In the United States you will find yourself being urged from every page of every newspaper and every television station to buy all kinds of goods.
Not only is there a wide range of prices for goods in America, there is also a wide range in the quality of goods offered for sale. Unlike some countries,
Americans generally pay the price of a product without question, instead of trying to get a lower price by bargaining. However, there are many “sales” in the United States, during which time stores will lower their normal prices. This may all be very confusing to visitors. How are you going to know how to “get your money’s worth” when you shop? Perhaps the best advice is: Don’t hurry. Visit various stores and determine the quality of goods. Read the advertisements so that you can compare prices.
There is a great variety of shops in the United States, ranging from very large stores called “department stores” to very small shops. There are “discount houses” offering goods at low prices, and “dime stores” specializing in a wide range of inexpensive items.
Most department stores in large cities carry better quality products at higher prices. However, they offer the shoppers great convenience since they contain such a wide variety of products.
If convenience isn’t as important to you as price, you may want to shop in discount houses. These stores have nearly as great a variety of goods as department stores, but offer lower prices. They can do so for several reasons. They don’t offer the same services to buyers that department stores do; there may be fewer sales people; and the store probably doesn’t deliver purchases.
Another popular shop is the “dime store”. No longer selling many things for five or ten cents, these stores got their name in the last century when it was decided that a small profit on a great quantity of goods would be better than a large profit on fewer sales. Dime stores specialize in a wide variety of inexpensive items and today, prices range from a quarter or 50 cents up to several dollars.
1.The passage is mainly about______
A. American hospitality. B. the life of Americans.
C. American stores. D. the business of Americans.
2. Why can discount houses offer goods at lower prices compared with department stores?
a. They have fewer employees.
b. They have larger quantities of goods.
c. They offer fewer services.
d. They don’t provide delivery service.
A. a b c B. a b d C. a c d D. b c d
3.What’s special about dime stores?
A. They sell lots of goods at a small profit.
B. They make big profits by selling some goods.
C. They provide goods with a price lower than 50 cents.
D. They provide goods ranging from bargains to expensive ones.
4.Where can we most probably read this passage?
A. In a research paper. B. In a science report.
C. In a geography book. D. In a travel magazine.
Anthony was sad. He was, as he put it, “not very bright” and couldn’t win the attention of his very wealthy parents, who preferred his “clever” older brother. At age 8, Anthony was sent away to a boarding school in his native England, even though he screamed and pleaded with（恳求）his parents year after year not to send
him. “The thought was ,it would be good for me,” he recalled.
It was not. Anthony did badly in his studies, had few friends and was bullied for five years. “My teachers couldn’t have had a lower opinion of me,” he said. “I wasn’t even smart enough to rebel. The one thing I remember from the very earliest age was the desire to write. When I was 10 years old, I remember asking my parents to get me a typewriter for my birthday because I wanted to be a writer.”
Now, at 55, Anthony is one of the world’s most successful children’s book authors. His Alex Rider series has sold more than 5 million copies，and the eighth book featuring the young spy, Crocodile Tears, has come out.
The Alex Rider books tell the adventures of 14-year-old Alex Rider, an agent for the British intelligence agency M16.
Anthony says he doesn’t try to write for kids; it just comes out that way.“ I have a feeling that it has something to do with purity and simplicity. I give as little information as is necessary to describe the room, the character in the room, and get on with the action,” he said.
The style has also made Anthony a successful writer of television shows for adults in Britain because, he says, writing books for kids is a lot like writing television for grown-ups: In both cases, it’s all about entertaining people with a good story.
Now, Anthony couldn’t be happier with his life. He sums up his success:“…you can be anything you want to be if you just believe in yourself. I do believe it completely.”
1.Which of the following is true of Anthony?
A. He was the beloved child of his family.
B. Although he is successful, he isn’t very happy.
C. He places more emphasis on the characters’ behavior in his stories.
D. Studying in a boarding school proved a good choice for him.
2.At boarding school , Anthony’s teachers_____________.
A. often criticized him. B. showed great concern for him.
C. encouraged him to be a writer. D. thought little of his ability.
3.What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Anthony’s popular books—Alex Rider series
B. Alex Rider, a popular character
C. Anthony, a successful children’s book author
D. Special writing style
4.What advice does Anthony give to readers?
A. Confidence is the key to success. B. Hardship teaches valuable lessons.
C. Internet is the best teacher. D. Failure is the mother of success.
完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
About ten years ago, I was on a plane going west, and a young woman 1 and sat across the aisle (过道) from me. I noticed her for two reasons. She was very attractive, and she was holding a teddy bear about half her 2 . I teased her by asking if she had a 3 for the bear.She laughed and said no.
About halfway through the flight she 4 over and told me she was going to Tucson to enter rehab（康复治疗）. She 5 to share her life story with me. She had been working as a dancer in a nightclub. That 6 had led her down a dark 7 to drugs and alcohol. As I listened to her story, I was 8 at all she had gone through. I listened to all she shared and told her I was sure she was going to 9 it. At the end of the 10 , she thanked me for listening to her.
A few years later, I got a 11 in the mail saying, “Wow, it’s been five years since we met on that plane. It is 12 how you touched my life.” She went on to tell me that she had 13 to stay away from drugs, and had been working for a radio station. She felt she had achieved things she could not have 14 that
day on the plane. We agreed to set up a time to get 15 .
When I saw her, she was 16 _ the attractive young woman I remembered. She told me that that little 17 we had had turned her life around. She had got on the plane 18 anything would work in her life, and my affirmation of her as a person and of her 19 had given her the last bit of 20 she needed to work through her problems.
The young woman taught me it’s never too late to make a new start in life.
1.A. turned B. boarded C. bent D. slipped
2.A. shape B. weight C. size D. leg
3.A. ticket B. friend C. name D. cloth
4.A. moved B. pulled C. looked D. leaned
5.A. agreed B. learned C. continued D. refused
6.A. manner B. lifestyle C. event D. feeling
7.A. path B. door C. key D. point
8.A. disappointed B. worriedC. blamed D. surprised
9.A. own B. make C. leave D. reach
10. A. journeyB. flight C. speech D. conversation
11. A. case B. word C. note D. text
12. A. effectiveB. amazing C. easy D. clear
13.A. worked B. tried C. decided D. managed
14. A. realizedB. imagined C. required D. produced
15.A. through B. along C. together D. off
16.A. still B. once C. never D. even
17.A. expectationB. conversationC. information D. explanation
18.A. doubtingB. promising C. believing D. admitting
19.A. conditionB. Possibilities C. criticism D. discoveries
20. A. delight B. interest C. strength D. character
— I'm going to apply for Fudan University．
—_____ You've been dreaming to study in Beijing．
A．Congratulations! B．Good luck!
C．Why not Tsinghua? D．Good idea!
______, a small advertisement held my attention, which read “Easy job. Good wages. No experience necessary.”
A. Looking through the newspaper
B. While I was looking through the newspaper
C. To look through the newspaper
D. Looked through the newspaper
On the chairs , who had come here for this job interview.
A. did three graduates sit B. sat three graduates
C. three graduates sat D. sitting three graduates
