The morning in London was wet, wet, wet. I had to check out from the 36  before noon, and then I would have a few 37  before my conference started near Richmond Park in the 38  . I started early for a literary London 39  with just my two feet, a guidebook and a map and a backpack with purse, camera and 40  .

My hotel was in Bayswater, and by walking through Kensington Gardens, 41  by the Peter Pan statue, I soon 42  myself in Kensington, former home of many a great 43  .

The more I 44  into literature, the more I want to learn, the more I see 45  I don’t know, what I haven’t 46  . Like Peter Pan. Familiar title, but a book I have never read.

Among my classic favorites are several books 47  Henry James. Some years ago I had some time alone in Roma and I spent a morning 48  for James’ home there, which is now a museum.

My walk 49  . Turning a corner right here, passing a square, looking up to see signs with familiar names, T.S. Elliot, W.M. Thackeray, Ezra Pond… Stopping for a 50  at a small French cafe, trying to 51  my wet and cold feet, writing my diary, then out again. I 52  in paradise（天堂）river, surrounded by images of words and famous writers.

Have you ever tried a literary walk? It is a great way of 53  . You not only see a city or a place like it is today, you can keep on 54  you are back home, reading the books by the authors, imagining their 55  , their places, knowing a tiny little bit more about the man or woman behind the creating hands and mind.

36. A. home                  B. park                  C. museum                   D. hotel

37. A. minutes                     B. hours                C. days                         D. weeks

38. A. dawn                  B. morning            C. evening                    D. midnight

39. A. walk                   B. riding               C. sight                        D. view

40. A. dictionary           B. computer           C. diary                        D. book

41. A. passing               B. flying               C. rushing                    D. sitting

42. A. saw                    B. noticed              C. looked                            D. found

43. A. writer                 B. doctor               C. actor                        D. worker

44. A. put                            B. jump                 C. dive                         D. look

45. A. how                   B. what                 C. where                      D. whether

46. A. written               B. read                  C. seen                         D. done

47. A. with                   B. for                    C. of                            D. by

48. A. searching            B. working            C. asking                      D. advertising

49. A. took on               B. put on               C. kept on                    D. got on

50. A. beer                   B. coffee               C. hamburger                D. tea

51. A. wash                  B. cure                  C. clean                        D. warm

52. A. crossed               B. bathed               C. drank                       D. swam

53. A. learning                     B. reading             C. traveling                  D. visiting

54. A. when                  B. before               C. until                        D. as

55. A. families                     B. lives                 C. experiences               D. habits

I had the meanest mother in the whole world．While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast．When others had cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich．As you can guess, my supper was different from the other kids' also．But at least, I wasn't alone in my sufferings．My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did．

My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times．She had to know who our friends were and where we were going．We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath everyday．

The worst is yet to come．We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning．We couldn't sleep till noon like our friends．So while they slept --- my mother actually had the nerve to break the Child Labor Law．She made us work．We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things．I believe she lay awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us．

Through the years, things didn't improve a bit．We could not lie in bed, "sick" like our friends did, and miss school．Our marks in school had to be up to par．Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing．My mother, being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks．With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out．

My mother was a complete failure as a mother．Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education．None of us have ever been arrested or divorced．Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country．She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults．Using this as a background, I am now trying to raise my three children．I am filled with pride when my children call me mean．Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the whole world．

What can we infer from the passage?

       A．The author is not happy to have such a mean mother．      

       B．The author's mother broke the Child Labor Law to make money．

       C．The author's mother failed to educate her children to be honest adults．

       D．The author is strict with her children．

Why couldn’t the author eat candy for breakfast?

     A．Because she preferred cereal, eggs or toast to candy．

     B．Because her mother couldn’t afford for candy．

     C．Because her mother thought it not good to eat candy for breakfast．

     D．Because her mother had to give candy to the author’s sister and two brothers．

The author’s mother made her children work because _________ ．

     A．she had trouble falling into sleep．

     B．she could not keep such a big family without her children’s help．

     C．she was teaching her children to live by themselves．

     D．she had no time to do the housework．

I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. When others had cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different from the other kids' also. But at least, I wasn't alone in my sufferings. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.

    My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were on a chain gang. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we'd be gone an hour, that we be gone one hour or less — not one hour and one minute.

    We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath everyday. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of insults because she made our clothes herself, just to save money.

    The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn't sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept --- my mother actually had the nerve to break the Child Labor Law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.

    Through the years, things didn't improve a bit. We could not lie in bed, "sick" like our friends did, and miss school. Our marks in school had to be up to par. Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother, being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks.

    As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We were graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.

    My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested or divorced. Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country. She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults. Using this as a background, I am now trying to raise my three children. I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the whole world.

What can we infer from the passage?

