My heart sank when the man at the immigration counter gestured to the back room. I was born and raised in America, and this was Miami, where I live, but they weren’t quite ready to let me in yet.

　 “Please wait in here, Ms. Abujaber,” the immigration officer said. My husband, with his very American last name, accompanied me. He was getting used to this. The same thing had happened recently in Canada when I’d flown to Montreal to speak at a book event. That time they held me for 45 minutes. Today we were returning from a literary festival in Jamaica, and I was shocked that I was being sent “in back” once again.

　　The officer behind the counter called me up and said, “Miss, your name looks like the name of someone who’s on our wanted list. We’re going to have to check you out with Washington.”

　　“How long will it take?”

　　“Hard to say…a few minutes,” he said, “We’ll call you when we’re ready for you.” After an hour, Washington still hadn’t decided anything about me.

“Isn’t this computerized?” I asked at the counter, “Can’t you just look me up?”

“Just a few more minutes,” they assured me.

　　After an hour and a half, I pulled my cell phone out to call the friends I was supposed to meet that evening. An officer rushed over. “No phones!” he said, “For all we know you could be calling a terrorist cell and giving them information.”

　　“I’m just a university professor,” I said. My voice came out in a squeak.

　　“Of course you are. And we take people like you out of here in leg irons every day.”

　　I put my phone away.

　　My husband and I were getting hungry and tired. Whole families had been brought into the waiting room, and the place was packed with excitable children, exhausted parents, and even a flight attendant.

　　I wanted to scream, to jump on a chair and shout: “I’m an American citizen; a novelist; I probably teach English literature to your children.”

After two hours in detention (扣押), I was approached by one of the officers. “You’re free to go,” he said. No explanation or apologies. For a moment, neither of us moved. We were still in shock. Then we leaped to our feet.

　　“Oh, one more thing,” he handed me a tattered photocopy with an address on it, “If you aren’t happy with your treatment, you can write to this agency.”

　　“Will they respond?” I asked.

　　“I don’t know—I don’t know of anyone who’s ever written to them before.” Then he added,” By the way, this will probably keep happening each time you travel internationally.”

　　“What can I do to keep it from happening again?”

　　He smiled the empty smile we’d seen all day, “Absolutely nothing.”

　　After telling several friends about our ordeal, probably the most frequent advice I’ve heard in response is to change my name. Twenty years ago, my own graduate school writing professor advised me to write under a pen name so that publishers wouldn’t stick me in what he called “the ethnic ghetto”—a separate, secondary shelf in the bookstore. But a name is an integral part of anyone’s personal and professional identity—just like the town you’re born in and the place where you’re raised.

　　Like my father, I’ll keep the name, but my airport experience has given me a whole new perspective on what diversity and tolerance are supposed to mean. I had no idea that being an American would ever be this hard.

1.The author was held at the airport because ______.

A. she and her husband returned from Jamaica

B. her name was similar to a terrorist’s

C. she had been held in Montreal

D. she had spoken at a book event

2.She was not allowed to call her friends because ______.

A. her identity hadn’t been confirmed yet

B. she had been held for only one hour and a half

C. there were other families in the waiting room

D. she couldn’t use her own cell phone

3.We learn from the passage that the author would ______ to prevent similar experience from happening again.

A. write to the agency?????????? B. change her name??

C. avoid traveling abroad??????? D. do nothing

4.Her experiences indicate that there still exists ______ in the US.

A. hatred???????????????????? B. discrimination?????

C. tolerance?????????????????? D. diversity

5.The author sounds ______ in the last paragraph.

A. impatient?? B. bitter???????? C. worried??????????? D. ironic (具有讽刺意味的)

Throughout this long, tense election, everyone has focused on the presidential candidates and how they’ll change America. Rightly so, but selfishly, I’m more fascinated by Michelle Obama and what she might be able to do, not just for this country, but for me as an African-American woman. As the potential First Lady, she would have the world’s attention. And that means that for the first time people will have a chance to get up close and personal with the type of African-American woman they so rarely see.

　　Usually, the lives of black women go largely unexamined. The prevailing theory seems to be that we’re all hot-tempered single mothers who can’t keep a man. Even in the world of make-believe, black women still can’t escape the stereotype of being eye-rolling, oversexed females raised by our never-married, alcoholic (酗酒的) mothers.

　　These images have helped define the way all women are viewed, including Michelle Obama. Before she ever gets the chance to commit to a cause, charity or foundation as First Lady, her most urgent and perhaps most complicated duty may be simple to be herself.

