“Father, do you see Mother in your dreams?” the young girl asks. “You know sometimes I do.”

“Mother comes to see me a lot, you know. We sit and talk.” The father smiles. “How is your homework coming along?”

“Why do I have to study so hard?”

“It is what your mother would have wanted!”

She regrets speaking her mind. “I’m sorry, Father, I shouldn’t have said that.” She looks up and sees his eyes well up with tears.

“It’s okay, love,” he gets up and pours himself a drink. “I’ll just sit outside for a while. You finish up your work, okay?”

“I’m sorry, Father; Mother did love you very much. She told me all the time.”

“Homework, first, eh? Then we can chat about your mother.”

He heads off outside and sits in his usual chair, looking around the courtyard. The whole area relaxes the mind and somehow soothes the soul.

“All finished, Father. May I get a drink and sit with you? I have some questions.”

She comes with two drinks one for him and one for herself. He looks surprised. She never really liked him having a drink. Although he had cut back a lot from before he brought her here, it still seemed strange.

“Mother told me all about you. That is before she passed away. We would laugh together at your love stories.”

He listens without uttering a single sound.

“Why didn’t you come and take her away with you? She really wanted that. Did you know that?”

Her father looks at his daughter lovingly. “Circumstances were difficult back then. It was just the way things were. When it came time to…” He sighs. “To visit her it was too late.”

The girl smiles. “I hope I will have the same kind of love you and mother had.”

“Without all the heartache,” her father adds.

“She always knew you loved her. She told me every day,” the child mentions cheerfully. “I saw her crying sometimes when she read your letters.”

“Did she make you promise to look after me?” She inquires.

“She asked me to take care of you.”

“You promised her, didn’t you?”

“Yes, I did.”

“It is nice out here, isn't it? Mother would have been very happy here.”

She talks with some authority. Her father remains silent. A smile comes to his weary brow. He nods his head.

“Mother wanted me to give you something. I think now the time is right.” She runs to her room. Upon returning she hands her father a book. “It’s mother’s diary! She wanted me to give it to you.”

He takes the book and holds it in his trembling hands, “Thank you.”

“Mother said you would understand things better.”

“Wise woman, your mother.”

He places the book on the table as he gets up. The girl gets up and wraps herself around her father.

“I love you.” she looks up at his face.

He picks her up and hugs her. “I love you, too.” His voice trembles.

“It’s okay, Father. We have each other now and mother is in both of us.”

He kisses her head.

“Time you went to bed,” her father softly says.

He puts her down and she scampers off to get washed and ready for bed.

Clearing up everything he checks on his daughter. She is in bed waiting for her good night kiss. He tucks her in and bids her goodnight.

Just as he is to leave she tells him. “Mother told me she adopted me when I was a baby.”

He stands at her bedroom door. Words fail him. Yes, he knew she was adopted.

“I am really lucky for being loved by my parents, even if I am not really theirs.”

You trying to bring on the water works?” he tells her.

She giggles, “Goodnight, Father. I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

His face lights up as he wipes his dampened eyes.

The door closes and the child falls asleep dreaming of her mother.

Sitting outside he picks up the diary and opens it and reads the first line: “I love you, my dearest, if only things could have been different…”

1.Why isn’t the mother with her family?

A. She has already died. B. She is ill in hospital.

C. The couple is divorced. D. She lives in another city.

2.What can we know about the couple’s relationship?

A. They understood each other very well.

B. They quarreled a lot and are separated.

C. They used to have misunderstandings.

D. They were quite sure of each other’s love.

3.What can we learn from the story?

A. The girl was adopted because the couple couldn’t give birth.

B. Father looks after the girl just because the girl is alone.

C. The girl feels unfortunate that she was adopted.

D. Father was not very close to the girl before she moved in with him.

4.Why didn’t father bring mother home when she was ill?

A. Because he was too busy with his work

B. Because he didn’t know he was wanted

C. Because he was too poor to afford the medical fees

D. Because he didn’t know she was in hospital

5.What does the sentence “You trying to bring on the water works?” mean?

