Lainey finished third grade. She had good grades and could read   (1)   grade level, but she did not like to read.  On a family car trip, her Aunt Dede pulled out a copy of Harry Potter, as a surprise for her    (2)  .  But Lainey took one look at it,   (3)  her eyes, and said, “Borrrring!”

Aunt Dede, a teacher, had read the book to her students,  and they loved it.   (4)  the youngest children in the class were   (5)  by the story. They  (6)   with great interest and then   (7)   joined in grand conversations about Harry`s adventures.

“How can you say it’s   (8)  ? Have you read it? ” asked Aunt Dede.

“No, it’s too long and it doesn’t have any  (9)  .” complained Lainey.

“Oh, that’s where you are   (10)  ; there are lots of pictures. Every page is full of pictures; you just have to read the words to  (11)  them. It’s like magic.”

“Nice try , Aunt Dede,”  Lainey replied  (12)  from the back seat.

Another  (13)   was in order. “Well, if you don’t want to read it, give it  (14)   . Maybe your mom would    (15)   hearing the story.” The book sailed through the air to Aunt Dede and she began to read it aloud. By the end of the first chapter,  (16)   were coming from the back seat: “Please read a little   (17)  .”

Lainey is an example of an  (18)  reader. As shown here, Lainey can become  (19)  about reading when  (20)  with literature on topics that interest her, and when the people around her model involvement in the reading process.

  Ted Schredd doesn't like cars. He wants people to stop  (1)   because cars make the air dirty. Ted had a(n)   (2)  . He said, “I'm going to cycle (骑自行车) around North America. I want to show everyone that cycling is a  (3)   way to get around. If more people ride bikes, the air will be  (4)  .”

He left his   (5)   with $160 in his pocket. When he  (6)   San Diego, he met another cyclist. The cyclist  (7)   Ted to speak at a big meeting about the  (8)  . He said, “We'll buy you a ticket to Texas.” Two hours later, Ted was on a plane to the environmental conference and to a big  (9)  !

While he was at the conference, he met Deanna. It was  (10)   at first sight! They talked for six hours. The next day, Ted asked Deanna to  (11)   the trip with him. Deanna said yes, and was on the road with Ted 20 days later!

“It was  (12)   at first,” said Deanna. “Ted got up  (13)   every morning, around 6:00 a.m., but I wanted to sleep until noon.” After a few days, they started having fun.  (14)   they cycled from Florida to Montreal and then back to Vancouver, every day was  (15)  . They had free meals in many restaurants, and  (16)   in people's backyards during the night.  (17)  , they made many new friends on the way.

On their way back to Vancouver, they  (18)   in Edmonton to visit Ted's parents. During the stopover, they got  (19)  . People wished them to grow old and happy together. They now want to  (20)   a book about the trip. “We want people to know that you can be an environmentalist and still have fun,” Schredd said.

A Race against Death

It was a cold January in 1925 in North Alaska. The town was cut off from the rest of the world due to heavy snow.

On the 20th of that month, Dr. Welch   (1)  a Sick boy, Billy, and knew he had diphtheria, a deadly infectious (传染的) disease mainly affecting children. The children of Nome would be   (2)   if it struck the town. Dr. Welch needed medicine as soon as possible to stop other kids from getting sick.   (3)  , the closest supply was over 1,000 miles away, in Anchorage.

How could the medicine get to Nome? The town’s  (4)  was already full of ice, so it couldn`t come by ship. Cars and horses couldn’t travel on the  (5)  roads. Jet airplanes and big trucks didn`t exist yet.

     (6)   January 26, Billy and three other children had died. Twenty more were   (7)  . Nome`s town officials came up with a(n)  (8)   . They would have the medicine sent by  (9)  from Anchorage to Nenana. From there, dogsled(狗拉雪橇)drivers—known as “mushers”—would   (10)  it to Nome in a relay(接力).