　　It won’t be easy. Because few mainstream publications have done in-depth features on regular African-American women, little is known about who we are, what we think and what we face on a regular basis. For better or worse, Michelle will represent us all.

　　Just as she will have her critics, she will also have millions of fans who usually have little interest in the First Lady. Many African-American blogs have written about what they’d like to see Michelle bring to the White House—mainly showing the world that a black woman can support her man and raise a strong black family. Michelle will have to work to please everyone—an impossible task. But for many African-American women like me, just a little of her poise (沉着), confidence and intelligence will go a long way in changing an image that’s been around for far too long.

1.Why does Michelle Obama hold a strong fascination for the author?

A.She serves as a role model for African women.

B.She possesses many admirable qualities becoming a First Lady.

C.She will present to the world a new image of African-American women.

D.She will pay closer attention to the interests of African-American women.

2.What is the common stereotype of African-American women according to the author?

A.They are victims of violence.

B.They are of an inferior violence.

C.They use quite a lot of body language.

D.They live on charity and social welfare.

3.What do many African-Americans write about in their blogs?

A.Whether Michelle can live up to the high expectations of her fans.

B.How Michelle should behave as a public figure.

C.How proud they are to have a black woman in the White House.

D.What Michelle should do as wife and mother in the White House.

4.What does the author say about Michelle Obama as a First Lady?

A.However many fans she has, she should remain modest,

B.She shouldn’t disappoint the African-American community.

C.However hard she tries, she can’t expect to please everybody.

D.She will give priority to African-American women’s concerns.

5.What do many African-American women hope Michelle Obama will do?

A.Help change the prevailing view about black women.

B.Help her husband in the task of changing America.

C.Outshine previous First Lady.

D.Fully display her fine qualities.

　　Lucky is the man who has no “skeleton in his closet”. When a man has done something in his life that he is ashamed of, that he wants to hide, he is said to have a “skeleton in his closet”. Some people may have more than one skeleton.

　　As we have noted many times, it is hard to find out how these expressions begin. Sometimes, we get some hard facts. But more often we have to depend on guesswork. And that is true of this phrase, which came from England.

　　Before 1932, English law did not permit a doctor to cut open a dead human body for scientific examination, unless it was the corpse(尸体) of an executed(处决) criminal.

　　But when it became legal, more and more doctors demanded skeletons for a more scientific study of medicine. It was helping in the advance of modern medicine. The demand had become so strong that men began to rob tombs and sell skeletons to doctors at high prices.

　　We are told that a doctor would usually buy just one skeleton for scientific study. It became very important in his work. But he had to keep it hidden because most people objected to keeping such a thing. As a rule, the doctor would keep his skeleton in some dark corner where it could not be seen, or hide it in a closet.

　　After a time, people began to suspect(怀疑) every doctor of hiding a skeleton in the closet. From this suspicion, the phrase “a skeleton in the closet” took on a broader, more general meaning to describe anything that a man wanted to keep others from discovering. It could be proof of a criminal act, or something much less serious. Well, that is one theory.

　　One writer, however, believes that the phrase might have come from something that really happened. It is his guess that a hidden closet in some old English country home may have turned up a real skeleton, clear proof of some old family shame or crime. Well, one man’s guess is as good as another. But this sounds like a story by the great French novelist, Balzac.

　　Baizac tells us of a man who suspected his wife of having a lover. The husband comes home by surprise. But she hears him and quickly hides her lover in the closet of her bedroom. He enters her room and asks her if she is hiding her lover. He says he will not open the door to the closet if she promises him there is no one there; He will believe her. She answers firmly that she is not hiding anyone in the closet.

　　The husband then begins to build a solid brick wall against the closet. His wife watches, knowing that her lover will never come out alive. But she will not change her story and admit her guilt.   

1. Which of the following situations is suitable for using the phrase “skeleton in the closet” ?

　　A. You have stolen something precious and don’t want it discovered.

　　B. You are a doctor and have to keep a skeleton for research.

　　C. If you have cut open a dead human body for scientific examination you should keep the skeleton secret.

　　D. You have done a crime or done something foolish, but you want to keep other from discovering it.

2. From the text we know that there are _______ theories about how the phrase “skeleton in the closet” came into being.

　　A. one 　　　　　      B. two 　　　　　      C. three 　　　　D. four

3. In Chinese the world “skeleton” means _______.

　　A. 尸体 　　　　　B. 标本 　　　　　C. 收藏 　　　　D. 骷髅

4. Which of the following is right according to the text?

　    A. In the 20th century, doctors realized the importance of anatomy(解剖) in the development of medicine.

　　B. The doctors of the ancient times liked to collect as many skeleton as possible.

　　C. The thieves stole skeletons from tombs in order to help the doctors.

　　D. It was legal that corpses of anybody were cut open for scientific examination in history.

5. From the story Balzac told we know that the wife’s lover must have become _______.

A. a corpse 　　　　B. a phrase 　　　　C. a skeleton 　　　D. a secret

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳选项。

Dear Doctor，

　　My husband and I got married in 1995 and for the first ten years of our marriage I was very happy to stay home and raise our three children．Then four years ago，our youngest child went to school and I thought I might go back to work．

