Frankenstein is one of the world’s most famous horror stories. It’s about a doctor who creates a new man from the body parts of dead people and brings it to life. But the experiment goes wrong and the monster(怪兽) kills the doctor and many others. The story has been read by millions since it was first published and in the last hundred years it has been made into dozens of movies. Many people are surprised to learn its writer was a 19-year-old woman, called Mary Shelley.
Mary was born into a rich London family in August 1797. She was educated by her parents and when she was 13 decided to become a writer. In 1812, she met the famous writer Percy Shelley and they soon got married. Sadly for Mary, their first child died soon after birth in Italy. In her diary, Mary wrote about a dream: “I dreamt that my little baby came to life again—that it had only been cold and that we rubbed it before the fire and it lived.”
In 1816, Percy Shelley and 19-year-odl May visited the poet Lord Byron at his home in Switzerland. Because of the bad weather they stayed indoors reading horror stories. One night, Byron asked everyone to write their own story. Mary thought of her dream and wrote the story Frankenstein.
Frankenstein was published when Mary was 21, and became a huge success. Many people didn’t think a 19-year-old woman could write so well and believed her husband was the real writer.
Although famous, Shelley’s life was full of sadness. Only one of her four children lived and in 1822 her husband died in a swimming accident. Mary was broken-hearted and decided not to marry again. She devoted herself to her child and continued to write until her death in 1851.
【小题1】 What do we know about he story Frankenstein?

A.It was really written by Mary Shelley’s husband.
B.It was been read by millions of people.
C.It was written to remember Shelley’s husband.
D.It is the most famous story in the world.
【小题2】Where was Mary Shelley when she wrote the story Frankenstein?
A.In England.B.In Italy.C.In Switzerland.D.In France.
【小题3】 In which order to the following take place?
a. Bad weather made everyone stay indoors reading horror stories.
b. The story Frankenstein was first published.
c. Mary wrote about a dream in her diary.
d. Mary met the famous writer Percy Shelley.
e. Movies based on the story of Frankenstein were made.
A.a, c, b, e, dB.d, c, a, b, eC.c, a, b, d, eD.b, a, d, c, e
【小题4】 How old was Mary Shelley when she died?
A.43B.48C.51D.54
【小题5】What can we learn about Mary Shelley from this passage?
A.She experienced a lot of sadness in her life.
B.She wasn’t considered a good writer during her life.
C.She was educated at her local school.
D.She became very rich because of the story Frankenstein.

Chris Jones recently completed a very unusual journey. Our reporter Mary Owen met him at his home in the south of London and be told her all about the trip.

Reporter: What gave you the idea to make a trip around India on an elephant, Chris?

Chris: Well, it all started the idea two years ago when I was planning a trip to India. I visited a photo exhibition of elephants and I realized that the only enjoyable way to make a trip around India was on an elephant.

Reporter: What did you do next?

Chris: I flew to New Delhi and started looking for an elephant, I needed an elephant trained to carry people. I didn’t know anything about elephants, so I asked an expert(专家) for help. He taught me how to ride an elephant. He also helped me find an elephant.

Reporter: How long did it take to find a suitable elephant?

Chris: Not too long. I bought a female elephant called Tara for about 6, 000 dollars.

Reporter: Can you tell me about the journey?

Chris: Tara and I set off from New Delhi a week later. We were going to Sonepur in northern India. There is a big elephant market there and I could sell Tara easily. And what a ride! Elephants can travel at about 6 miles an hour and Sonepur is more than 1, 200 km away. It took us 64 days to complete the journey.

Reporter: Did you have any problems on your journey?

Chris: Yes, a few. But nothing serious. On the third day, Tara hurt her foot. Btu that got better quickly. Also, there was a lot of heavy rain during the first week and we got very wet!

Reporter: What happened when you reached Sonepur?

Chris: My plan was to sell Tara. But I was very fond of her. I couldn’t take her back to Britain and I didn’t want to sell her at the market. I happened to meet some people who wanted an elephant for their national park in southern India. I knew that Tara would be safe with them, so I gave her to them. I was very sad to say goodbye.

1.Chris got the idea to make a trip around India on an elephant from __________.

A.a visit to a zoo

B.an elephant expert from India

C.the photos of elephant

D.an old friend who lived in India

2.The elephant expert told Chris __________.

A.when to buy an elephant

B.how to feed an elephant

C.where to sell his elephant

D.how to ride an elephant

3.Chris decided to go to Sonepur because __________.

A.it is a very interesting place

B.he would be able to sell Tara there easily

C.elephants cannot be sold anywhere else

D.it would take only a short time to get there

4.When Chris arrived at the market in Sonepur, __________.

A.he realized that he did not really want to sell Tara

B.he visited some shopkeepers

C.he sold Tara to a national park

D.he decided to take Tara home with him

 

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