The race began on January 27. The first musher, Shannon, picked up the medicine from the train at Nenana and rode all night.  (11)  he handed the medicine to the next musher, Shannon`s face was black from the extreme cold.

On January 31，a musher named Seppala had to  (12)  a frozen body of water called Norton Sound. It was the most   (13)  part of the journey. Norton Sound was covered with ice, which could sometimes break up without warning. If that happened, Seppala might fall into the icy water below. He would    (14)  ,and so would the sick children of Nome. But Seppala made it across.

   A huge snowstorm hit on February 1. A musher named Kaasen had to brave this storm. At one point, huge piles of snow blocked his   (15)  . He had to leave the trail (雪橇痕迹)to get around them. Conditions were so bad that it was impossible for him to   (16)  the trail again. The only hope was Balto, Kaasen’s lead dog. Balto put his nose to the ground,   (17)  to find the smell of other dogs that had traveled on the trail. If Balto failed, it would mean disaster for Nome. The minutes passed by. Suddenly, Balto began to  (18)  .He had found the trail

   At 5:30 am on February 2, Kaasen and his dog  (19)  in Nome. Within minutes, Dr.Welch had the medicine. He quickly gave it to the sick children. All of them recoverd.

   Nome had been  (20)  .

I was going to visit Abdelatif, a young man I’d worked with. He’d been  (1)  me to visit him, and since he had no   (2)  ，he’d written down his address and told me to just   (3)  —his mother and sisters were   (4)   at home.   (5)  ，the address Abdelatif had written for me was hard to understand. At that time, how I wished he had had a telephone! With the help of a local taxi driver I was driven to a house where I met a girl who didn’t   (6)  Abdelatif at all.

I waited in the yard while the sister went in and returned   (7)   by her mother, sisters, all of whom greeted me with warmth. The mother told me Abdelatif was away on business, but would be home soon. I sat in the living room,   (8)  sweet tea and eating sugar cookies,   (9)   the family members took turns sitting with me and making polite   (10)  . But I was again   (11)   by the fact that   (12)   of them looked a thing like my friend. I was   (13)   to find out whether he was adopted.

  (14)   two hours had passed with no sign of Abdelatif, I heard the words I had been waiting for. “Please，” said the mother, “Abdelatif is here.” I followed the mother into a room and a young man came forward to shake my hands with a(n)  (15)   expression on his face. I said “I’ve got the wrong Abdelatif. I’m so   (16)  ．”

 For a second no one said anything, and I wished I could   (17)   right here on the spot. Then the sister   (18)  heartily, “It’s no problem！” “Yes，” the mother joined in. “It doesn’t matter at all. Won’t you stay for dinner, please？” I was so moved by them that tears   (19)   to my eyes. I know sometimes strangers can bring a beautiful surprise and simple   (20)   that opens my heart.

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

It was a bright sunny day, and the terrible experience happened when I was studying in Bangalore. One day, I got a call from my mom that my brotherˈs __  (1)  __ was fixed and they were arranging the wedding ceremony in the next few days.My __  (2)  __ was pretty far. So the next thing I was __  (3)  __ to do was to book my __  (4)  __ ticket as there was no direct flight to my hometown. The __  (5)  __ was done by an agent in my neighborhood. I paid the whole amount __  (6)  __ But when the day approached the __  (7)  __ disappeared, leaving me without the train ticket, and thus __  (8)  __ all my travel plan.

But as it is said, once you face such __  (9)  __ situations, you realize your inner strength. I __  (10)  __ decided I would complete my whole journey by bus. Without further __  (11)  __，I took a bus to the first city stop. The next bus was again not __  (12)  __ —it was 8 hours to a city near my hometown, where my aunt lived. They were also going to __1  (13)  __ my brotherˈs wedding ceremony. So I called them and __  (14)  __ them to accommodate me. They __  (15)  __ Half the battle was won.

