It happened to me recently that I was telling someone how much I had enjoyed reading Barack Obama’s DreamsfromMyFather and how it had changed my views of the current US president.The person I was talking to agreed with me that it was，in his words，“a wonderfully written book”. However，he then proceeded to talk about Mr Obama in a way that suggested he had no idea of his background at all.I sensed that I was talking to a book liar.

And it seems that he is not the only one.Clearly two thirds of people have lied about reading a book which they haven’t.In the World Book Day survey，DreamsfromMyFather is at number 9.The survey lists top ten books，and various authors，which people have lied about reading.As I’m not one to lie too often，I’ll admit here and now that I haven’t read the entire ten books.But I am pleased to say that I have read the book at number one，GeorgeOrwell’s 1984.I think it’s absolutely outstanding.

Asked why they lied，the most common reason was to impress someone they were speaking to.This could be difficult if the conversation became more in­depth!

The World Book Day survey also has some other interesting information in it.It shows that many people lie about having read classical works by Jane Austen，the Bronte sisters，Charles Dickens and so on.But when asked which authors they actually enjoy，they named J．K.Rowling，Jilly Cooper，and Stephen King (ah，the big sellers，in other words)．Forty­one percent of people asked admitted they turned to the back of the book to read the end before finishing the story.

So which books have you lied about reading—if any—and which is your favourite?

1.The main reason why people lie about reading is to________.

A．make fun of the listener

B．impress the listener

C．please the listener

D．interest the listener

2. The underlined word“proceeded” in the passage probably means “________”.

A．wanted                               B．happened

C．continued                             D．stopped

3.What does the World Book Day survey show?

A．Nearly half of the people surveyed didn’t read through a whole classical book.

B．People don’t like DreamsfromMyFather and GeorgeOrwell ’s 1984.

C．Few people lie about having read classical works by Jane Austen.

D．People usually enjoy reading books by Charles Dickens.

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A．Are You a Book Liar?                     B．Readers Are All Liars

C．World Book Day                        D．Dreams from My Father

--- I _______ so busily recently that I ______ no time to help you with your maths.

---That’s OK. I can manage it by myself.

A. had been working; had had      B. have been working; had    

C. have been working; have        D. am working; will have

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上涂黑。

My own "truest" Christmas stands out from all the others, which is the one when the meaning of the day shone clearest．Recently divorced, I had no   36   and was on my way to the employment office．It was pouring, but I had no umbrella, for my old one had   37   apart, and I could not afford another one．

I got in a streetcar and there   38   the seat was an umbrella leaning with a silver handle  39with jewels．I had never seen anything so lovely．I   40   the handle and saw a name carved there．The   41_procedure would have been to   42   the umbrella to the conductor, while I   43   to take it with me and find the owner myself．

Then I   44   a telephone book for the name on the umbrella and got it．A lady answered my call and she was so   45   that I forgot I was looking for a job and went directly to her small house．There, she wanted to give me a（an）   46   , but her excitement at getting back this special possession was   47   that to have accepted money would have   48   something．

The next six months were   49   ．I was able to get only temporary   50   here and there for a small salary．  51   , when reaching home, 1 made myself smile, pretending to be happy to meet my daughter Peggy．There, she opened the door for me and 52 herself in my arms, screaming and demanding that we decorate the tree immediately．But when I looked at the cold pans and cans in he cold little kitchen, misery   53   me．

Suddenly the doorbell rang, there stood a delivery man．"This is a   54   ," I said, but he read the name on the parcels and they were for me．I looked for the name of the sender and found it was the lady．

Our dinner the night was the most delicious in my life．Then I put Peggy to bed and   55   her gifts up around the tree and a sweet peace flooded me like a blessing．

A．hope             B．job           C．faith               D．house

A．torn            B．divided         C．taken              D．fallen

A．down              B．against              C．in                  D．over

A．equipped          B．armed          C．decorated            D．filled

A．examined          B．inspected        C．investigated          D．checked

A．general          B．usual           C．ordinary             D．regular

A．turn in             B．give in          C．bring in             D．take in

A．hesitated           B．turned          C．promised           D．determined

A．searched         B．observed        C．found              D．watched

A- thankful            B．excited         C．delighted           D．truthful

A．reward            B．prize            C．award              D．praise

A．so                B．even            C．ever                D．such

A．changed           B．spoiled         C．helped              D．missed

A．fortunate           B．merciful      C．inspiring           D．miserable

A．employment       B．settlement      C．fulfillment          D．disappointment

A- However           B．Therefore      C．Thus                D．Besides

A．threw             B．spread         C．put                 D．lost

A．got over          B．came over      C．turned over         D．knocked over

A．surprise            B, blessing        C．mistake             D．misfortune

A．set               B．brought        C．took                D．picked

　　Like most people, I’ve long understood that I’ll be judged by my occupation, that my profession is used by people to see how talented I am. Recently, however, I was disappointed to see that it also decides how I’m treated as a person.

