Every culture has a recognized (公认的) point when a child becomes an adult, when rules must be followed and tests passed.
In China, although teenagers can get their ID cards at 16, many only see themselves as an adult when they are 18. In the US, where everyone drives, the main step to the freedom of adult life is learning to drive. At 16, American teens take their driving test. When they have their license, they drive into the grown-up world.
“Nobody wants to ride the bus to school,” said Eleanor Fulham, 17. She remembered the pressure, especially from kids from richer families. “It’s like you’re not cool if you don’t have a car,” she said.
According to recent research, 41% of 16 to 19-year-olds in the US own cars, up from 23% in 1985. Although, most of these cars are bought by parents, some teens get part-time jobs to help pay.
Not all families will buy cars for their children. In cities with subways (地铁) and limited parking, some teenagers don’t want them. But in rich suburban (郊区的) areas without subways, and where bicycles are more for fun than transportation, it is strange for a teenager not to have a car.
But police say 16-year-olds have almost three times more accidents than 18 and 19-year-olds. This has made many parents think carefully before letting their kids drive.
Julie Sussman, of Virginia, decided that her son Chad, 15, will wait until he is 17.
Chad said he has accepted his parents’ decision, although it has caused some teasing (奚落) from his friends. “They say that I am unlucky,” he said. “But I’d rather be alive than driving, and I don’t really trust my friends on the road either.”
In China as more families get cars, more 18-year-olds learn to drive. Will this become a big step to becoming an adult?
【小题1】The story is mainly about _______.

A．the recognized point between childhood and adulthood

B．American teens want to drive a car when they turn 16

C．whether teenagers should have a car

D．the fact that it’s safer for teens to drive a car at an younger age

A．Some of Chad’s friends have cars.

B．When deciding whether to buy a car for their kids, safety weighs heavily on many parents’ mind.

C．In the US, 16 is considered the point between childhood and adulthood.

D．More kids from cities own cars than those from the countryside.

Every culture has a recognized (公认的) point when a child becomes an adult, when rules must be followed and tests passed.

In China, although teenagers can get their ID cards at 16, many only see themselves as an adult when they are 18. In the US, where everyone drives, the main step to the freedom of adult life is learning to drive. At 16, American teens take their driving test. When they have their license, they drive into the grown-up world.

“Nobody wants to ride the bus to school,” said Eleanor Fulham, 17. She remembered the pressure, especially from kids from richer families. “It’s like you’re not cool if you don’t have a car,” she said.

According to recent research, 41% of 16 to 19-year-olds in the US own cars, up from 23% in 1985. Although, most of these cars are bought by parents, some teens get part-time jobs to help pay.

Not all families will buy cars for their children. In cities with subways (地铁) and limited parking, some teenagers don’t want them. But in rich suburban (郊区的) areas without subways, and where bicycles are more for fun than transportation, it is strange for a teenager not to have a car.

But police say 16-year-olds have almost three times more accidents than 18 and 19-year-olds. This has made many parents think carefully before letting their kids drive.

Julie Sussman, of Virginia, decided that her son Chad, 15, will wait until he is 17.

Chad said he has accepted his parents’ decision, although it has caused some teasing (奚落) from his friends. “They say that I am unlucky,” he said. “But I’d rather be alive than driving, and I don’t really trust my friends on the road either.”

In China as more families get cars, more 18-year-olds learn to drive. Will this become a big step to becoming an adult?

1.The story is mainly about _______.

A. the recognized point between childhood and adulthood

B. American teens want to drive a car when they turn 16

C. whether teenagers should have a car

D. the fact that it’s safer for teens to drive a car at an younger age

2. Which of the following is not one of the reasons that kids want to have a car?

A. With a car, it would be easy to move around.

B. A great number of teenagers have cars.

C. Having a car would mean more excitement.

D. Parents’ support for kids to have a car at an early age.

3..Which of the following is not true?

A. Some of Chad’s friends have cars.

B. When deciding whether to buy a car for their kids, safety weighs heavily on many parents’ mind.

C. In the US, 16 is considered the point between childhood and adulthood.

D. More kids from cities own cars than those from the countryside.

4.The word “license” in Paragraph 2 means closest to ______.

