Cosmo Books Ltd., 14, Woodman Road,Hertford Estate,

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Cosmo Books Ltd.,                         14, Woodman Road,
Hertford Estate,                            Two Bridges,
Rickmansworth,                           West Sussex.
Middx.
25^th February
Dear sir,
Just over six months ago, I saw an advertisement in the Morning Mail for a set of the complete works of William Shakespeare. Your company, Cosmo books Ltd., offered this set ( eight books of plays and two books of poetry) at what was claimed to be a ‘remarkable’ price: fifteen pounds and fifty pence, including postage and packing. I had wanted a set of Shakespeare’s plays and poems for some time, and these books, in red imitation leather, looked particularly attractive; so I sent for them.
Two weeks later, the books arrived, together with a set of the complete works of Charles Dickens which I had not ordered. So I returned the Dickens books to you, with a cheque for fifteen pounds and fifty pence for the works of Shakespeare. Two more weeks passed. Then there arrived on my door step a second set of the works of Shakespeare, the same set of novels by Dickens and a six book set of the plays of Moliere, in French. Since I do not read French, these were of no use to me at all. However, I could not afford to post all these books back to you, so I wrote to you at the end of August of last year, instructing you to come and collect all the books that I did not want, and asking you not to send any other books until further notice.
You did not reply to that letter. Instead you sent me a bill for forty two pounds , and a set of the plays of Schiller, in German. Since then, a new set of books has arrived every two weeks, the works of Goethe, the poems of Milton, the plays of Strindberg; I hardly know what I have. The books are still all in their boxes, in the garage, and my car has to stand in the rain outside.
I have no room for any more books, and even if I read from now until the Last Judgement, I should not finish reading all the books that you have sent me.
Please send no more books, send no more bills, send no more angry letters demanding payment. Just send one large lorry and take all the books away, leaving me only with the one set of the complete works of Shakespeare for which I have paid.
Yours faithfully,
SIMON WALKER
小题1:Simon Walker wrote the letter to ________

A．complain about sending him books he had not ordered.

B．urge Cosmo Books Ltd. to take away the books he had not ordered.

C．laugh at Cosmo Books Ltd..

D．advise readers not to order books from Cosmo Books Ltd..

小题2:The advertisement that Mr. Walker saw in the Morning Mail was for ____

A．unlimited number of Cosmo Books.

B．a set of 10 books of the works of Shakespeare.

C．a book containing all the plays and poems of Shakespeare.

D．fifteen pounds and fifty pence.

小题3: Mr. walker answered the advertisement because ________

A．he wanted a set of Shakespeare’s works, and this set was cheap, and looked attractive.

B．he claimed that the books were being offered at a remarkable price.

C．he had ordered the set and had been waiting for them to come for some time.

D．the set he already had was not particularly attractive.

小题4:Cosmo Books have _______

A．sent bills for books that they have not sent.

B．continued to send books that Mr. Walker did not order.

C．still not sent Mr. Walker the books that he ordered.

D．made a gift to Mr. Walker of several sets of books.

小题5:The tone of the letter is that of _______

A．bitterness

B．respect

C．annoyance

D．humor

答案

小题1:B
小题1:B
小题1:A
小题1:B
小题1:C

解析

本篇文章为一篇投诉信，描述了我购买了一套莎士比亚作品之后，由于该公司的错误导致的种种烦恼。
小题1:B 主旨大意题本文虽为一篇投诉信，但是作者的写这封信得目的有最后一段“Just send one large lorry and take all the books away, leaving me only with the one set of the complete works of Shakespeare for which I have paid.”可得出答案B正确。
小题1:B 细节理解题由第一段中的“offered this set ( eight books of plays and two books of poetry)” 因此答案B正确。
小题1:A 推理判断题由第一段中的描述可知，作者本身很想要一套莎士比亚的书，而广告上的又便宜，又很具有吸引力，因此答案A正确。
小题1:B推理判断题由第一段后半部分可知作者又不断收到很多书包括狄更斯等等作家的书因此答案B正确
小题1:C 主旨大意题全文是一篇投诉信，整篇文章的写作语气是非常令人烦恼的。因此答案C正确。

举一反三

Life gets noisier every day and very few people can be free from noise of some sort or another. It doesn’t matter where you live-in the middle of a modern city, or a faraway village-the chances that you will be disturbed by jet aeroplanes, transistor radios, oil-powered engines, etc. are almost everywhere .We seem to be getting used to noise, too. Some people feel quite lonely without background music while they are working.
Scientific tests have shown that total silence can be very frightening experience for human beings. However, some people enjoy listening to pop music which is very loud, and this can do harm to their eardrums(耳鼓).The noise level in some disco is far above the usual safety level for heavy industrial areas.
A recent report about noise and concentration(专心) suggested that although a lot of people say that any noise disturbs their concentration, what really affects their ability to concentrate is a change in the level of noise. It goes on to say that a background noise, which doesn’t change too much (music, for example) may even help people to concentrate.
小题1:The best title for this passage is _______________.

