to store food in the stream and keep it cold and safe. I learned to keep enough for an extra plate for company.

What I had believed in, all those things I thought were necessary for a civilized life, were non-existent in this place．Up on the mountain, my most valuable possessions were my relationships with my neighbors．

After four years in that valley, I moved back into town. I saw a lot of people were having a really hard time, losing their jobs and homes. With the help of a real estate broker(房地产经纪人) I chatted up at the grocery store, I managed to rent a big enough house to take in a handful of people. It’s four of us now, but over time I've had nine come in and move on to other places from here. We’d all be in shelters if we hadn't banded together.

The American dream I believe in now is a shared one. It’s not so much about what I can get for myself; it’s about how we can all get by together.

56. Before a series of unhappy events happened, the writer ________.

A. had a well-paid job                   B. worked hard for his American dream

C. worked hard and liked to share            D. felt hopeless about his American dream

57. What does the underlined sentence “I learned to．．．” in Paragraph 3 most probably mean?

A. The writer learned to run a company.

B. The writer learned to share with others.

C. The writer learned to keep enough plates.

D. The writer learned to save money for his company.

58. Why did the writer rent a big house?

A. To make some money.                         B. To show off his wealth.

C. To share with those people in need.        D. To make friends with his neighbors.

59. The writer mainly tells us about ________．

A. his unhappy experiences               B. the friendly people in the valley

C. the change of his living conditions            D. his new idea of the American dream

My father never wanted his children to know what he did for a living. Dad worked in Plant C. Lying beside Lake Erie, it saw him in at sunrise and out at nightfall. Sometimes my mother would take my siblings (兄弟姐妹) and me to the public beach in our hometown of Ashtabula. She’d gather us round and point to the smokestacks, coughing clouds into the sky.
“Wave to daddy!” she’d shout. Four little hands would shoot into the air. I never knew what Dad did in Plant C, but during 34 years of hard work, he had surgery (手术) on his shoulder and hand. At 48, he had his first heart attack. He retired in 1993, right after the last kid graduated from college. But the damage was done. A few years later, the next heart attack killed him.
I saw my dad in plant C only once, when I took dinner to him. That night, I looked at my father, covered in sweat and coal, and for the first time I knew why he was so often angry for no reason.
Recently my father’s friend, Toby Workman, walked me there. I knew my father never wanted me to see it. At every station, he described the job and the danger. It was like listening to a foreign language. I walked past many DANGER signs. Toby put his hand on my shoulder. “Look”, he said, “you need to understand something. Your dad was a maintenance mechanic. He worked the most dangerous job. If something broke, he fixed it. ”
A few days later, my daughter graduated from college. I gave her the hard hat Toby handed to me as I left, and this note: “Whenever you feel something difficult, put this on, look in the mirror, and remember your roots.”
【小题1】What is the purpose of the passage?

B
Some say everyday miracles(奇迹) are predestined(注定的)----the right time for the appointed meeting．And it can happen anywhere．
In 2001, 11-year-old Kevin Stephan was a bat boy for his younger brother's Little League team in Lancaster, New York．It was an early evening in late July．Kevin was standing on the grass away from the plate, where another youngster was warming up for the next game．Swinging his bat back and forth, giving it all the power an elementary school kid could give．The boy brought the bat back hard and hit Kevin in the chest．His heart stopped．
When Kevin fell to the ground, the mother of one of the players rushed out of the stands to his aid．Penny Brown hadn't planned to be there that day, but at the last minute, her shift(换班)at the hospital had been changed to see her son’s performance．She was given the night off．Penny bent over the senseless boy, his face already starting to turn blue, and giving CPR, breathing into his mouth and givinging chest compressions．And he revived in the end．
After his recovery, he became a volunteer junior firefighter, learning some of the emergency first-aid techniques that had saved his life．He studied hard in school and was saving money for college by working as a dishwasher in a local restaurant in his spare time．
Kevin, now 18, was working in the kitchen when he heard people screaming, customers in confusion, employees rushing toward a table．He hurried into the main room and saw a woman there, her face turning blue, her hands at her throat．She was choking．
Quickly Kevin stepped behind her, wrapped his arms around her and clasped his hands．Then, using skills he'd first learned in Scouts．The food that was trapped in the woman's throat was freed．The color began to return to her face．
"The food was stuck．I couldn't breathe," she said．She thought she was dying．"I was very frightened．"
Who was the woman?
Penny Brown．
61．The author wrote the passage to show us that_______．
A．miracles are predestined and they can happen anywhere
B．whoever helps you in trouble will get a reward one day
C．God will help those who give others a helping hand
D．miracles won’t come without any diffculty sometimes
62．Which of the following statements is True of Kevin Stephan?
A．He was hit on the face by a boy and almost lost his life
B．He was a volunteer junior firefighter, teaching the players first-aid skills
C．He worked part-time in a local restaurant to save money for college
D．He saved Penny Brown though he didn’t really know how to deal with food choke
63．Why did Penny Brown change her shift and was given the night off that night?
A．She was invited to give the players directions
B．She volunteered to give medical services
C．She was a little worried about his son’s safty
D．She came to watch her son’s game and cheered him
64．The underlined word “revived”(paragraph3) most likely means______．
A．came back to life         B．became worse   C．failed               D．moved
65．When Kevin knew the woman was Penny Brown, probably he first felt _____．
A．happy          B．surprised     C．sad      D．worried