A. driving permit    B. ID card   C. learner’s permit     D. test result

Hundreds of great books are published in America every year．And every year，editors，critics and many readers try to choose a list of favorites．

A few books showed up on list after list of the best fiction from this year．One of them was Ann Patchett's“State of Wonder”．Publishers Weekly described the novel as one“readers will hate to see end．”The story centers on a drug researcher from Minnesota named Maria Singh．She travels to Brazil to investigate the death of a co-worker．Her search takes her deep into the Amazon area and danger．But．she also goes deep into her own soul for a close look at who she is．what she has lost in her life and how she wants the future to look．Ann Patchett lives in Tennessee．She told Publishers Weekly magazine that the state is leafy．She visited that area while doing research for the novel．

Chad Harbach's name was also all over the critics’best lists this year for his first book，“The Art of Fielding．”The New Yorker magazine praised the novel for the easy way it joins a love of baseball with a love of literature．The book is about a college baseball star．He suffers a mental crisis and begins to fail on the playing field as a result．But the book is about much more than the sport of baseball．It also is a story of love, loss，friendship and growing up．Chad Harbach says his own upbringing influenced the book．

“The Marriage Plot”also got a 10t of attention this year．It is the third book from Pulitzer Prize winner Jeffrey Eugenides．He spent almost ten years writing it．“The Marriage Plot” is also a story about becoming an adult．It follows the lives of three students in their final year of college and beyond．Leonard struggles with manic depression，Mitchell，with religious belief and Madeleine struggles with her feelings for both men．

61．The underlined words“readers will hate to see end”mean        

A．Readers love“State of Wonder”very much．

B．Readers don't like reading“State of Wonder”．

C．Readers don't like Ann Patchen's writing style．

D．Readers don't want to read the end of“State of Wonder”．

62．What can we learn from the second paragraph?

A．Maria Singh's co-worker died of serious illness．

B．The story focuses on a scientific research．

C．During the research Maria thinks a lot about her own thoughts and feelings．

D．The subject of Maria Singh's study was supported by Publishers Weekly．

63．It can be inferred that         ．

A．Chad had mental problems in his childhood

B．Chad became famous for“The Art of Fielding”

C．more and more readers like Chad's book

D．“The Art of Fielding”is only about the story of baseball

64．The following statements about“The Marriage Plot”are true except that         ．

A．it took its author about 10 years to finish the book

B．it is about the lives of three college students

C．Mitchell in the story struggles with religious belief

D．its author's character is similar to Madeleine's

65．What is the passage mainly about?

A．People's reading preference                B．Three famous writers

C．The introduction of three books            D．The common features of interesting books

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从各题所给的四个选项中，选出一个最佳答案.

　　Chad performs his 24-foot aluminums boat past willow young trees that stick out of the waters of the Mississippi River. 1 dances off maples（枫树）,their branches heavy with 2 spring leaves. But a 3 inspection discloses trouble behind the beautiful sight. Rubbish is 4 in a logjam（河道内运完木材所剩的木头）and hangs from the tree's branches.

5 the next three hours Chad and his team pull plastic bags, tanks, bottles and 6 bowling pins out of the water. Then they 7 for a picnic table caught in the trees.

　　Welcome to the Mississippi River Beautification & Restoration Project began in1997 as Chad's one-man 8 to pick up rubbish along a 400-mile stretch of the2340-mile river That year, often working 9 , the 22-year-old young man cleaned 150 miles of shoreline.

　　At first the project appeared 10 and useless. But Chad tried his best to find 11 , and with their backing, he soon had a new boat and a five-man-team-- the Boom Crane Crew. Last year alone the crew 12 from the water44055-gallon drums, 1104 tires and enough plastic bags to cover a football field. Much of the waste will be 13 .

　　“Chad's operation is the only one actually in 14 on the river,”says Mark of the Mississippi River Basin Alliance, a union of environmental groups.“It's the 15 I've ever seen in 20 years, and he is inspiring others to do the 16 .”

　　“The Mississippi was my back 17 ,”Chad says. In his teens he and his brother worked on the river as clambers（掘蚌者）and camped on islands 18 the waterway.“The river has given me a livelihood and brought me so much 19 ,”Chad says.“I wanted to do something in 20 .”

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