I believe that families are not only blood relatives, but sometimes people who show up and love you when no one else will.

In May 1977, I was living in a Howard Johnson’s motel off Interstate 10 in Houston. My dad and I 21 a room with two double beds and a bathroom which was too 22 for a 15-year-old girl and her father. Dad’s second marriage was 　23 and my stepmother had 　24 us both out of the house the previous week. Dad had no　 25_ what to do with me. And that’s when my other family 　26 .

Barbara and Roland Beach took me into their home 　27　 their only daughter, Su, my best friend, asked them to. I 　28 with them for the next seven years.

Barb washed my skirts the same as Su’s. She 　29 I had lunch money, doctors’ appointments, help with homework and nightly hugs. Barbara and Roland attended every football game where Su and I were being cheerleaders. 30 I could tell, for the Beaches there was no 31 between Su and me; I was their daughter, too.

When Su and I 32 college they kept my room the same for the entire four years I attended school. Recently, Barb presented me with an insurance policy they bought when I first moved in with them and had continued to pay on for 23 years.

The Beaches knew 33 about me when they took me in – they had heard the whole story from Su. When I was seven, my mother died and from then on my father relied on other people to _34 his kids. Before I went to live with the Beaches I had believed that life was entirely 　35__ and that love was shaky and untrustworthy. I had believed that the only person who would take care of me was me.

36 the Beaches, I would have become a bitter, cynical (愤世嫉俗的) woman. They gave me a(n) 37 that allowed me to grow and change. They kept me from being paralyzed(使瘫痪 ,使麻痹 ,使无能力)by my _38　 , and they gave me the confidence to open my heart.

I 　39 family. For me, it wasn’t the family that was there on the day I was 　40　 , but the one that was there for me when I was living in a Howard Johnson’s on Interstate 10.

16．A. lived　　 B. shared 　　 C. possessed　　　　 D. bought

17．A. cheap　　 B. noisy　　　 C. small　　　　　　 D. limited

18．A. in trouble B. in sight 　　 C. in place 　 D. in parts

19．A. struck　　　　 B. removed　 C. kicked 　　 D. knocked

20．A. plan　　　　 B. choice 　　　 C. chance 　　 D. idea

21．A. looked after　 B. showed up　　 C. turned over 　　 D. came cross

22．A. so　　　　　 B. because　　　 C. until 　　　　 D. while

23．A. worked　　　 B. traveled　　　 C. lived 　　　　 D. learned

24．A. worked out　　 B. called up　　 C. watched out　　　 D. made sure

25．A. As long as B. As far as　　 C. As soon as 　　　 D. As many as

26．A. change 　　 B. problem 　 C. conflict 　 　　D. difference

27．A. set off　　　　　 B. left for　　　　 C. entered into 　　 　　　 D. admitted into

28．A. all 　　 B. little 　 C. something D. nothing

29．A. supply B. teach C. encourage D. raise

30．A. different 　 B. unfair 　　　 C. easy　　 　　　 D. hopeful

31．A. Thanks to B. In spite of C. Except for 　　　 D. But for

32．A. home 　　　 B. house 　　　 C. ability 　　　 　　D. lesson

33．A. choice 　　 B. failure 　　　 C. past　 　　 　　D. present

34．A. doubt about 　　 B. call on 　　 C. center on　　 D. believe in

35．A. born B. accepted 　 C. educated　　 D. deserted

With long brown hair, deep blue eyes, a tall and thin figure(身躯) Brad Pitt seems to be a born actor. He made his first appearance in a film in 1990. Though he was in the film for only 14 minutes, people flooded the cinema to see him. In his next film Pitt played the role of a fisherman. To make the film better, he learned the skill of fishing from a fisherman.

Pitt, caring more about roles than money, has a special favor for the “hard” roles. After reading the screenplay(剧本) of “Legends of the Fall”, he was attracted by the leading character. He asked for a lower pay from the shooting team and was willing to work in hard conditions in the Rocky Mountains for six months. “The film gives the chance to know life. I shall always remember the time when we were making the film,” Pitt said after completing it fully.

Pitt started his dream of art when he was in university. Though born in a common family in 1964, he showed his interest in film at an early age. After leaving high school, he went to university to study law. Because he loved film more than law, shortly before he could graduate, he dropped out for a life of his own, with only 325 dollars in hand, sometimes as a porter or a waiter. Thanks to his hard work, he finally opened up a new field of his own.

60Pitt acted his first film at the age of 　　　 .

