Four books that will inspire you to travel the world
There's truly nothing like travel when it comes to gaining perspectives and exposing yourself to other cultures. To get you in the adventuring mood, we asked Amazon Senior Editor Chris Schlep to help you come up with a list of books that transport readers to another time and place. Below, see his list of four books that will inspire you to travel the world.
ITALY: Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
This book by the popular author Jess Walter is a love story that begins on the Italian Coast in the early 60s and eventually concludes in contemporary Hollywood's screen. As the settings shift from Italy to Edinburgh and Los Angeles, you will find yourself longing to go as well. Buy it on Amazon. Price: $28.90
SEATTLE: Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
Maria Semple's first novel is not exactly a love story in Seattle, but if you read it, you just might want to come here to see if people are really as selfinvolved as the characters in her book. What really shines through is the strange storytelling and the laughs. Buy it on Amazon. Price: $26.60
ENGLAND: Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
You can't travel to Thomas Cromwell's England without a time machine, but reading Mantel's prizewinning novel is the next best thing. It will make you long to see the ancient buildings and green grass of the English countryside, most of which are still there. Buy it on Amazon. Price: $25.10
NANTUCKET: Here's to Us by Elin Hilderbrand
Elin Hilderbrand has built a writing career out of writing about her hometown island of Nantucket. Her latest book is Here's to Us, which, perhaps not surprisingly, is a great beach book. Buy it on Amazon. Price: $30.80
1.Which book has been produced into a film according to the text?
A. Here's to Us. B. Wolf Hall.
C. Beautiful Ruins. D. Where'd You Go, Bernadette.
2.What is the feature of the Where'd You Go, Bernadette?
A. Its low price. B. Its characters.
C. Its content about love. D. Its storytelling and laughs.
3.What are you inspired to do by reading Wolf Hall?
A. Broaden our eyes.
B. Appreciate the English countryside.
C. Know the foreign culture.
D. Experience the joy and sadness of the characters.
4.Why is Here's to Us suitable for reading on the beach?
A. Because it's about the author’s hometown island.
B. Because it needs a time machine.
C. Because it's about ancient buildings.
D. Because it exposes yourself to other cultures.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
It was many years ago. I was a young dad sitting on the couch reading a fairy tale to my little girl. She sat next to me with her head on my arm as I told the tale. When it came to the end I finished with those famous words: “And they lived happily ever after.” As I looked over to her with her wavy(鬈曲的), brown hair and big, innocent eyes I could see the smile on her face and I never wanted it to end. Then it dawned on me that the ending of the book was what I wanted for her. I wanted her to “live happily ever after”.
Still, deep in my heart I knew that this couldn't always be so. I knew that there would be times when her heart was broken. I knew there would be times when she cried in grief and I couldn't comfort her. I knew there would be times when all she felt was fear, sadness, sorrow, and despair. As I stroked her hair and smiled at her I hoped that those times would be brief and that she would have joy in her life more often than not. Living happily ever after, though, seemed out of the question.
It takes me a lot of years to realize that it is possible to live happily ever after. You just have to do it “one day at a time”. Happiness you see isn't some reward that you get at the end of your journey. Happiness isn't something that depends on what life you own. Happiness is something you create in your life choice by choice and day by day.
The truth is happiness comes when you love. Love is a gift from God. It is love that mends broken hearts. It is love that heals grief. It is love that gives us joy. Choose to “live happily ever after, one day at a time”.
1.What is the author's wish to his daughter?
A. Getting a good job in the future.
B. Making many friends in her school.
C. Traveling around the world in her life.
D. Having a happy life ever after.
2.What can we know from Paragraph 2?
A. Life's meaning consists in devotion.
B. Life is always full of difficulties and challenges.
C. There are times that life goes against us.
D. Everyone has the right to obtain happiness and freedom.
3.How to get happiness in author's opinion?
A. Reward yourself once a day.
B. Create it by yourself in your daily life.
C. Get rid of those disturbing things.
D. Take charge of your life independently.
4.What is the author's purpose in writing the passage?
A. To show the significance of love.
B. To describe a daughter's growth.
C. To introduce the definition of love.
D. To tell a young father's experience.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Photos of the moon are beautiful if taken well, but it can be very hard to get a picture of the moon that doesn't look blurry! In order to take a perfect picture of the moon, apart from a highquality camera, the associated equipment and the skills to set up your camera, you also need to pick a proper time and a good place.
