Question

    Do you prefer reading an e-book or a physical version? It might be a surprise, but for most people, old school print on paper still wins.

Publishers of books in all formats made almost $26 billion in revenue (收益) last year in the U.S., with print making up $22.6 billion and e-books taking $2.04 billion, according to the Association of American Publishers’ annual report 2018. Those figures include trade and educational books, as well as fiction.

While digital media has developed quickly, people still love to own physical books, according to Meryl Halls, managing director of the Booksellers’ Association in the U.K. “I think the e-book bubble has burst somewhat. Sales are flattening off. The physical objects are attractive.” she said.

People love to display their books, Hall added. “The book lover loves to have a record of what they have read. It’s about signaling to the rest of the world and about decorating your home, because people want to use it to indicate something about themselves.” And for Halls, there is also a desire to escape the screen. Part of the reason is that it’s harder to have an emotional relationship with what you’re reading if it’s on an e-reader.

As for the future of books, all formats will continue to be in demand, says Jacks Thomas, director of the London Book Fair. “People always need knowledge and people always need stories, so from that point of view, the book industry, in whatever format, has a strong future,” she says.

1.What do we know from the passage?

A.E-books help escape the screen.

B.Publishers of books like e-books.

C.Details are more accurate in physical books.

D.Print books make a bigger profit than e-books.

2.What does the underlined phrase “flattening off” mean?

A.Cutting down.

B.Being controlled.

C.Stopping growing.

D.Keeping increasing.

3.Why do people prefer physical books?

A.They are a signal of the world.

B.They are used to build houses.

C.They help people record something.

D.They are good to strengthen a relationship.

4.Which is Jack’s idea about the book industry?

A.Its future promises to be good. B.Books won’t be needed.

C.No different formats coexist. D.Digital media will replace physical books.

Answer

1.D

2.C

3.C

4.A

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章介绍一种现象——实体书深受欢迎，并且分析了这种现象背后的原因。

1.推理判断题。根据第二段中的“Publishers of books in all formats made almost $26 billion in revenue (收益) last year in the U.S., with print making up $22.6 billion and e-books taking $2.04 billion”可知，去年，美国纸质书的销售额为226亿美元，电子书为20.4亿美元。由此推知，纸质书的利润比电子书大。故选D。

2.词句猜测题。根据划线词所在句前一句I think the e-book bubble has burst somewhat.(我认为电子书的泡沫已经破灭了)及下一句The physical objects are attractive.(实体书很有吸引力)可推知，电子书的销售迅猛发展的势头应该已经不复存在，即划线词所在句意为“销售趋于平稳”，由此可知划线词组意为“变平，变平缓”。结合选项，C选项（停止增长）表达此意。故选C。

3.推理判断题。根据第四段中的The book lover loves to have a record of what they have read. It’s about signaling to the rest of the world and about decorating your home, because people want to use it to indicate something about themselves.可知，爱书的人喜欢把他们读过的书记录下来。它可以向世界其他地方发出信号，也可以装饰你的家，因为人们想用它来显示关于自己的一些东西。由此推知，人们更喜欢实体书，因为它们可以帮助人们记录一些东西。故选C。

4.细节理解题。根据最后一段中的“People always need knowledge and people always need stories, so from that point of view, the book industry, in whatever format, has a strong future,” she says.可知，“人们总是需要知识，总是需要故事，所以从这个角度来看，无论以何种形式出现，图书行业都有一个强大的未来，”她说。由此可知，杰克认为图书行业前途光明。故选A。