War Horse is a historical story by Michael Morpurgo. It is written for kids ages 8 to 12. Now just sit and get through the introduction to the plot.
In 1914, a young horse named Joey is sold to a farmer. The farmer' s son, Albert, is thrilled. He cares for Joey. When the family begins to feel the financial impact of war, Albert' s father secretly sells Joey to an army officer named Captain Nicholls. Albert begs the captain to let him join the army. Albert is too young, but Nicholls promises to take good care of Joey for him.
Nicholls treats Joey well. Though Joey still remembers Albert, he grows to like his new master. He develops a friendship with another horse, Topthorn., who belongs to Nicholls' friend, Captain Stewart. The horses and men are shipped overseas for battle. They soon face their own battle in France, and Captain Nicholls is killed.
A young soldier named Warren becomes Joey’s new owner. Joey and Topthorn do well in battle, but the Germans capture Warren and Stewart and their horses. The horses' duty of pulling carts full of wounded German soldiers earns them praise. An old farmer and his granddaughter, Emilie, dote on the horses as well. When the German army moves out of the area, Emilie and her grandfather keep the two horses. Joey and Topthorn are content to work the farm until another band of soldiers takes them. They become workhorses under bad conditions. Joey is very upset when Topthorn dies of exhaustion.
Alone and frightened, Joey wanders into "no-man's-land” between the German and English camps. An English soldier takes him back to camp.
Joey is reunited with Albert. As the war ends, Albert' s officer announces the horses will be sold in France. An old Frenchman buys Joey. The man, Emilie' s grandfather, tells Albert how Emilie lost the will to live after the horses were taken. However, he eventually sells Joey to Albert for one penny, as long as Albert promises to share Emilie' s story so her life will not be in vain. Joey and Albert return home.
【小题1】Why does Albert's father secretly sell Joey?

For eighty four days old Santiago had not caught a single fish. At first a young boy, Manolin, had shared his bad fortune, but after the fortieth luckless day the boy’s father told his son to go in another boat. From that time on, Santiago worked alone. The boy loved the old fisherman and always helped him with money and food. Usually, they would talk about the fish they had taken in luckier times or about American baseball after supper, while at night, alone in his cottage, Santiago dreamed of lions on the beaches of Africa, where he had gone years before. He no longer dreamed of his dead wife.

On the eighty-fifth day, Santiago set off to fish before dawn. Two of his baits(饵) were fresh tunas(金枪鱼) the boy had given him, as well as sardines(沙丁鱼) to cover his hooks. Then he set his lines which went straight down into deep dark water.

    As the sun rose he saw other boats in toward shore. A bird showed him where dolphins were chasing some flying fish. This time Santiago saw tuna jumping in the sunlight. A small one took the hook on his line. Pulling the fish aboard, the old man thought it a good fortune.

    Toward noon a marlin, a common fish in the sea, started eating the bait which was one hundred meters down. Gently the old man played the fish, a big one, as he knew from the weight on the line. At last he struck to settle the hook. The fish did not come out of the surface. Instead, it began to pull the boat to the northwest. The old man followed it. Although he was alone and no longer strong, he had his skill and knew many tricks. He waited patiently for the fish to be tired.

    It was cold after the sunset. When something took one of his remaining baits, he cut the line with his knife. Once the marlin leaned suddenly, pulling Santiago forward on his face and cutting his cheek. By dawn his left hand was cramped(抽筋的). The fish had headed northward; there was no land in sight. Hungry, he cut pieces from the tuna and chewed them slowly.

That morning the fish jumped. Seeing it, Santiago knew he had hooked the biggest marlin he had ever seen. Then the fish went down and turned toward the east. Santiago drank a little water from the bottle during the hot afternoon.