A. You want another cup of water?

B. Are you kidding me?

C. Are you trying to make me cry?

D. Are you thinking about the water factory?

6.Which word best describes father’s feeling at the end of the story?

A. Regretful B. Satisfied

C. Confused D. Doubtful

B

The aims of the Illustrators’ (插图画家的) Exhibition, staged as part of the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, organized by BolognaFiere and held from 23to 26 December 2011, are to bring illustrators and publishers together and to promote illustrators and their works among publishers.

QUALIFICATIONS

•Individual illustrators or groups of illustrators of any nationality, if they were born before 31st December 1992, whose artwork is intended for use in children’s books, are qualified to enter the Exhibition, either directly or through publishing houses or schools.

•Please state in the application form whether you are entering work for the Fiction or Nonfiction Category. Illustrators may only enter one category.

•Artwork previously presented to the Exhibition may not be re-entered.

•The confirmation (确认) form must be filled in and a photograph attached, then presented together with illustrations no later than 15 October 2011.

SHIPMENT

Entries may be delivered by post, express delivery service or by hand. From abroad, please use the following forms: Form “A” for registered mail or post by air; Form “B” if using an international forwarding agent or airline. To avoid delays, material should not be sent by normal post. Material should be sent “carriage paid”, including any customs and delivery costs.

BolognaFiere may not be held responsible for the non-arrival or late arrival of artwork. All published works must be accompanied by a declaration bearing the ISBN number, publisher’s name and address.

REQUIREMENTS

The illustrations (i.e. the size of the sheet) must not exceed (超过) the following dimensions:

Fiction: 32×42 cm (or 42 × 32 cm)

Non-fiction: 50 ×70 cm (70 × 50cm)

Illustrations in larger formats will not be considered, nor will they be returned by BolognaFiere. The illustrations must be on paper or flexible board, maximum thickness 2mm (for scanner separation purposes).

SELECTION PROCESS

All artwork received by the stated deadline and meeting the specified requirements will be examined and selected by an international group (whose decision is final), including five members (from publishing house and art schools) appointed each year by BolognaFiere.

EXHIBITIONS ABROAD

After the Bologna event, the Illustrators Exhibition will travel to Japan under the supervision of JBBY. The Illustrators Exhibition may afterwards be transferred to other venues(场馆) in other countries. The exhibitions of illustrations held abroad follow the same rules and regulations as the Illustrators Exhibition, and the provisions (条款) of the regulations are extended to the organizers of the exhibitions held abroad.

RETURN OF ARTWORK

All the works will be returned to their owners by BolognaFiere or directly by the organizers of the exhibitions and held abroad by the end of July 2013.

1.Which of the following of the Illustrators’ Exhibition is true?

A. It will last five days in all in July every other year.

B. It is intended for college students who are good at painting.

C. It is held by the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in BolognaFiere.

D. It can strengthen the relationship between illustrators and publishers.

2.The illustrators of the Illustrators Exhibition __________.

A. should be at least 16 and no more than 25

B. may re-enter their artwork after it is returned

C. should state the category of their artwork clearly

D. may choose to attach a photo to the application form

3.What is BolognaFiere responsible for?

A. Paying for the delivery costs

B. Late arrival of artwork

C. Confirmation of ISBN number

D. Returning the illustrators’ works

4.The illustrators’ works will not be considered if they .

A. are received after the day of 15 October 2011

B. are smaller than the required size

C. have already been published abroad before

D. don’t meet the demands of the international experts

A

To American visitors, Iceland is a very interesting country, partly because it is different in so many ways from he or she is used to seeing at home. There are quite a few things that are not done, or that do not exist on the island---quite a few “No’s”.

There is no pollution, for instance, No dogs are permitted in Reykjavik, the capital. There is no television on Thursdays or during the entire month of July, and only three hours of black-and-white TV the rest of the time. There is no hard liquor(烈酒) on Wednesdays and no beer at any time. There is no handguns; only one jail of thirty-five cells(狱室)in the entire land---an admirable figure, even for a small country of 313,376 people.