Many TV programs seen to be quite realistic(真实的).One 　　1   watches TV often feels that whatever happened in the film may as 　　2   happen to him, With only a little  3   , every man in the street man 　　4   to be a thief ,or a spy ,or a murderer. Jane had been watching a spy 　　5   at a friend’s home. In it a young girl had been    6   and murdered. She felt a little    7   .She took a train back to the center of the city. There were a lot of people 　　8   with her, so she felt much safer.

A man sat    9   her, reading a newspaper. She thought noting of it 　　10   she saw him staring at her. 　　11   the film and feeing uncomfortable, she got off the train and went to the bus stop. When he got on the same bus as she did, she found he was 　　12   her. When she got off the bus, she was getting more and more frightened    13   the street almost became empty. She    14    as quickly as she could.  She could hear footsteps behind her, but she didn’t dare to look over her 　　15   .It seemed to have been hours before she    16    the front door. She felt for her keys, but was unable to find them. The footsteps stopped behind her. She felt a 　　17   on her shoulder. Instead of feeling hands round her    18   , she heard a pleasant voice.

“I 　　19   if I frightened you. I thought I    20   you in the train, but I was not sure”.

1．A. he　　　　   B. which　　　　   C. who　　　　 D. she

2．A. well　　　　   B. soon　　　　　　 C. though　　   D. experience

3．A. thinking　　   B. imagination　　   C. consideration    D. experience

4. A. seem　　　　    B. appear　　　　   C. turn　　　　　　 D. some

5．A. film　　　　　　 B. play　　　　　　    C.TV　　　　　　  D. come

6．A. watched　　　　  B. afraid　　　　　　 C. standing　　　　   D. traveling

7．A. frightened 　　　　B. afraid　　　　　　 C. excited　　　　   D. hurt

8．A. talking　　　　    B. sitting　　　　    C. standing　　　　   D. traveling

9．A. by　　　　　　   B. opposite　　　　    C. before　　　　    D. behind

10．A. before　　　　   B. after　　    　　   C. as　　　　　　    D. until

11．A. smiling　　　　  B. staring　　　　　　   C. glaring　　　　   D. following

12．A. smiling　　　　   B. staring　　　　　　  C. glaring　　　　    D. following

13．A. as　　　　　　   B. when　　　　　　   C. for   　　　　　　 D. and

14．A. ran　　　　　　   B. rode　　　　　　    C. drove　　　　　　 D. walked

15．A. head　　　　　　  B. arms　　　　　　    C. shoulder　　　　    D. back

16．A. closed　　　　　　  B. opened　　　　　　 C. entered　　　　   D. reached

17．A. hand　　　　　　  B. blow　　　　　　　　 C. pressure　　　　   D. hit

18．A. arms　　　　　　  B. head　　　　　　　　 C.neck　　　　    D. apologize

19．A. wondered　　　　   B. regret　　　　　　  C. sorry　　　　    D. apologize

20．A. knew　　　　 　　 B. frightened　　　　  C. recognized　　　　  D. noticed