Close to nightfall a dolphin took the small hook he had rebaited. He lifted it aboard, careful. After he had rested, he cut meat from the dolphin and kept also the two flying fish he found in its stomach. That night he slept. He awoke to feel the line running through his fingers as the fish jumped. Feeding line slowly, he tried to tire the marlin. After the fish slowed its run, he washed his cut hands in sea water and ate one of the flying fish. At sunrise the marlin began to circle. Faint, he worked to bring the big fish nearer with each turn. Almost exhausted, he finally drew his big fish alongside and drove in the harpoon(鱼叉). The fish was two feet longer than the boat. No fish like it had ever been seen in Havana harbor.

    An hour later, he sighted the first shark, a fierce Mako, and it came in fast to chase after the dead marlin. The old man struck the shark with his harpoon. The Mako rolled and sank, carrying the harpoon with it and leaving the marlin bloody. He knew the smell would spread. Watching, he saw two sharks closing in. He struck at one with his knife and watched it sliding down into deep water. The other he killed while it tore at the flesh of the marlin. When the third appeared, he thrust(刺) it with the knife. The other sharks came at sunset. At first he tried to beat them with the tiller(舵柄) from the boat, but his hands were bleeding and there were too many in the sea. In the darkness, as he steered toward the harbor of Havana, he heard them hitting the boat again and again. But the old man thought only of his steering and his great tiredness. He had gone out too far and the sharks had beaten him. He knew they would leave him nothing but the stripped skeleton of the big marlin.

   All lights were out when he sailed into the little harbor and beached his boat. He could just make out the white backbone and the upstanding tail of the fish. Once he fell under their weight and lay patiently until he could gather his strength to go on. In his cottage he fell on his bed and went to sleep.

1.The above story is adapted from __________.

A. Treasure Island                  B. The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer

C. The Old Man And The Sea          D. The Son Of The Sea

2.Why did the man feel that he could be lucky this time?

A. Because a small tuna took the hook on his line.

B. Because he dreamed about the American lions.

C. Because he saw many flying fish were chased by the dolphins.

D. Because a lot of sharks followed his boat.

3.According to the text, which statement is NOT true about the boy?

A. The boy had mercy on Santiago.

B. The boy often shared his stories with Santiago.

C. The boy showed his great concerns to Santiago.

D. The boy was Santiago’s adopted son.

4.Why does Santiago let the marlin lead his boat instead of pulling the big fish up?

A. He wanted to kill the marlin first before he pulled it up to the boat.

B. He was too tired and hungry to pull the big fish up.

C. His experience told him not to do so before the fish was tired out.

D. He wanted to use the marlin as a bait to catch the sharks.

5.Which sentence below can be used to best describe Santiago’s character?

A. “He no longer dreamed of his dead wife.”(Para 1)

B. “Although he was alone and no longer strong, he had his skill and knew many tricks.”(Para4)

C. “Almost exhausted, he finally drew his big fish alongside and drove in the harpoon.”(Para7)

D. “Once he fell under their weight and lay patiently until he could gather his strength to go on .”(Para 9)

6.According to the text, what will be talked about in the next paragraph?

A. the man’s action to realize his dream about the lions.

B. people’s reflection when they saw the giant marlin outside.

C. people’s discussion about how they ate the giant marlin.

D. a funeral held by the boy and the local people after his death.

Down on the beach of Dover, 56-year-old Channel swimmer Jackie Cobell bravely set off for Calais. The time was 6:40 am. 28 hours and 44 minutes later the exhausted, successful mother from Kent crawled (爬行) to the shore and walked proudly into the record books. After five years in training, Mrs Cobell became the slowest person to cross the Channel under her own steam. The previous record for the slowest crossing, set by Henry Sullivan at 26 hours and 50 minutes, has stood for 87 years before Mrs Cobell started at Dover Saturday morning.
She had struggled through changing tides that swept her first one way, then the other. It turned the 21-mile crossing into a 65-mile one. She declared, “Time and tide wait for no man—and they certainly didn’t wait for me. I was fully expecting it to get dark before I got to Calais but I never imagined I’d also see the dawn again. But I wasn’t going to give up.”
Her feat(壮举) raised more than $2,000 in charity sponsorship for research into Huntingdon’s disease, a sum that was continuing to grow as news of her achievement spread. That was why she did it. “I don’t really know myself,” she said. “ I just kept thinking of all the people I’d be letting down if I stopped.”
Mrs Cobell took to the water so well at school. But after bringing up two daughters, she started to gain weight. Five years ago she took up swimming again and decided to prepare for the Channel challenge to lose weight. She became much fitter. Then came the big swim. “I practiced on Windermere lake,” she said. “it’s about half the distance of the Channel so I just doubled it, added some extra time, and worked out I could probably get to Calais in about 16 hours.”
Her husband David, trainer, official observer and friend sailed alongside her on a boat. She said, “I sang to keep myself going. When they told me I was a record breaker I thought they were just having a joke—until I realized it was the record for the slowest crossing. But maybe next time I might be a bit quicker.”
【小题1】According to Paragraph 1, Mrs Cobell_____________.