A．Noisy Life	B．Background Noise
C．Disturbed Concentration	D．Changeable Noise

小题2:From this passage, the pollution of noise _______________.

A．doesn’t matter much	B．has become worse everywhere
C．has become better in big cities	D．has become better in villages

小题3:“Background music” in the passage means _______________.

A．music played in the concert	B．a kind of noise coming into your ears
C．music helps people to concentrate	D．music played while people are working

小题4:Some people may have their hearing hurt _______________.

A．while they are in completely silence	B．while they are dancing violently
C．while they are listening to loud pop music	D．while they are listening to soft music

小题5:Scientists have discovered that what prevents people from concentrating is _____.

A．any kind of noise	B．great changes in level of noise
C．background noise	D．various background music

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

We’re all connected. You can send an e-mail message to a friend, and your friend can pass it on to one of his or her friends, and that friend can do the same, continuing the chain. Eventually, your message could reach just about anyone in the world, and it might take only five to seven e-mails for the message to get there.
Scientists recently tested that idea in a study involving 24,000 people. Participants had to try to get a message forwarded to one of 18 randomly(随意地，随机地) chosen people. Each participant started by sending one e-mail to someone they knew. Those who received it could then forward the e-mail once to someone they knew, and so on.
Subjects, who were randomly assigned by researchers from Columbia University in New York, lived in 13 countries. They included an Australian police officer, a Norwegian veterinarian, and a college professor.
Out of 24,000 chains, only 384 reached their goal. The rest petered out, usually because one of the recipients was either too busy to forward the message or thought it was junk mail.
The links that reached their goal made it in an average of 4.05 e-mails. Based on the lengths of the failed chains, the researchers figured out that two strangers could generally make contact in five to seven e-mails.
The most successful chains relied on casual acquaintances rather than close friends. That’s because your close friends know each other while your acquaintances tend to know people you don’t know. The phenomenon, known as the strength of weak ties, explains why people tend to get jobs through people they know casually but aren’t that close to.
So, start networking and instant messaging now. As they say in show business: It’s all about who you know.
小题1:If you want to get into touch with a stranger in the world, how many e-mails might it take for the message to reach him/her?

A．5 to 7

B．18

C．13

D．384

小题2:Who does the word “subjects” refer to in the passage?

A．the 384 participants who lived in Australuia

B．the Norwegian veterinarians and college porfessors

C．the 24,000 people randomly assigned by reaearchers

D．the 18 people randomly chosen from 13 countries

小题3:What does the phrase “peter out” mean in the fourth paragraph？

A．die out

B．pass away

C．disappear

D．pick out

小题4:Why do people tend to get jobs more easily through casual acquaintances than close friends?

A．Because close friends don’t talk with each other so much.

B．Because casual acquaintances can help you know more people and make more friends.

C．Because close friends don’t spend so much time gathering together.

D．Because casual acquaintances are kinder and more willing to help others.

小题5: In which part of a newspaper will readers read this passage?

A．Culture

B．Entertainment

C．Information and Technology

D．Health

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

She is quiet, soft-spoken and has a kind face and a strong heart. She is my mom, Lili.
When I was nine, Lili quitted her job and started her own business. She said she didn’t want to stay at home and work as a housewife: “It’s a waste of life.” Lili became so busy that she spent less and less time with me. She didn’t help me with my schoolwork. It was, in her words, “so that you can develop your independence”. We quarreled because she rarely showed up at parents’ meetings.
Like mother, like daughter. I have many things in common with Lili. I want everything to be under control. I want to be perfect and I don’t expect other people to help me. I push myself hard to achieve my goals.
After I started to go to high school, Lili and I were too busy to communicate much with each other.
In biology class I began to be depressed. When the teacher showed us a picture of a butterfly, I was scared and screamed. I had a vision of thousands of butterflies flying toward me.
That night I told Lili about it. The next morning, I saw that she had red eyes with black circles around them.
She took me to see a therapist (治疗师). Three hours later, the therapist told Lili that my life was like a wheel spinning (旋转) faster and faster and that was the reason for what had happened to me. I only realized it when my body couldn’t stand the pressure anymore. At these words, Lili burst into tears. “It’s all my fault, she’s just a kid and I didn’t have time to take care of her….” To be honest, I had never seen Lili cry before.
After that, Lili began to spend more time at home, cooking and dragging me to do sports. I realized she was the one who would always be there when I was in real trouble. No mom is perfect, but she is the one who really cares about her kid.
小题1:Lili quitted her job and started her own business because _________.

A．she wanted to make more money	B．she was not willing to look after me
C．she didn’t want to waste her life	D．she likes keeping busy

小题2: We quarreled because __________.

A．she began to spend less and less time with me

B．she didn’t help me with my schoolwork.

C．she seldom attended the parents’ meetings in my school.

D．Lili and I were too busy to communicate much with each other.