　　My husband was very supportive and helped me to make my decision．He emphasized all of the things l can do around the house，and said he thought I could be a great success in business．

　　After several weeks of job-hunting，l found my present job，which is working for a small public relations firm．At first，my husband was very proud of me and would tell his friends，“My clever little wife can run that company she's working for．”

　　But as his joking remark was close to reality，my husband stopped talking to me about my job．I have received several promotions and pay increases，and I am now making more money than he is．I can buy my own clothes and a new car．Because of our combined incomes，my husband and I can do many things that we had always dreamed of doing，but we don't do these things because he is very unhappy．

　　We fight about little things and my husband is very critical of me in front of our friends．For the first time in our marriage，l think there is a possibility that our marriage may come to an end．

　　I hove my husband very much，and I do not want him to feel inferior，but I also love my job．I think I can be a good wife and a working woman，but I don't know how．Can you give me some advice？Will I have to choose one or the other or can I keep both my husband and my new career？

　　Please help．

“DISTRESSED”

1．What do you think shows her husband was supportive？

[　　]

A．He took up all the work she used to do．

B．He made all the decisions for her．

C．He gave her encouragement．

D．All of the above．

2．Her husband ________when she first found her present job．

[　　]

A．was very critical of her

B．felt disappointed

C．was proud of her

D．was happy but critical

3．Her husband stopped talking to her about her job when________．

[　　]

A．she received promotions

B．she earned more money

C．her husband was unhappy

D．both A and B

4．The woman has a hard choice between________．

[　　]

A．husband and children

B．children and work

C．career and money

D．job and marriage

It’s become part of the restaurant table setting: knife, fork, napkin and cell phone.

　     Distracted (思想不集中的) dining is the new concern with customers constantly texting friends, uploading a Weibo photo of the meal they’re about to chew down or emailing the boss. For many smart-phone users, it’s hard just to focus on the meal and company at hand.

　     Now, one restaurant in Los Angeles is giving diners a reason to turn off the digital world, by offering customers willing to check (寄存) their phones at the door a 5-percent discount on their bill. Owner and chef Mark Gold of Eva Restaurant, located on Beverly Boulevard near N. Gardner Street, hopes this gives customers a way to truly sit back and relax, enjoy their meal and actually talk with friends and family in person.

　     “For us, it’s really not about people disturbing other guests. Eva is home, and we want to create that environment of home, and we want people to connect again,” he explained. “It’s about two people sitting together and just connecting, without the distraction of a phone, and we’re trying to create an atmosphere where you come in and really enjoy the experience and the food and the company.”

　     Gold said applying the suggestion reminds him to avoid cell phone usage, too. “I’m guilty of it as well. When my wife and I go to dinner it seems like the cell phone is part of the table setting now. Every table you look at, it’s a wine glass, the silverware and the cell phone,” he joked.

　     The husband and wife team runs Eva, a 40-person space with European flair. Gold said a little less than half take advantage of the deal, and no one has gotten upset about it.

　     “I think once the server approaches the table and they’re presented with the offer, they like the idea of actually talking to each other again,” he said.

1.When having meal in Eva Restaurant, we are not offered             on the table.[学,

A. forks                        B. cellphones                       C. napkins          D. knives

2.Why does Gold think people should not use cellphones at table?

A. Because it can cause health problems.

B. Because it will disturb other customers.

C. Because it can get a 5-percent discount on the customers’ bills.

D. Because it may prevent people communicating with their companions.

3.What can we learn from the passage?

A. Many people would like to upload a photo of their food before they eat nowadays.

B. People are forbidden to use cellphones in Eva Restaurant.

C. More than half of the customers in Eva Restaurant have enjoyed the discount.

D. People can easily connect with each other anytime without using cellphones.

4.What can be the best title of the passage?

A. No Cellphone at Table!

B. Focus on Your Cellphone!

C. Eva Restaurant – Home to Customers.

D. Talk Face to Face.