Then next day, I was just a few hours from my hometown. When my auntˈs family and I were boarding our car, my __  (16)  __  asked me to switch places with her.

The journey continued. We were trying to overtake(超越) another car when __  (17)  ____ a truck appeared in front of us and we went directly head on in front of it. We __  (18)  __ with the truck. In this accident, almost everyone in our car was __  (19)  __ Fortunately, I didnˈt have any injury, __  (20)  __ my cousin who switched places with me was seriously injured!

There was a handful of common clay in the river bank. But it had    (1)    thoughts of its own value, and wonderful dreams of the great place it was to    (2)    in the world when the time came for its virtues to be   (3 )       One day the clay was carried far away in a cart     (4)    a stony road.  But it was not    (5)   ， for it said to itself: “This is necessary.  The path to glory is always   ( 6 )   Now I am on my way to play a great part in the world.”
      But the hard journey was     (7)   ， compared with the suffering after it.  The clay was putinto a container and mixed and beaten.  It seemed almost    8  .  But there was   ( 9)     in the thought that something very noble was   (10)   coming out of all this trouble.  The clay felt sure that, if it could only wait long enough, a wonderful reward was    (11)    for it. 
      Then it was put upon a   (12)   turning wheel, and turned around until it seemed as if it must fly into a thousand pieces.  A strange power pressed and molded it, and through all the dizziness and pain it felt that it was taking a new    (13 )  .
      Then an unknown hand put it into an oven, and     (14)    fires were burning about it.  But the clay held itself together, in the confidence of a great future. 
      At last the baking was finished.  The clay was    (15)    upon a board, in the cool air.  The suffering was passed.  The reward was at hand. 
      Then the clay saw the reward of all its     (16)    and pain，—a common flower­pot, straight and ugly.  It felt that it was not    (17)    for a king's house, nor for a palace of art.  Many days it passed in     (18)    .
      But presently it was set in a greenhouse, where the sunlight fell warm upon it, and day by day as it waited, something was changing within it—a new hope.  Still it was     (19)   ， not knowing what the new hope meant. 
      But one day the clay was carried into a great church.  All the people looked towards it because it carried a royal lily as white as snow, which was   (20)     in its heart.  Now it knew what the hope is!
      Then the clay was content, because, though an earthen pot, it held so great a treasure. 

In winter, I often walk in a nearby park during lunch time. The park is quiet, as   (1)  peoplehave the time to enjoy the winter sun on a weekday. The two people that are often seen are a middle-aged father and his little daughter   (2)   her school uniform. The father looks like he has all the time in the world－he   (3)   to hurry along the jogging path; instead he matches his pace with  (4)  of the little girl. Sometimes they are lying   (5)   in the sun, laughing and chatting.

The man certainly doesn’t look  (6)  . What sort of job can he have that gives him the flexibility to walk in the park in the middle of the day?

And today, we   (7)   sat on the rocks and had a little chat. “You   (8)   enjoy the park very much to come here so often,” I said. The father nodded. “How” I asked curiously, “do you   (9)   to leave your office to be with your daughter every day?”

The story that the father, Satyendra Dugbey, told me showed me how, if we   (10)   under the surface, even ordinary people’s life can be quite  (11)  .

“I used to be no different from any of those thousands of office workers   (12)   to work every day,” he began. His wife and he were well   (13)   but rarely managed time off for leisure.

Everything changed after an accident   (14)   Dugbey was hit by a car. As he lay in hospital, terrifying thoughts   (15)   his mind. “How would my daughter, then only four, remember me if I died that day?” “Would my daughter have   (16)   of being with her father?”

The moment he recovered and went back to work, Dugbey took time off at lunch,  (17)   her daughter from school which was just next door to his working place, and took her to the park.

It was actually a very small change he’d made, he said, but it amazed him every day to see the difference it   (18)   to his life. “It brings me so much   (19)   that I can’t believe why others haven’t thought of doing the same thing.” he said simply.

