When I was a child, my parents often took me to an old house in a thick forest. No other children ever stayed there. I didn’t even have the choice of playing with a brother or sister.
I could never understand what the attraction(吸引) of the house was, even for my parents, who enjoyed nothing better than to sit in silence with a good book. The woman in the house, my father’s distant cousin, was a terrible cook and her food was inedible.
One day, when I was wandering around the garden behind the house, I noticed a wooden house which had clearly been abandoned(被遗弃的). As I walked towards it, I heard a noise, like an animal moving hurriedly away. Then I saw a man with a long beard standing at the door. I was greatly surprised.
“Please don’t tell them you saw me,” he said. “They never use this place, and I have nowhere else to live.” “Don’t worry,” I said. “I won’t tell anyone. But are you all right out here? I mean—do you have enough to eat?” The old man shook his head.
The same evening, I took a small plastic bag into the dining room and, while no one was looking, emptied some of the food into it. Later, I got out of the back door secretly and gave the food to the old man, whose name I had discovered was Taff.
I had never seen anything else as lovely as the smile of satisfaction on Taff’s face when he ate the food. From then on, my visits to the old house had a purpose, and I enjoyed every minute of the rest of my stay.
【小题1】 How did the writer feel about staying in the old house at first?

Advertisements (广告)

1．The Browns are looking for a new house．Mr. Brown wants to live in the north of town near his workplace．Mrs. Brown wants, a house with four bedrooms．The Browns' children don't care what the house is like as long as(只要) the garden is big enough．

Why didn't the Browns buy the house in the advertisement?

A．it was on the wrong side of the town．

B．There weren't enough bedrooms．

C．There was no dinning room．

D．The garden was too big．

2．Man: Why don't we rent (租、借) one of the Seaview Holiday Flats for our holiday, Mary? They sound just as good as the Seaview Hotel, and it would be much cheaper．

Mary: There's one big difference between the holiday fiats and the hotel．The hotel would be much less work．

Why would Mary rather stay at the hotel?

A．They wouldn't have to cook．

B．It's not so expensive．

C．She would enjoy the beautiful gardens．

D．It's near the sea．

3．Tom: There's a new football team standing in the village, Mum．I'm old enough to play in it．We stop school at half past three, so I'd have plenty of time．

Mum: Well, I suppose you could do your homework later．But look, Tom, you haven't read the advertisement carefully．You can't possibly play for this team．

Why can't Tom play for the new football team?

A．He's not old enough．

B．Tom hasn't read the advertisement carefully．

C．School stops too late．

D．He has to do his homework

4．Man: I'm looking for a room to rent．It doesn't matter how big it is．I don't care what color the walls are or how old the furniture(家具) is．I've got to study for my exams, so the house must be quiet and near the school．

Girl: There are some advertisements for rooms in the paper．What about this one?

   Man: Yes…Yes…that's all right．Oh, dear, no, I don't think it would do．

What's wrong with the room in the advertisement about rooms?

A．It's too small．                               B．The walls are the wrong color．

C．The man likes old furniture better．              D．It's too noisy．

5．Ann has always wanted to work in a restaurant．She thinks they're exciting places．It's hard work but she isn't lazy．You have to work on Saturdays and Sundays but you get other days off．It's not very well-paid, but who cares about money?

Why does Ann want to get the job in the restaurant?

A．It's an easy job．                                B．The pay is good and the food is free．

C．She thinks it would be fun．                       D．You get long holidays．