A. The author is not happy to have such a mean mother.       

B. The author's mother broke the Child Labor Law to make money.

C. The author's mother failed to educate her children to be honest adults

D. The author is strict with her children.

Why couldn’t the author eat candy for breakfast?

  A. Because she preferred cereal, eggs or toast to candy.

  B. Because her mother couldn’t afford for candy.

  C. Because her mother thought it not good to eat candy for breakfast.

  D. Because her mother had to gave candy to the author’s sister and two brothers.

The author’s mother made her children work because _________ .

   A. she had trouble falling into sleep

   B. she could not keep such a big family without her children’s help

   C. she was teaching her children to live by themselves.

   D. she had no time to do housework.

I had the meanest mother in the whole world．While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast．When others had cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich．As you can guess, my supper was different from the other kids' also．But at least, I wasn't alone in my sufferings．My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did．

My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times．She had to know who our friends were and where we were going．We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath everyday．

The worst is yet to come．We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning．We couldn't sleep till noon like our friends．So while they slept --- my mother actually had the nerve to break the Child Labor Law．She made us work．We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things．I believe she lay awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us．

Through the years, things didn't improve a bit．We could not lie in bed, "sick" like our friends did, and miss school．Our marks in school had to be up to par．Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing．My mother, being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks．With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out．

My mother was a complete failure as a mother．Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education．None of us have ever been arrested or divorced．Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country．She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults．Using this as a background, I am now trying to raise my three children．I am filled with pride when my children call me mean．Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the whole world．

1.What can we infer from the passage?

       A．The author is not happy to have such a mean mother．      

       B．The author's mother broke the Child Labor Law to make money．

       C．The author's mother failed to educate her children to be honest adults．

       D．The author is strict with her children．

2.Why couldn’t the author eat candy for breakfast?

     A．Because she preferred cereal, eggs or toast to candy．

     B．Because her mother couldn’t afford for candy．

     C．Because her mother thought it not good to eat candy for breakfast．

     D．Because her mother had to give candy to the author’s sister and two brothers．

3.The author’s mother made her children work because _________ ．

     A．she had trouble falling into sleep．

     B．she could not keep such a big family without her children’s help．

     C．she was teaching her children to live by themselves．

     D．she had no time to do the housework．

Albert Einstein said, “In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.” Once  36  , such opportunities are like valuable diamonds hidden in the sand.

Several years ago, I spoke at a school about how we were surrounded by “__37  ” if we could only recognize them. A man stopped by to see me, and I  38   him as somebody who had suffered through a(n)  39  divorce (离婚) and was examining what was most important to him. He took a small  40  out of his pocket. Here is what he said to me that day.

“I  41  on this stone when I was leaving church last Sunday. You had spoken about  42  opportunities—diamonds. I put the stone in my  43  to remind me to look for those diamonds that I need. I have been trying to sell my  44  . On Monday morning, a man who seemed interested in  45  some of my stock (股票) stopped by. I thought, ‘Here’s my diamond—don’t let it  46  !’ I sold the entire stock to him by noon. Now my next diamond is to find a new 47  !”

Not long afterward, he did find a new and better job. From then on, he  48  to keep his stone with him all the time as a   49  to look for “diamonds” as he digs through the  50  of life.

Richard DeVos is right when he  51  . “This is an exciting world. It is filled with opportunities.  52  moments wait around every corner.” Those moments are diamonds that,   53  left unrecognized, will be forever lost.

Are you looking for “diamonds” every day? If not, you may  54  pass them by! Perhaps there is a diamond of opportunity hidden in the difficulty you’re  55  now.

36.A.given                   B.discovered                 C.sent                   D.made

37.A.opportunities         B.dangers                     C.diamonds           D.chances

38.A.considered            B.treated                      C.remembered              D.saw

39.A.painful                 B.stupid                       C.normal               D.original

40.A.ball                      B.stone                         C.paper                 D.flower

41.A.stepped                 B.depended                   C.fought                D.based

42.A.stealing                B.accepting                   C.recognizing        D.realizing

43.A.purse                    B.pocket                       C.bag                    D.house

44.A.stone                    B.position                     C.career                D.business

45.A.selling                  B.buying                      C.hunting                     D.casting

46.A.go off                  B.give in                      C.stay up              D.watch out

47.A.buyer             B.job                 C.stock           D.rock

48.A.hoped             B.decided              C.refused         D.hated

49.A.scene                    B.prize                         C.reminder            D.power

50.A.difficulties            B.hopes                        C.characters           D.cases

51.A.takes over             B.leaves out                       C.points out           D.calls for

52.A.Actural                 B.Great                        C.Dangerous          D.Necessary

53.A.unless                   B.though                      C.for                     D.if

54.A.happily                 B.easily                        C.luckily               D.dangerously

55.A.expressing            B.satisfying                  C.breaking             D.experiencing