A. 6　 　　　　　　　　 B. 14 　　　　　　　　　　　 C. 26　　 　　　　　　　　　 D.36

61. The underlined expression “a born actor” means 　　　 .

A. he was born in an actor family

B. he became an actor soon after he was born

C. he was an actor when he was born

D. he has a strong natural ability to be an actor

62. From the passage we know 　　　 .

A. Pitt became known as an actor at an early age.

B. To achieve his goal, Pitt suffered a lot before success

C. it was wrong of Pitt not to finish his university education

D. In order to develop his interest, Pitt failed to enter university

63. Which of the following words can best describe the character of Pitt?

A. Devoted.　　　　　　　　　 B. Generous.　　　　　　　　 C. Selfish.　　　　　　 D. Mean.

2.26-meter-tall Yao Ming made his NBA debut (初次登台) on October 23, 2002 and got 6 points for the Houston Rockets in the game. The next day, he got 13 points (得分)in another game.

Most people think that Yao Ming is a born basketball player. But Yao said, “When you watch it on TV, it looks very easy. But when you are playing in the NBA, it is really not so easy.” He said that joining the Houston Rockets was a new start and a new challenge. “I hope that through very hard work I can make everyone happy and help the Rockets win more games,” he said.

Yao Ming speaks some English. Both he and his teammates can understand each other. They don't think there is a language problem. While Yao Ming faces this new challenge（挑战）, the people of Houston have shown great interest in him and they hope Yao Ming will bring new energy (活力) to the Rockets. The team has started having lessons to learn more about China, and many people who work for the Rockets have learned to speak some Chinese.

1.Yao Ming got 13 points on October _____, 2002.

　A. 22　　　 　B.23　　　　C.24　　　　D.26

2.Yao Ming said that _____.

A. playing in the NBA was difficult   

B. it was hard to watch NBA games on TV

C. he was an NBA star　　 　　      

D. it was boring to play basketball

3.From the passage we can know that Yao Ming ________.

A. will work hard for his team　  

B. made the highest score in his first NBA game

C. can't understand his teammates 

D. teaches the Rockets workers Chinese himself

4.The passage is probably ______.

　A. an advertisement　  B. a notice   C. a news report　   D. an instruction

The True Story of Treasure Island

It was always thought that Treasure Island was the product of Robert Louis Stevenson’s imagination. ___1___，recent research has found the true story of this exciting work.

Stevenson, a Scotsman, had lived　 2　 for many years in 1881 he returned to Scotland for a　 3　 . With him were his American wife Fanny and his son　 4　　 .

Each morning Stevenson would take them out for a long　 5　 over the hills. They had been　 6　 this for several days before the weather suddenly took a turn for the worse, Kept indoors by the heavy rain. Lloyd felt the days　 7　 . To keep the boy happy Robert asked the boy to do some　 8　 .

One morning, the boy came to Robert with a beautiful map of an island. Robert　 9　 that the boy had drawn a large cross in the middle of　 10　 . “What’s that?” he asked “That’s the　 11　 treasure “said the boy Robert suddenly　 12　 something of an adventure story in the boy’s　 13　 While the rain was pouring, Robert sat down by the fire to write a story. He would make the　 14　 a twelve-year-old boy just like Lloyd. But who would he the pirate（海盗）?

Robert had a good friend named Henley, who walked around with the　 15　 of a wooden leg. Robert had always wanted to　 16　 such a man in a story 17　 Long John Silver the pirate with a wooden leg, was　 18　 .

So thanks to a　 19　 .September in Scotland a friend with a wooden leg and the imagination of a twelve-year-old boy we have one of the greatest　 20　 stories in the English language.

难易度：难

1．A．However B．Therefore C．Besides D．Finally

2．A．alone　 B．next door C．at home D．abroad

3．A．meeting B．story　 C．holiday D．jib

4．A．Lloyd　 B．Robert C．Henley D．John

5．A．talk B．rest　 C．walk　 D．game

6．A．attempting B．missing C．planning　 D．enjoying

7．A．quiet　 B．dull　 C．busy　 D．cold

8．A．cleaning B．writing C．drawing D．exercising

9．A．doubted B．noticed C．decided D．recognized

10．A．the sea B．the house C．Scotland　 D．the island

11．A．forgotten B．buried C．discovered D．unexpected

12．A．saw B．drew　 C．made　 D．learned

13．A．book　 B．reply　 C．picture D．mind

14．A．star　 B．hero　 C．writer D．child

15．A．help　 B．problem C．use D．bottom

16．A．praise B．produce C．include D．accept

17．A．Yet B．Also　 C．But D．Thus

18．A．read　 B．born　 C．hired　 D．written

19．A．rainy B．sunny　 C．cool　 D．windy

20．A．news　 B．love　 C．real-life D．adventure