I’d been 16 for six days and was already prepared to deal with failure. I remember when my mum woke me up that morning; her voice wasn’t as scratchy as it usually was.

    I stayed in bed for a few minutes. I was reluctant (不愿) to leave its warmth and comfort, and reluctant to face the problem that I’d let myself forget for the past six months. Finally, I dragged myself out of bed.

I finished getting ready and tried to settle down. It didn’t work, so I decided that my mum and I should go. We had a little time, so I thought we could practice parking. I failed, with the wheel hitting the pavement. After that, the little bit of confidence I’d had was gone. I tried two more times, but didn’t improve much. Then we headed to the test site.

I went into a room for some paperwork. And I waited for 20 minutes―just enough time to make myself believe that I was going to fail. Then, finally, it was my turn. I just wanted to get it over and make sure that I had to come back next Thursday.

I stepped outside and the sky was the light blue I love. It offered me some comfort and I realized something: sometime between when I pulled myself off the seat and when I got outside, I had become calmer.

The first thing I had to do was parking, which I did quite well. The confidence that came with it hit me like a wave. The rest of the test went well and I passed it all. As I drove back, the instructor told me I would not be coming back for a second test next Thursday.

Back in the building I didn’t have to say a word. My mum knew just by looking at me. Her smile made her face softer. And I’m sure it was at least as big as mine. But, her eyes looked kind of teary, so, I knew she was happy for me.

56. We can infer ______.

       A. the writer’s mother might often wakes him up rudely

       B. the writer’s mother is always kind to him

       C. the writer’s mother hates him

       D. never wakes him up in the morning

57. What has the author done probably in the past six months?

       A. He has been ill in bed.                                  B. He has been learning to drive.

       C. He has prepared to deal with failure.             D. He has been looking after his mother.

58. Which is TRUE according to the passage?

       A. As he did well at the beginning of the text, his confidence grew.

       B. He didn’t doubt that he could pass the driving test.

       C. As soon as he got to the test site, he calmed down.

       D. He was happy that he had to come back next Thursday.

59. Which word can be used to describe the writer’s character?

       A. Uneasy.              B. Unhappy.              C. Unconfident.             D. Unlucky.

The car pulled ______ beside me and the driver asked me to way to the Great Wall.

a. down b. off c. up d. out

It was a cold night in September. The rain was drumming on the car roof as George and Marie Winston drove through the empty country roads towards the house of their friends, the Harrisons, where they were going to attend a party to celebrate the engagement of the Harrisons' daughter, Lisa. As they drove, they listened to the local radio station, which was playing classical music.

Suddenly the music on the radio was interrupted by a news announcement: "The Cheshire police have issued a serious warning after a man escaped from Colford Mental Hospital earlier this evening. The man, John Downey, is a murderer who killed six people before he was captured two years ago. He is described as large, very strong and extremely dangerous. People in the Cheshire' area are warned to keep their doors and windows locked, and to call the police immediately if they see anyone acting strangely.”

Marie shivered. "A crazy killer. And he's out there somewhere. That's scary.”

"Don't worry about it,” said her husband. "We're nearly there now. But this car is losing power for some reason.”

As he spoke, the car began to slow down. Finally they rolled to a halt, as the engine died completely. Just as they stopped, George pulled the car off the road, and it came to rest under a large tree,

"Blast!” said George angrily. "Now we'll have to walk in the rain.”

"But that'll take us an hour at least,” said Marie, "And I have my high-heeled shoes and my nice clothes on. They'll be ruined!”

"Well, you'll have to wait while I run to the nearest house and call the Harrisons. Someone can come out and pick us up," said George.

"But George! Have you forgotten what the radio said?"

"You'll have to hide in the back of the car. Lock all the doors and lie on the floor in the back, under this blanket. No one will see you. When I come back, I'll knock three times on the door. Then you can get up and open it. Don't open it unless you hear three knocks," George opened the door and, slipped out into the rain. He quickly disappeared into the blackness.

Marie quickly locked the door and settled down under the blanket in the back for a long wait.

Suddenly she heard three slow knocks, one after the other, also on the roof of the car. Was it her husband? Should she open the door? Then she heard another knock, and another. This was not her husband. It was somebody or something else. She was shaking with fear, but she forced herself to lie still. The knocking continued----bump, bump, bump, bump.

Many hours later, as the sun rose, she was still lying there. The knocking had never stopped all night long. She did not know what to do. Where was George? Why had he not come for her?

Suddenly, she heard the sound of three or four vehicles, racing quickly down the road. Someone had come! Marie sat up quickly and looked out of the window.

The three vehicles were all police cars. Several policemen leapt out. One of them rushed towards the car as Marie opened the door. He took her by the hand.

"Get out of the car and walk with me to the police vehicle. Miss! You're safe now. Look straight ahead. Keep looking at the police car. Don't look back. Just don't look back.”

Something in the way he spoke filled Marie with cold horror. She could not help herself. About ten yards from the police car, she stopped, turned and looked back at the empty vehicle.

George was hanging from the tree above the car, a rope tied around his neck. As the wind blew his body back and forth, his feet were bumping gently on the roof of the car-bump, bump, bump, bump.

1．What was the reason for the news announcement on the radio?

A．Some people had been seen acting strangely in the Cheshire area.

B．The police were warning of accidents on the roads in the bad weather.

C．Six people, including John Downey, had been murdered.

D．A dangerous prisoner had escaped.

2．Why did Marie stay in the car when George left?

  A．She was afraid to go out in the dark.   

  B．So no-one would steal the car.

  C．Her clothes weren't suitable for the rain.  

  D．She wanted to get some sleep.

3．Why did the policeman tell her not to look back when he brought her out of the car?

  A．The killer was waiting behind her.

  B．He wanted her to forget everything that had happened during the night.