For eighty four days old Santiago had not caught a single fish. At first a young boy, Manolin, had shared his bad fortune, but after the fortieth luck less day the boy’s father told his son to go in another boat. From that time on, Santigao worked alone. The boy loved the old fisherman and always helped him with money and food. Usually, they would talk about the fish they had taken in luckier times or about American baseball after supper, while at night, alone in his cottage, Santiago dreamed of lions on the beaches of Africa, where he had gone years before. He no longer dreamed of his dead wife.

On the eighty-fifth day, Santiago set off to fish before dawn. Two of his baits (饵) were fresh tunas (金枪鱼) the boy had given him, as well as sardines (沙丁鱼) to cover his hooks. Then he set his lines which went straight down into deep dark water.

As the sun rose he saw other boats in toward shore. A bird showed him where dolphin were chasing some flying fish. This time Santiago saw tuna jumping in the sunlight. A small one took the hook on his line. Pulling the fish aboard, the old man thought it a good fortune.

Toward noon a marlin, a common fish in the sea, started eating the bait which was one hundred meters down. Gently the old man played the fish, a big one, as he knew from the weight on the line. At last he struck to settle the hook. The fish did not come out of she surface. Instead, it began to pull the boat to the northwest. The old man followed it. Although he was alone and no longer strong, he had his skill and knew many tricks. He waited patiently for the fish to be tired.

It was cold after the sunset. When something took one of his remaining baits, he cut the line with his knife. Once the marlin leaned suddenly, pulling Santiago forward on his face and cutting his cheek. By dawn his left hand was cramped (抽筋的). The fish had headed northward; there was no land in sight. Hungry, he cut pieces from the tuna and chewed them slowly.

That morning the fist jumped. Seeing it, Santiago knew he had hooked the biggest marlin he had ever seen. Then the fish went down and turned toward the east. Santiago drank a little water from the bottle during the hot afternoon.

Close to nightfall a dolphin took the small hook he had rebated. He lifted it aboard, careful. After he had rested, he cut meat from the dolphin and kept also the two flying fish he hound in its stomach. That night he slept. He awoke to feel the line running through his fingers as the fish jumped. Feeding line slowly, he tried to tire the marlin. After the fish slowed its run, he washed his cut hands in sea water and ate one of the flying fish. At sunrise the marlin began to circle. Faint, he worked to bring the big fish nearer with each turn. Almost exhausted, he finally drew his big fish alongside and drove in the harpoon(鱼叉). The fish was two feet longer than the boat. No fish like it had ever been seen in Havana harbor.

An hour later, he sighted the fist shark, a fierce Mako, and it came in fast to chase after the dead marlin. The old man struck the shark with his harpoon. The Mako rolled and sank, carrying the harpoon with it and leaving the marlin bloody. He knew the smell would spread. Watching, he saw two sharks closing in. he stuck at one with his knife and watched it sliding down into deep water. The other he killed while it tore at the flesh of the marlin. When the third appeared, he thrust (刺) it with the knife. The other sharks came at sunset. At fist he tried to beat them with the tiller (舵柄) from the boat, but his hands were bleeding and there were too many in the sea. In the darkness, as he steered toward the harbor of Havana, he head them hitting the boat again and again. But the old man though only of his steering and his great tiredness. He had gone out too far and the sharks had beaten him. He knew they would leave him nothing but the stripped skeleton of the big marlin.