Choose your favorite moon phase. The moon can be photographed in any phase except the new moon, which is not visible to Earth. The first quarter, half, and third quarter phases provide high contrast that allows you to see the craters(坑) in greater detail, while the full moon is a dramatic choice for a skyscraper. What phase you choose is up to your personal preference, but it's best to have a phase chosen before going out to photograph the moon.
Learn when the moon rises and sets. When the moon sets or rises, it is closer to the horizon, making it appear larger and closer. This makes it much easier to photograph! Check an almanac(年历) or a weather app for moon rising and setting times in your area.
Pick a clear night. Clouds, fog, and air pollution will blur your photographs. Check a weather app or watch the weather forecast before leaving for your session and while photographing. A clear night with low smog content and no rain is best for moon photography.
Choose a location away from direct light sources. The moon appears bright because it reflects the light of the sun, and additional light from streetlights, homes, and cars can make the moon appear duller and blurrier in pictures. It is fine if there is light in the distance, but be sure that you are not photographing close to another light source.
1.Which has the closest meaning to the underlined word “blurry”？
A. Unclear. B. Transparent.
C. Confusing. D. Ugly.
2.Why is the new moon not a perfect choice when taking a photo of the moon?
A. Because the new moon is not enjoyed by most people.
B. Because the new moon is visibly seen from the earth.
C. Because it appears at the earliest time of a month.
D. Because the new moon can't be photographed on Earth.
3.Which of the following is not a must to take a perfect photo of the moon?
A. A highquality camera. B. The skills to set up the camera.
C. A weather app. D. A suitable location.
4.What's the main idea of the passage?
A. How to select a camera for a perfect moon photo.
B. How to pick a time and place for a perfect moon photo.
C. What the necessary skills are to take a perfect moon photo.
D. Why the new moon is a bad choice for a perfect moon photo.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有一项是多余选项。
How to Overcome Challenges in Your Life
We all face tough and difficult challenges in life. To overcome challenges you need to have that “never quit” attitude in life. If you develop it, you'll overcome quite a bit.
Motivate yourself. Say “YES, I CAN.” The challenge should bring out the best of you in this situation. Slow it down, and think that process through.1. If you develop that mindset(心态), you'll get it done.
Stay calm and coolheaded. Remain calm when you're facing serious troubles and problems in life. You have to recollect yourself, and calm down. You can't solve problems when you're panicking. Take a deep breath, relax, and slow it down. Think things through calmly.
Let failure and fear fuel you in a positive way. Everyone fails at times. If you fail the first, second, or third time, don't give up.2.
Learn what made you fail and overcome these challenges.Simplify the challenge you're facing. Make the challenge easier than it is.Start by breaking it down into steps. As you get through each step, you develop more confidence and you believe you can get it done, and then you will overcome them.
3. To overcome a challenge, you have to believe you can really do it.You have to find out all the ways you can use to overcome it, and put them to full use with all your effort. It's our own mental stability that's the difficult part. When you do it mentally, you'll actually be able to do it.
A. Stay positive and confident.
B. Most people will avoid any challenge, because they're scared of failing.
C. Develop that confidence in saying there's no way you're going to fail at this.
D. Pick yourself up, and learn from why you've failed, and move on in a positive direction.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Todd Jones is a 15yearold student from Washington, D．C. In a chat room called Webfriends, he started talking to someone ______ to be a 13yearold junior high school student in Texas named Josh. For several weeks, they chatted online about their hobbies and quickly ______. Then Josh started telling Todd about his ______. He said that his father had lost his job and his grandmother was very ill. ______ money was urgently needed, he wondered if Todd could help. Feeling bad for his new friend, Todd transferred(转账) $50 to Josh's bank account.
Two weeks later, Josh asked Todd for $50 to help pay for school supplies like notebooks. ______， Todd sent the money. Over the next month, Josh asked Todd for money five times, for a total of $300. Gradually, Todd was beginning to feel ______ of his chat room friend. He turned to Bob Howard, a cybercrime specialist at the police department. After some checking, Howard discovered that Todd's chat room friend was not 13yearold Josh from Texas but 38yearold David Klein from New York. As it ______， Klein had made friends with more than twenty middle school students in different chat rooms, using a different ______ each time. By claiming to be poor or ill, Klein had ______ more than $3，000 from these students.
