F. Scott Fitzgerald, born on September 24, 1896, an American novelist, was once a student of St. Paul Academy, the Newman School and attended Princeton University for a short while. In 1917 he joined the army and was posted in Alabama, where he met his future wife Zelda Sayre. Then he had to make some money to impress her.
His life with her was full of great happiness, as he wrote in his diary “My own happiness in the past often got such joy that I could share it even with the person dearest to me but had to walk it away in quiet streets and take down parts of it in my diary.”
This side of paradise, his first novel, was published in 1920. Encouraged by its success, Fitzgerald began to devote more time to his writing. Then he continued with the novel the Beautiful and Damned (1922), a collection of short stories Thales of the Jazz Age (1922), and a play The Vegetable (1923). But his greatest success was the novel The Great Gatsby, published in 1925, which quick brought him praise from the literary world. Yet it failed to give him the needed financial(财政的) security(安全,保障). Then, in 1926, he published another collection of short stories All the Sad Young Men.
However, Fitzgerald’s problems with his wife Zelda had an effect on his writing. During the 1920s he tried to reorder his life, but failed. By 1930, his wife had her first breakdown and went to a Swiss clinic. During this period he completed novels Tender Is the Night in 1934 and The love of the last Tycoon in 1940. While his wife was in hospital in the United States, he got totally addicted to alcohol(酒精). Sheila Graham, his dear friend, helped him fight his alcoholism.
1.Which of the following is the correct order to describe Fitzgerald’s life according to the passage?
a. He became addicted to drinking.
b. He studied at St. Paul Academy.
c. He published his first novel This Side of Paradise.
d. The Great Gatsby won high praise.
e. He failed to reorder his life.
f. He joined the army and met Zelda.
A. f-c-e-a-b-d B. b-e-a-f-c-d
C. f-d-e-c-b-a D. b-f-c-d-e-a
2.We can infer from the passage that Fitzgerald_______.
A. had made some money when he met Zelda in Alabama
B. was well educated and well off before he served in the army
C. would have completed more works if his wife hadn’t broken down
D. helped his friend get rid of drinking while his wife was in hospital
3.The passage is probably followed by a concluding(总结的) paragraph about_____.
A. Zelda’s personal life
B. Fitzgerald’s contributions to the literary world
C. Fitzgerald’s friendship with Graham
D. Zelda’s illness and treatment
I have a neighbor we call “Happy”. I have never seen her angry at anything and never heard her say a harsh (苛刻) word to anyone or about anyone.
Happy and her husband Ben, 70, have a huge garden. They spent many happy hours together working on it. Most of the neighbors watched interestingly as Ben doubled the size of their garden. As the cost of food climbed faster than Ben’s beans, we all wished we also had such a large garden. As the rest of us spent our dollars at the market, Happy could be seen picking beans in her back yard.
Last month, Happy and Ben invited most of the neighborhood over for an “all-day food fest”. We were told to bring gloves and arrive very early in the morning. We didn’t know what was about to take place.
By 9:00 am, there were nine of us in the garden picking tomatoes, beans, okra, and squash. By 10:00 am, there was lots of laughter. We shared a lot of stories. By five o’clock, everyone was a little drunk from the wine and beer. After dinner, we played games. As we were leaving, Happy and Ben handed each of us a shopping bag filled with the bounty(收成)of the day, already packaged and frozen. What a delightful gift!
Well, the point wasn’t so much about the food. The true gift was a day of friends enjoying one another’s company. None of it would have happened if it had been for Happy and Ben’s garden. Now they have a blog about gardening in case we decided to plant a garden. And I am so proud of my tomato plants!
1.According to paragraph 2, people wish they also had a garden so that_______.
A. they didn’t have to spend so much money on food
B. they could grow vegetables and sell at the market
C. they could invite their neighbors and hold parties in it
D. they could spend happy times together with their family in it
2.For what purpose did Happy and Ben invite the neighbors to their garden?
A. To ask them to attend a birthday party.
B. To help them get to know each other.
C. To let them enjoy what they grew in the garden.
D. To ask them to share some interesting stories.
3.What did the writer most probably think of the time he spent in the garden?
A. It was too long.
B. It was wonderful.
C. It was not as good as he thought.
D. It was too terrible.
You may have a lot of friends and expect your friendship to last a lifetime. However, lifelong friendships are not ________ what everybody can get. Friends sometimes misunderstand each other. For one thing, you may want your _______ to be near at hand, but also you need your independence (独立).
For example, when one of your friends comes asking _______ it is all right to spend the evening in your house, sometimes you just say “_____” to him or her because it is not convenient for you. Unfortunately, not all your friends _______ this type of independence. They believe that friends can ask for any favor and the answer should always be “yes”.
Also, misunderstanding sometimes happens when you ask for ______. You expect your friends to help you whenever you need. But the fact is, your friends may not always drop everything to satisfy _______ of your needs. This may make you ______ with them and your friendship could end. The most important thing for you and your friends to do is to always show understanding and respect for each other.
Lifelong friendships don’t develop overnights. In a true friendship, both people equally _______ each other. Long-term friendships provide the time to build up a _____ together. As you spend more time with your friend, you are creating special times and stocking up (存储) on memories.
1.A. always B. sometimes C. never D. ever
2.A. parents B. friends C. students D. teachers
3.A. when B. as C. if D. why
4.A. yes B. no C. good D. OK
5.A. provide B. understand C. produce D. invent
6.A. help B. food C. money D. respect
7.A. every B. each C. both D. either
8.A. happy B. excited C. cheerful D. angry
9.A. connect B. compare C. support D. solve
10.A. story B. family C. character D. history
---Reading is the best way to pass time on the train.
---______, I never go traveling without a book.
A. You are joking. B. That’s true
C. I don’t think so D. It sounds like fun
— It’s hard to believe ______the way out of the forest without the help of the local guide?
A. what they were able to find
B. what were they able to find
C. how they were able to find
D. how were they able to find
She drove so fast at the turning that the car almost went ______ the road.
A. on B. along C. from, D. off