There is no army, air force or navy. There is no tipping for anything. There are no large stores open on Saturdays or Sundays. Since Iceland is situated just under the Arctic Circle, there is no darkness in summer and no daylight in winter. But thanks to Culf Stream, the climate is rather mild, with temperatures ranging from 34 degrees to 52 degrees in July.

The rules on television liquor and guns are the result of government decisions. But the absence of pollution is due in great part to the fact that Iceland gets its power from the enormous geyser and the thousands of hot springs that come out of the ground. They provide all the energy needed by the country. In fact, Iceland uses only 3 percent of all its available power.

Iceland has been described as a democratic independent country where more fish are caught and more books published per person than anywhere else in the world. The Icelanders have always felt a particular love for literature. They composed their first books in the ninth and tenth centuries AD. These works were poems and tales about the kings, heroes, and heroines of Iceland and Norway. At first, the stories were memorized and passed from generation to generation. They were finally written down between1140 and 1220. The Icelanders have never stopped writing ever since. “Rather shoeless than bookless,” they proudly say.

1.American visitors enjoy visiting Iceland probably because_______.

A. no dogs are permitted in the capital

B. the police do not carry handguns

C. the climate is rather mild

D. it is very different from America

2.The following statements are true EXCEPT________.

A. there are no soldiers in Iceland

B. the Icelanders don’t drink beer

C. there is no tip of any kind

D. there are no crimes in Iceland

3.There is no pollution in Iceland mainly because_______.

A. Iceland uses only 3 percent of all its available power

B. the Icelanders use hot water from the ground below as their energy

C. it is located just under the Arctic Circle

D. it is a democratic independent country

4.“Rather shoeless than bookless” means_______.

A. they prefer not to have shoe or books

B. they would rather have shoes on than write books

C. they prefer travelling to reading

D. they regard books more important than shoes.

Group–buying in China

Modeled after US hot website Groupon.com, group buying websites are now popular in China. These websites use the power of group buying to get competitive discounts (打折)for a daily deal on some best stuff to do, see, eat and buy in the cities across China. Discounts are available within just one click. Zhao lei, a software engineer in Beijing, loves the one-hour lunch break at noon, as it is the best time for him to check “today’s special” at his favorite group buying websites . Sometimes he searches for great deals at directory sites devoted to the new shopping space. Zhao spends around 800 yuan ($117.65) on group buying every month, mostly to buy food coupons (优惠劵)for eating at some nice restaurants and occasionally to find something fun to do. ‘‘I love group buying. In addition to the competitive discounts it offers, it helps me get something fun, exciting and new, and such surprises give me a reason to try something new,” he said. When he finds a really good bargain, he will send the link to friends or colleagues through MSN,QQ, or e-mail, or share the information at some social networking websites. In doing so, he often gets a certain cut off the price. At some sites, buyers are invited to leave notes about what they want to buy and the website will consider it if similar applications(申请)reach a certain number. That is how Zuo got her digital camera after waiting for two months. “It is cool. I want to buy a new digital camera for my trip to Switzerland this winter, but I never expected such cheap prices!”Zuo said.

1.We can learn from the passage that________.

A.China is the first country to start group buying

B.the price of group buying depends on the market

C.you can’t get the best you need through group buying

D.group buying is becoming popular in China

2.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A.Zhao Lei has to spend about 800 yuan on group buying per month.

B.Zhao Lei never surfs at other directory sites for group buying.

C.Zhao Lei finds it easy to do group buying.

D.Zhao Lei can’t buy food coupons to eat at a nice restaurant.

3.What is the passage mainly about?

A.Zhao Lei’s online purchasing life.

B.Group buying

C.The US hot websites

D.A new digital camera

4.Zhao Lei succeeded in getting a certain cut off the price by__________.

A.bargaining face to face

B.discussing with the sellers

C.providing the link to others

D.inviting others to talk about the price

违法和不良信息举报电话:027-86699610 举报邮箱:58377363@163.com

精英家教网