小题3:What can we learn from the passage?

A．Most women don’t want to be a housewife.

B．Most children want their mothers to accompany them at home.

C．We need to understand our mothers’ busy life.

D．Although mothers are not perfect, they all love the children

小题4: Which of the following statements is WRONG?

A．Lili is a quiet, strong-willed woman.

B．Lili began to spend more time at home after visiting the therapist.

C．I was scared and screamed in biology class because I hate butterflies.

D．I only realized my life was like a wheel when my body couldn’t stand the pressure anymore.

小题5: What is the best title for the passage?

A．Mom Does Care.	B．A Busy but Successful Mother.
C．Change From Mother to Businessman.	D．A Student’s Opinion on Mother.

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

When milk arrived on the doorstep
When I was a boy growing up in New Jersey in the 1960s, we had a milkman delivering milk to our doorstep. His name was Mr. Basille. He wore a white cap and drove a white truck. As a 5-year-old boy, I couldn’t take my eyes off the coin changer fixed to his belt. He noticed this one day during a delivery and gave me a quarter out of his coin changer.
Of course, he delivered more than milk. There was cheese, eggs and so on. If we needed to change our order, my mother would pen a note----“Please add a bottle of buttermilk next delivery”----and place it in the box along with the empty bottles. And then, the buttermilk would magically appear.
All of this was about more than convenience. There existed a close relationship between families and their milkmen. Mr. Basille even had a key to our house, for those times when it was so cold outside that we put the box indoors, so that the milk wouldn’t freeze. And I remember Mr. Basille from time to time taking a break at our kitchen table, having a cup of tea and telling stories about his delivery.
There is sadly no home milk delivery today. Big companies allowed the production of cheaper milk, thus making it difficult for milkmen to compete. Besides, milk is for sale everywhere, and it may just not have been practical to have a delivery service.
Recently, I saw an old milk box in the countryside. I took it home and planted it on the back porch （门廊）. Every so often my son’s friends will ask what it is. So I start telling stories of my boyhood, and of the milkman who brought us friendship along with his milk.
小题1:Mr. Basille gave the boy a quarter out of his coin changer____.

A．to show his magical power

B．to pay for the delivery

C．to satisfy his curiosity

D．to please his mother

小题2:What does “this” in the third paragraph refer to?

A．The milkman’s magic power

B．The milkman’s kindness to me

C．The note to change an order

D．The home delivery service

小题3:What can be inferred from the fact that the milkman had the key to the boy’s house?

A．He wanted to have tea there.

B．He was a respectable person.

C．He was treated as a family member.

D．He was fully trusted by the family.

小题4:Why does home milk delivery no longer exist?

A．Nobody wants to be a milkman now.

B．It has been driven out of the market.

C．Its service is getting poor.

D．It is forbidden by law.

小题5:Why did the author bring back home an old milk box?

A．He missed the good old days.

B．He wanted to tell interesting stories.

C．He missed it for his milk bottles.

D．He planted flowers in it.

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Department stores sell ready- to-wear clothing, which is also called ready-made clothing. Such clothing is made in fixed sizes. Those people who find that ready-made clothing fits them well can save money by buying it. Most often, people do not fit exactly into a producer’s size. Their clothing must be altered to make it fit better. However, most alterations are not very expensive. The small cost of most alterations means that ready-made clothing can meet the needs of most customers.
Those who can afford it often get someone to design and make their clothing. Such clothing is called custom-made. The person who makes it measures the customer, and then sews it so that it fits perfectly. Alterations are not needed. Custom-made clothing is largely sewn by hand, has better quality, better material, and is of the style you have chosen. Of course, it costs much more than ready-to-wear clothing. You need to pay the difference for the special fitting and better skill that you are receiving. This often means that you spend double or more than you would for a ready-made garment.
Custom-made clothing is not always that much better than ready-made clothing. It costs more partly because only one garment has been made, just for you. Companies that produce ready-made products make thousands of garments at a time. This means they can buy large quantities of material. Workers cut each size by the hundreds. Companies work out ways to make the garments quickly by machine and pay workers according to their skill. Thus they can sell the finished products at a low price while still making money. Most of the clothing sold in the United States is made in this way. Customers gain from the lower prices which are made possible by mass production. It may or may not give them high quality.
小题1: According to the passage, people who buy ready-made clothing ______.

A．wish to make alternations	B．will spend less money
C．want to make it better	D．can fit into the sizes

小题2:We can learn from the passage that custom-made clothing is_______.

A．specially made	B．fashionably designed
C．chosen by few people	D．made with difficulties

小题3:Which of the following is true about ready-made clothing?

A．It is of poor quality.	B．It suits all people.
C．It is labor-saving to make it.	D．It takes more time to make it

小题4:The purpose of the writer is _______.

A．to explain why custom-made clothing costs more

B．to show the advantages of mass production

C．to tell readers how to make money from ready-made clothing

D．to provide information about different kinds of clothing

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