　　Last year I left a professional position as a small-town reporter and took a job waiting tables. As someone paid to serve food to people, I had customers say and do things to me I suppose they’d never say or do to the people they know. One night a man talking on his cell phone waved me away, then called me back with his finger a minute later, saying angrily that he was ready to order and asking where I’d been.

　　I had waited tables during summers in college and was treated like a peon（勤杂工） by plenty of people. But at 19 years old, I believed I deserved inferior（低等的）treatment from professional adults. Besides, people responded to me differently after I told them I was in college. Customers would joke that one day I’d be sitting at their table, waiting to be served.

　　Once I graduated I took a job at a community newspaper. From my first day, I heard a respectful tone from everyone who called me. I assumed this was the way the professional world worked--- politely and formally.

　　I soon found out differently. I sat several feet away from a person in advertising department with a similar name. Our calls would often get mixed up and someone asking for Kristen would be transferred to Christie. The mistake was immediately clear. Perhaps it was because of money, but people used a tone with Kristen that they never used with me.

　　It’s no secret that there’s a lot to put up with when waiting tables, and fortunately, much of it can be easily forgotten when you pocket the tips. The service industry exists to meet others’ needs. Still, it seemed that many of my customers didn’t get the difference between server and servant.

　　I’m now applying to graduate school, which means someday I’ll return to a profession where people need to be nice to me in order to get what they want. I think I’ll take them to dinner first, and see how they treat someone whose job is to serve them.

　　68. What makes the author disappointed?

　　A. Professionals tend to look down upon workers.

　　B. Talented people have to do the job waiting tables.

　　C. One’s position is used to measure one’s intelligence.

　　D. Occupation affects the way one is treated as a person.

　　69. What does the author intend to say by the example in Paragraph 2?

　　A. Waiting tables is a hard job.

　　B. Some customers are difficult to deal with.

　　C. The man making a phone call is absent-minded.

　　D. Some customers show no respect to those who serve them.

　　70. How did the author feel when waiting tables at the age of 19?

　　A. She felt it unfair to be treated as a servant.

　　B. She found it natural for professionals to treat her as inferior.

　　C. She was embarrassed each time her customers joked with her.

　　D. She felt badly hurt when her customers regarded her as a peon.

　　71. The author says one day she’ll take her customers to dinner in order to _______.

　　A. see what kind of person they are

　　B. experience the feeling of being served

　　C. share her working experience with her customers

　　D. help them realize the difference between server and servant

Each time I see a balloon, my mind flies back to a memory of when I was a six-year-old girl. It was a rainy Sunday and my father had recently died. I asked my mom if Dad had gone to heaven. "Yes, honey. Of course." she said.

    "Can we write him a letter?"

    She paused, the longest pause of my short life, and answered, "Yes."

    My heart jumped. "How? Does the mailman go there?" I asked.

    "No, but I have an idea." Mom drove to a party store and returned with a red balloon. I asked her what it was for.

    "Just wait, honey. You'll see." Mom told me to write my letter. Eagerly, I got my favorite pen, and poured out my six-year-old heart in the form of blue ink. I wrote about my day, what I learned at school, how Mom was doing, and even about what happened in a story I had read. For a few minutes it was as if Dad were still alive. I gave the letter to Mom. She read it over, and a smile crossed her face.

    She made a hole in the corner of the letter where she looped (缠绕) the balloon string. We went outside and she gave me the balloon. It was still raining.

    "Okay, on the count of three, let go. One, two, three."

The balloon, carrying my letter, darted upward against the rain. We watched until it was swallowed by the mass of clouds.

Later I realized, like the balloon, that Dad had never let his sickness get him down. He was strong. No matter what he suffered, he'd persevere, dart up, and finally transcend (超越) this cold world and his sick body. He rose into sky and became something beautiful. I watched until the balloon disappeared into the gray and white and I prayed that his strength was hereditar. I prayed to be a balloon.

When the girl asked her mother if they could write to her father, her mother _________.

    A．felt it hard to answer       B．thought her a creative girl

    C．believed it easy to do so        D．found it easy to lie

When the girl was told that she could send a letter to her father, she _________.

    A．jumped with joy                  B．became excited

    C．started writing immediately              D．was worried that it couldn't be delivered

In the eyes of the author, what was the rain like?

    A．An incurable disease.           B．An unforgettable memory.

    C．The hard time her father had.                D．The failures her father experienced.

What would be the best title for the passage?

    A．An unforgettable experience     B．The strong red balloon

    C．Fly to paradise                          D．A great father