  C．He didn't want her to see the damage done to the car.

       D．He didn't want her to see the body of her husband.

Being beautiful means a lot to teenage girls. Once it did to me too. I was the vainest person in the world, but that all changed one December night.
It was a Thursday, and I was getting ready for the wrestling tournament the following day. I was so excited; it was going to be my first tournament as a cheerleader. I walked past the mirror and stopped to check my appearance. I noticed my eyebrows were a little bushy, and that’s when my vanity kicked in. The brows could be easily fixed with the waxing kit I had purchased. I put the jar of wax in the microwave. But instead of heating the wax for 30 seconds, I pressed too many zeros and heated it for three minutes. As I reached for the jar, I dropped it, spilling it all over myself.
My mother came running when she heard my screams. The hot wax was rolling down my face and arm. My mom took a wet washcloth and tried to wash the wax off my face. This proved to be a bad idea, because the wax was honey based, and it pulled my skin off with the wax.
The 15-mile drive to the emergency room seemed to take hours. When we finally arrived, the nurse didn’t waste any time. They took me straight to a doctor and gave me extra-strength painkillers, so my mind was in confusion. The doctor explained how severe my burns really were: my arm was a combination of first-, second- and third-degree burns, and needed to stay bandaged. My face was first- and second-degree burns. If the wax had gotten any closer to my right eye, I would have lost my sight. I was covered in multi-colored “goop(药膏)”, wrapped, and sent home to recover.
I got up the next morning and the first thing I wanted to do was wash off the remaining wax. I unwrapped the bandages and “degooped”, letting warm water gently remove the rest of the wax. The next step was to do a self-evaluation of the damage. I couldn’t believe how horrible I looked. A horror-movie monster stared back at me from the mirror. All I could think was, my life is over. For someone as vain as me, this was very true. I thought I was going to be horribly disfigured(毁容的)for the rest of my life! All I could do was cry.
My mom made it worse by forcing me to go out in public. She dragged me to the grocery store and wherever else she felt like taking me. Everywhere we went, people had a million questions, none of which I wanted to answer. Then my mom declared she was going to put me through even more torture—I had to go to school on Monday. School only led to more questions from more people.
Now, two years later, my wounds have healed, leaving a few scars. I still feel self-conscious if I don’t wear make-up, and I’ve discovered that three-quarter length sleeves are wonderful for covering the scars on my arm.
After spending several months adjusting to this injury, I realized how vain I was. I had made beauty important, but it never was or will ever be that important. It took this event to teach me that no matter how much you change on the outside, you’re still the same person on the inside. 

1. 1.

   After the accident, the writer has come to realize that ________.

   1. A.
      teenage girls care too much about their appearance
   2. B.
      loving beauty will necessarily make one disfigured
   3. C.
      we can never judge a person merely by one’s looks
   4. D.
      sometimes being beautiful can cost you something
2. 2.

   Which of the four statements is a fact?

   1. A.
      The severe damage to her sight and face weren’t recovered.
   2. B.
      The mother wished the writer to face her misfortune bravely.
   3. C.
      From the lesson we conclude that “once bitten, twice frightened”.
   4. D.
      The severe burns were caused by her mother’s lack of first-aid.
3. 3.

   The underlined sentence in the last paragraph is closest to ________.

   1. A.
      beauty is not everything
   2. B.
      a student shall not make up
   3. C.
      beauty is not important
   4. D.
      loving beauty will spoil you
4. 4.

   The author develops her composition by ________.

   1. A.
      offering accurate facts
   2. B.
      giving contrast and comparison
   3. C.
      using logical arguments
   4. D.
      representing own experiences
5. 5.

   Which of the following can be the best title?

   1. A.
      The Price of Vanity
   2. B.
      An Unexpected Ending
   3. C.
      A Disfigured Girl
   4. D.
      Beauty Ruins Everything

    I was cleaning out an old box when an old card caught my eye. Queen City Casket Company. “What is it?” I wondered I turned it over. There, in faded ink, was a hand scrawled (手写的) message. Immediately my mind traveled back many years ago.

I was nine years old, walking down the cold, wet street of Springfield, with a bag of magazines on my shoulder. On my rounds that day, I came to that company finally, whose owner, Mr. Rader, had always taken me there to ask his workers whether they wanted any magazines.

Shaking off the rain like a wet dog, I entered Mr. Rader’s office. After a quick glance he led me over to the fireplace. Noticing the hole in the top of my shoe, he said, “Come with me!” pulling me into his car . We pulled to a stop before a shoe store. Inside, a salesman fitted me with the finest pair of Oxfords I had ever seen. I felt about 10 feet tall when I got up in them. “We’ d like a pair of new socks too,” Mr. Rader said.

Back in his office, Mr. Rader took out a card, wrote something on it, and handed it to me. With   tearful eyes, I read, “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” He said affectionately, “Jimmy, I want you to know I love you”. I said goodbye, and for the first time I sensed a flam of hope that somehow things would be all right. With people like Mr. Rader in the world, there was hope, kindness and love, and that would always make a difference.

56．What can we learn about the author according to the passage?

       A．He was once a young salesman of QCCC.

       B．He was very poor when he was a child.

       C．He had to sell magazines to pay for his school fees in Oxford.

       D．His parents abandoned him so that he must earn money by himself.

57．The author came to Mr Rader’s company because           .

       A．he wanted to say sorry to Mr Rader for not selling out the magazines

       B．Mr Rader was one of his relatives

       C．he wanted to ask Mr Rader to offer him a job

       D．he wanted to have another try after traveling many places

58．The underlined sentence in the last paragraph means you should           .

       A．do things in the way others would do

       B．do something to others when you would like them to follow you

       C．do kind things first if you want others to do so in the same way

       D．do something because you would like others do it