Howard urges everyone to be ______ when they visit chat rooms: “Never send money to someone you meet online or meet online friends in person.”
1.A. seeming B. claiming C. tending D. wishing
2.A. met B. got through C. bonded D. split up
3.A. family B. study C. dream D. outcome
4.A. Before B. Unless C. Once D. Since
5.A. Yet B. Again C. Altogether D. Hardly
6.A. unhappy B. worried C. frightened D. skeptical
7.A. turned out B. came across C. gave away D. broke out
8.A. voice B. relationship C. identity D. outline
9.A. withdrawn B. received C. offered D. stolen
10.A. careful B. sincere C. accurate D. simple
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
When I was a kid, I kept using a bike with training wheels. And I didn't______much, so, of course, I didn't learn how to______. One day I observed that my younger sister was getting closer to______ how to get rid of the assistance than I was. I couldn't let her______ me! Like an outofcontrol mad man, I grabbed(抓住) my bike, ______the training wheels, pushed it out, and pedaled(踩踏板) all over the neighborhood. I tried to stay near the______ as close as I could, so when I fell, I'd______ crash onto the lawn(草坪) instead of the street. After many shortlived______， I finally learned how to balance!
The process seemed______， since I was afraid of falling. I______ the fear which held me back and gathered the______ instead. I tried my best to fall as much as I might have to, to______ getting hurt, and to quickly get back on the bike and try again. There might be some pain and______， and if so, I'd get hurt and bleed and keep going. It took me probably less than an hour to master the basic skill.
What______ pushed me to set aside the fear and take action? Nothing but the feeling that I was______．My sister could ride without the training wheels while I couldn't. This feeling of ______ gave me a much needed kick. Using such pressure to motivate(激励) progress is ______. Go take action. Make the attempt. Fall. Get hurt. Get up and try again______ the very moment you create the______ results. Everything can be as ______ as riding a bike.
1.A. watch B. practice C. transport D. fall
2.A. park B. speed C. drive D. balance
3.A. figuring out B. deciding on C. looking into D. giving up
4.A. alarm B. assist C. beat D. judge
5.A. examined B. removed C. fixed D. adjusted
6.A. crossing B. handle C. street D. grass
7.A. unbelievably B. hopefully C. awkwardly D. slowly
8.A. attempts B. competitions C. discussions D. lessons
9.A. frightening B. amazing C. embarrassing D. satisfying
10.A. experienced B. canceled C. overcame D. collected
11.A. courage B. patience C. interest D. expectation
12.A. avoid B. regret C. prevent D. risk
13.A. pauses B. blood C. joy D. shock
14.A. easily B. gradually C. luckily D. exactly
15.A. giving in B. catching up C. falling behind D. standing out
16.A. disappointment B. confusion C. respect D. excitement
17.A. confident B. powerful C. negative D. harmful
18.A. while B. though C. since D. until
19.A. unexpected B. direct C. desired D. various
20.A. necessary B. useful C. easy D. complex
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式，并将答案转写到答题卡上。
John Allen, an American scientist once said, “The Internet is the world's 1.(large) library, but all the books in it are on the floor！” What he meant 2.(be) that the Internet is full of information but it can be difficult to find 3.you really need. The Internet has another 4.(advantage). Anyone can create a website, so you can find websites about whatever you can imagine. Unfortunately, a lot of what 5.(write) on them isn't always true! At the same time, the Internet provides many other things. On some websites, you can download music and films. They are usually very cheap and some are even free. On some other websites, you can connect with people 6. all over the world. And there are some great online shops, too.
It is true that the Internet 7.(change) the way we work and communicate so far. But we shouldn't depend on 8.too much. Some people are also afraid that 9.(surf) the Internet has taken the place of other healthier activities，10.(especial) for young people. Whether you love it or hate it, though, you'd better get used to it because it's right here to stay.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
下列句子中各有一处语言错误，请把错误改正，其他部分不得改动。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在右边横线上写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线(\)划掉，在右边横线上写出该词，也用斜线划掉。
修改：在错误的词下划一横线，并在右边横线上写出改正后的词。
1.Most early TV broadcasts were made using a system developing by John Logie Baird in the UK. ______
2.The Amish people vote on if they will accept it. ______________
3.Not only has aspirin proved vital for reducing fever and helping stop pain, but there are also other things that aspirin can help. ______________
4.One fortunate outcome of Internet is that it damages people’s ability to live normal lives. ___________
5.One theory explaining this phenomenon suggests that acupuncture blocks pain signals from reaching to the brain. _______________
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Dear Mum，
Today I went to a conference. In the conference, 1.两个学生就因特网的优缺点进行了辩论。They made diverse points about the Internet that I had never thought about before. For example, some experts think that 2.花过多的时间上网的后果就是很难建立社会联系。 They were also quite explicit about how heavy Internet users spend more time with their Internet friends than with their reallife friends from school and work. 3.This__is__another__drawback__of__the__Internet__that__alarms__me.They addressed good points of the Internet, as well. For example, with the Internet, uptodate information is only a click away. 4.We can also correspond with people in distant places. This is very important for disabled people who can't always leave their homes.