I got up to continue my   (20)   walk, unexpectedly happy after his story.

My children and I were finishing the last minute preparations for Kathy`s birthday celebration. At one store we had bought a   (1)   balloon with Kathy`s favorite character design on it. We had to make one more stop at another store to complete our   (2)  . I sent my older daughter and her little brother out to our   (3)   while my other daughter and I were   (4)   at the cashier line.

A very short time later, my older daughter with little brother came running back into the store; upset that Kathy`s birthday balloon had   (5)   while they trying to get into the car. I was tired from   (6)  , but I sent them back to the vehicle   (7)   them not to worry because we would get Kathy another   (8)  . I paid for our purchases all the while trying to think of the most expedient place to   (9)   another balloon.

As Kathy and I   (10)   our car a lady with   (11)   face came up to us. She   (12)   some folded bills in my hand. She   (13)   to me that she had seen what had happened and did not   (14)   my older daughter or my younger daughter to be   (15)   at the loss of the balloon.

I thanked her for kindness and   (16)   to give her the money back; as it was not a   (17)   to get another balloon. But she said, “I   (18)   children and I like to see them be happy.” I was overwhelmed (使不知所措) by the   (19)   of a total stranger that my daughters and I hugged the lady   (20)   her for kindness. She left so quickly that I was unable to even ask her name. Finally, I looked in my hand and what I found was not just a single one dollar bill but four one dollar bills.

In the morning, Slim got up and prepared breakfast for his wife as usual. Nicole, his wife was listening to music in the bedroom.　21 , he felt that his body was shaking. Slim had the　22　response that there was an earthquake! He　23　quickly, “Dear, earthquake! Go to the toilet! ” Nicole heard the shouting,　24　the first aid box quickly and ran into the toilet. The house was　25　even more dramatically.

Bathroom was the next door to the kitchen. Slim picked up a kitchen　26　and two pieces of bread outside the kitchen. Slim tried to run along the wall to help Nicole.　27　, it got　28　suddenly with an explosion. The house　29　down and many things fell from above. Nicole was quickly buried in　30　. She felt breathing very difficult. She tried to stand up, but　31　.

34　! He probably fainted. Nicole kept saying his name and she finally heard a response. Two people encouraged and　35　each other. They knew that there must be a way to　36　.

　　Slim found that they were close and were　37　by the fallen stones and some powder. He started to dig with the kitchen knife. He felt 　38　from his fingers. Finally, he removed the last piece of larger stones. Slim touched Nicole’s one hand, then dug the　39　stones of her body. Finally, Nicole had a　40　breathing slowly. Two people sat on the ground and hugged together.

We were a group of people who took a bus to work every day. One of the  (1)   was a small old man who took the bus to the health center every morning. He always chose to  (2)   behind the driver. No one ever paid much  (3)   to him.

But one July morning he said good morning to the driver and  (4)   at others. The driver nodded. The rest of us were  (5)   as usual.

The next day, the old man got on the bus and said in a loud voice, “A very good  (6)   to you all!” Some of us looked up,  (7)  , and said, “Good morning!” From then on he said good morning to us every day and we began to  (8)  to each other.

One morning he had some flowers in his hand. The driver turned around  (9)   and asked, “Are these for me, Charlie?” We never got to know his name was really “Charlie”,  (10)   he waved (挥动) the flowers and said  (11)  .People laughed. Every morning after that Charlie always  (12)   a flower.

Until one morning Charlie wasn’t  (13)   at his usual stop. And he wasn’t there the next day and the day after that. What might have  (14)   to him? When we came nearer to the health centre, a woman  (15)   the driver to wait a moment. We all held our  (16)   when she went to the door.

She said she knew  (17)   we were talking about. The elderly gentleman was sick. They  (18)   him back on Monday.

The next Monday when Charlie got on the bus, all of us who he had brought  (19)   to in that summer sat with a  (20)   in our hands.