Once　upon　a　time,　a　young　man　was　standing　in　the　middle　of　the　town　announcing　that　he　had　the　most　beautiful　heart　in　the　world.　A　large　crowd　gathered,　and　they　al　praised　his　heart　for　it　was　perfect.

    Suddenly,　an　old　man　appeared　and　said,　“Why　,your　heart　is　not　as　beautiful　as　mine.”

    The　old　man’s　heart　was　ful　of　scars（伤疤）.　Some　pieces　of　his　heart　were　removed　and　some　pieces　from　other　people　were　put　in,　but　they　didn’t　fit　quite　right.　So　there　were　several　jagged（锯齿状的）edges.　In　fact,　there　were　stil　some　holes　in　his　heart　where　the　pieces　were　missing.

    The　 young　 man　 laughed,“Comparing　yours　with　mine,　mine　is　perfect　and　yours　is　a　mess.”

    “Yes,”said　the　old　man.　“But,　every　scar　shows　that　I　took　out　a　piece　of　my　heart　and　gave　it　to　a　person,　and　often　he　gave　me　a　piece　of　his　heart　in　return.”

    “Why　do　you　have　some　jagged　edges　in　your　heart?”asked　the　young　man.“Because　the　shapes　of　the　pieces　weren’t　the　same.”“Then　the　holes?”“Sometimes　I　gave　pieces　of　my　heart　away,　and　the　other　person　hasn’t　given　back　a　piece　of　his,　so　… but　I　don’t　care.”“How　come?”“They　remind　me　of　the　love　we　shared.”

    The　young　man　was　deeply　moved.　He　walked　up　to　the　old　man,　took　a　piece　of　his　heart　out　and　gave　it　to　the　old　man.

    The　old　man　placed　it　in　his　heart,　then　took　a　piece　from　his　old　scarred　heart　and　placed　it　in　the　wound（伤口）in　the　young　man’s　heart.　It　fitted,　but　not　perfectly,　as　there　were　some　jagged　edges.

    The　young　man　looked　at　his　heart,　not　perfect　any　more　but　more　beautiful　than　ever.

    How　sad　it　must　be　to　go　through　 life　 with　 a　 whole　untouched　heart!

    1.　The　young　man　stood　in　the　town　to　_____.

    A.　meet　the　old　man　　　　B.　compare　his　heart　with　others’

    C.　show　his　beautiful　heart　D.　give　pieces　of　his　heart　to　others

   2.　It’s　clear　that　the　old　man　was　_____.

    A.　a　sily　man　　　　B.　a　humorous　man

    C.　a　wel-known　man　　　　D.　a　kind-hearted　man

  3.　We　learn　from　the　story　that　in　the　end　the　young　man　was　_____.

    A.　lost　　　　B.　moved　　　　C.　hurt　　　　D.　untouched

  4.　The　old　man　said“… but　I　don’t　care”means　_____.

    A.　he　didn’t　expect　others’return

    B.　he　didn’t　feel　pain

    C.　he　didn’t　think　it　serious

    D.　he　cared　nothing

  5.We　can　get　more　beautiful　hearts　by　sharing　_____

    A.　ideas　　　　B.　scars　　　　C.　love　　　　D.　beauty

 

Most children of her age would not be able to sit through an opera. But at just the age of seven, Alma Deutscher has already composed（写作）her own.

　　Alma wrote her own sonata （奏鸣曲）at the age of six, and she composed her first opera, The Sweeper of Dreams, this year. The English National Opera (英国国家歌剧院) thought it was great work!

　　Alma said: “The music comes to me when I’m relaxing. I like thinking about fairies a lot, and princesses, and beautiful dresses.” She likes to sit on the swing（秋千） in the garden and compose. According to this talented young musician, the idea for The Sweeper of Dreams came in a dream.

　　But Alma is not only a good composer; she is a skilled violinist and pianist as well.

　　Because of her talent, Alma has become famous and many people like to compare her with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart（莫扎特）.

　　“I don’t mind whether I am famous or not,” she says. “I like Mozart, but I’m not trying to become him. I’m going to be like Alma, not Mozart.”

44. When did Alma compose her first sonata?

　 A．seven years old　　 B. six years old C. ten years old　 D. eight years old

45. What is the name of her first opera?

　 A. The Sweeper of Dreams B. The Sleeping Beauty C. My Dream D. Beautiful Dresses

46. What instruments can she play?

　　 A. piano　 B. piano and violin　 C. drum　 D. piano and trumpet

47. Whom do many people like to compare Alma with?

A. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart　 B. Henry Brown　 C. James Naismith D. Mark Twain