5.Both sides presented lots of statistics to support their arguments. My own judgement is that the Internet is beneficial. Otherwise, I would unable to write this email to you!
Love from your son，
Xiaokun
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定你是李华，你的美国朋友Tom听说在中国通过扫描二维码(scan QR code)就可以轻松实现移动支付(mobile payment)，感到不可思议。请你写封邮件告知移动支付在中国的相关情况。内容包括：
(1)在中国最流行，提供了便利；
(2)快捷且强大的功能：如买早餐、买地铁票；
(3)改变我们的生活，引领世界。
注意：(1)词数100左右；
(2)可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Last summer, two nineteenth-century cottages were rescued from remote farm fields in Montana, to be moved to an Art Deco building in San Francisco. The houses were made of wood. These cottages once housed early settlers as they worked the dry Montana soil; now they hold Twitter engineers.
The cottages could be an example of the industry’ s odd love affair with “low technology,” a concept associated with the natural world, and with old-school craftsmanship (手艺) that exists long before the Internet era. Low technology is not virtual (虚拟的) —so, to take advantage of it, Internet companies have had to get creative. The rescued wood cottages, fitted by hand in the late eighteen-hundreds, are an obvious example, but Twitter’s designs lie on the extreme end. Other companies are using a broader interpretation (阐释) of low technology that focuses on nature.
Amazon is building three glass spheres filled with trees, so that employees can “work and socialize in a more natural, park-like setting.” At Google’s office, an entire floor is carpeted in glass. Facebook’s second Menlo Park campus will have a rooftop park with a walking trail.
Olle Lundberg, the founder of Lundberg Design, has worked with many tech companies over the years. “We have lost the connection to the maker in our lives, and our tech engineers are the ones who feel impoverished (贫乏的) , because they’re surrounded by the digital world,” he says. “They’re looking for a way to regain their individual identity, and we’ve found that introducing real crafts is one way to do that.”
This craft based theory is rooted in history, William Morris, the English artist and writer, turned back to pre-industrial arts in the eighteen-sixties, just after the Industrial Revolution. The Arts and Crafts movement defined itself against machines. “Without creative human occupation, people became disconnected from life,” Morris said.
Research has shown that natural environments can restore(恢复) our mental capacities. In Japan, patients are encouraged to “forest-bathe,” taking walks through woods to lower their blood pressure.
These health benefits apply to the workplace as well. Rachel Kaplvin, a professor of environmental psychology, has spent years researching the restorative effects of natural environment. Her research found that workers with access to nature at the office—even simple views of trees and flowers—felt their jobs were less stressful and more satisfying. If low-tech offices can potentially nourish the brains and improve the mental health of employees then, fine, bring on the cottages.
1.The writer mentions the two nineteenth-century cottages to show that ________.
A. Twitter is having a hard time
B. old cottages are in need of protection
C. early settlers once suffered from a dry climate in Montana
D. Internet companies have rediscovered the benefits of low technology
2.Low technology is regarded as something that _______.
A. is related to nature B. is out of date today
C. consumes too much energy D. exists in the virtual world
3.The main idea of Paragraph 5 is that human beings ________.
A. have destroyed many pre-industrial arts
B. have a tradition of valuing arts and crafts
C. can become intelligent by learning history
D. can regain their individual identity by using machines
4.The writer’s attitude to “low technology” can best be described as ________.
A. positive B. defensive C. cautious D. doubtful
5.What might be the best title for the passage?
A. Past Glories, Future Dreams
B. The Virtual World, the Real Challenge
C. High-tech Companies, Low-tech Offices
D. The More Craftsmanship, the Less Creativity
难度: 中等查看答案及解析