All lights were out when he sailed into the little harbor and beached his boat. He could just make out the white backbone and the upstanding tail of the fish. Once he fell under their weight and lay patiently until he could gather his strength to go on. In his cottage he fell on his bed and went to sleep.

The above story is adapted from         .

    A．Treasure Island      B．The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer

    C．The Old Man And The Sea  D．The Son Of The Sea

Why did the man feel that he could be lucky this time?

    A．Because a small tuna took the hoot on his line.

    B．Because he dreamed about the American lions.

    C．Because he saw many flying fish were chased by the dolphins.

    D．Because a lot of sharks followed his boat.

According to the text, which statement is NOT true about Manolin?

    A．The boy had mercy on Santiago.

    B．The boy often shared his stories with Santiago.

    C．The boy showed his great concerns to Santiago.

    D．The boy was Santiago’s adopted son.

Why does Santiago let the marlin lead his boat instead of pulling the big fish up?

    A．He wanted to kill the marlin first before he pulled it up to the boat.

    B．He was too tried and hungry to pull the big fish up.

    C．His experience told him not to do so before the fish was tired out.

    D．He wanted to use the marlin as a bait to catch the sharks.

Which sentence below can be used to best describe Santiago’s character?

    A．“He no longer dreamed of his dead wife.” (Para 1)

    B．“Although he was alone and no longer strong, he had his skill and knew many tricks.” (Para 4)

    C．“Almost exhausted, he finally drew his big fish alongside and drove in the harpoon.” (Para 7)

    D．“Once he fell under their weight and lay patiently until he could gather his strength to go on.” (Para 9)

．According to the text, what will be talked about in the next paragraph?

    A．the man’s action to realize his dream about the lions.

    B．people’s reflection when they saw the giant marlin outside.

    C．people’s discussion about how they ate the giant marlin.

    D．a funeral held by the boy and the local people after his death.

Down on the beach of Dover, 56-year-old Channel swimmer Jackie Cobell bravely set off for Calais. The time was 6:40 am. 28 hours and 44 minutes later the exhausted, successful mother from Kent crawled (爬行) to the shore and walked proudly into the record books. After five years in training, Mrs Cobell became the slowest person to cross the Channel under her own steam. The previous record for the slowest crossing, set by Henry Sullivan at 26 hours and 50 minutes, has stood for 87 years before Mrs Cobell started at Dover Saturday morning.
She had struggled through changing tides that swept her first one way, then the other. It turned the 21-mile crossing into a 65-mile one. She declared, “Time and tide wait for no man—and they certainly didn’t wait for me. I was fully expecting it to get dark before I got to Calais but I never imagined I’d also see the dawn again. But I wasn’t going to give up.”
Her feat(壮举) raised more than $2,000 in charity sponsorship for research into Huntingdon’s disease, a sum that was continuing to grow as news of her achievement spread. That was why she did it. “I don’t really know myself,” she said. “ I just kept thinking of all the people I’d be letting down if I stopped.”
Mrs Cobell took to the water so well at school. But after bringing up two daughters, she started to gain weight. Five years ago she took up swimming again and decided to prepare for the Channel challenge to lose weight. She became much fitter. Then came the big swim. “I practiced on Windermere lake,” she said. “it’s about half the distance of the Channel so I just doubled it, added some extra time, and worked out I could probably get to Calais in about 16 hours.”
Her husband David, trainer, official observer and friend sailed alongside her on a boat. She said, “I sang to keep myself going. When they told me I was a record breaker I thought they were just having a joke—until I realized it was the record for the slowest crossing. But maybe next time I might be a bit quicker.”
【小题1】According to Paragraph 1, Mrs Cobell_____________.