In 2014, the world paused to remember a cultural giant on April 17. Nobel Prize winning writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez died on that day at the age of 87.

Garcia Marquez was born in Colombia (哥倫比亞), but lived in Mexico for more than 30 years. He is one of the 20th century’s most famous writers. He is best known for his novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude (《百年孤獨(dú)》). It tells the story of a family over several generations. The story is a metaphor (暗喻) for the development of Colombia since the 19th century. The novel has sold about 50 million copies.

He wrote in a style called “magical realism (魔幻現(xiàn)實(shí)主義)” This style blends (融合) fantasy and reality. In such works, people live regular lives during a certain period of time in history. But meanwhile, magical things happen to them.

In Garcia Marquez’s works, a child is born with a pig’s tail, and a couple finds an old man with big wings in their courtyard. He said he was inspired by childhood stories told by his grandmother. She believed that everything was possible. She often told him stories about ghosts in their house.

But his works are quite serious. He wrote during a period when much of Latin America was suffering from a civil war. Everyday life in Colombia was filled with chaos (混亂). That’s why magical realism works well.

【1】Where was Garcia Marquez born?

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【2】What is he famous for?

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【3】Did the novel One Hundred Years of Solitude sell well?

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【4】What is his writing style called?

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【5】Who influenced his writing style?

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Everyone must have given gifts to others. Do you know that the tradition of giving gifts didn’t start with the modem holidays we celebrate?【1】.

In many countries, gifts were traditionally wrapped (包裹). If gifts weren’t wrapped, much of the fun would be gone. 【2】, the surprise would be lost. So the wish to hid the gift led people to wrap their gifts. Historians believed wrapping gifts in paper probably started not long after paper was invented thousands of years ago.

【3】. More than 100 years ago, gifts were usually wrapped in heavy brown paper. Before that, cloth was often used. With the development of technology, wrapping paper was produced in the early 1900s. However, it wasn’t as easy to wrap gifts as it is today. That’s because adhesive tape (膠帶）wasn’t invented until 1928.

Now lots of waste was produced over the holidays because of wrapping paper. To solve the problem, some people carefully open gifts so that the wrapping paper can be used again. 【4】. And some homemade wrapping paper, which is treasured as much as the gift itself.

A. It is fun for receivers to guess what the gift is

B. If the receivers could see what the gift was at once

C. Many ancient people celebrated holidays by exchanging gifts

D. Some people use special gift bags instead of wrapping paper

E. But wrapping paper like what we use today was a recent invention

A. It is fun for receivers to guess what the gift is

B. If the receivers could see what the gift was at once

C. Many ancient people celebrated holidays by exchanging gifts

D. Some people use special gift bags instead of wrapping paper

E. But wrapping paper like what we use today was a recent invention

In October, a job-hunting website Zhaopin.com issued a report after surveying people who work fitness coach and make up artist. Most of the jobs pay well, with one in three workers earning more than 8,000 yuan a month. The top-paying job is vet-- about 29 percent of these animal doctors earn over 20,000 yuan per month.

These workers’ educational background is also impressive (令人印象深刻的). Over 60 percent of the surveyed workers have a college degree (學(xué)位) or above, the report says. Most of the workers said they chose their jobs out of love and interest in the area. Many of the jobs are no longer specific to one gender. For example, the report found that one-third of child care workers are men. These positions used to be filled almost only by women.

Many of these jobs are in the service industry. Economic (經(jīng)濟(jì)的) development means people have more money to spend and are in greater need of high-quality services China News Service noted. For example, more people have started to raise pets. Pet owners will spend over 5,000 yuan per pet this year, an increase of 15 percent from 2018, Xinhua reported. The growing demand for animal care, therefore, has encouraged more people to become veterinarians (獸醫(yī)).

【1】What does the report issued by Zhaopin.com show?

A. Most people still prefer to work as doctors or lawyers.

B. There are many new job choices these days.

C. There are 800 different jobs in major Chinese cities.

【2】Which job has the best pay according to the survey?

A. Veterinarian.B. Fitness coach.C. Make-up artist.

【3】Why are there many new jobs in the service industry?

A. Because people need more high-quality services.

B. Because they require less skill and knowledge.

C. Because there are no gender-differences in this industry.

【4】Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A. Most of the workers chose their jobs out of love and interest in the area.

B. More people have started to raise pets.

C. Women will be replaced by men in the child care industry.

【5】What can we infer from the story?

A. Finding a job in big cities has become easier in recent years.

B. Other new jobs may appear with people's future demands.

C. College degrees are a must for working in cities.

“I was teaching the class and my throat began to close,” Kenser said. “I was having an asthma attack. The students were watching and I knew I had to get to my desk.” At her desk was her bag with an inhaler (吸入器). However, Kenser never made it to her desk. She passed out, lying on the floor.

“I was starting to get worried,” said Brendon Garman, the young hero. He ran to the desk quickly, took the inhaler out of the bag and gave it to his teacher.

Brendon’s family are very proud of him. His mother and teachers have said something that makes this young hero even more amazing. Brendon has autism (自閉癥) and he has difficulty communicating with others.

When asked how he knew what to do to save his teacher, Brendon said he knew it from Are We There Yet. “If hadn’t seen that movie. I wouldn’t have known what to do,” said Brendon.

“I went to the doctor and he said 5,000 people die from the things that happened that day,” said Kenser. “Brendon was really calm at that time. Without him, I wouldn’t be here now.”

【1】Why did Kenser try to get to her desk?

A. Because she wanted to sit down.

B. Because she wanted to call a doctor.

C. Because she wanted to get her inhaler.

【2】What does the underlined phrase “passed out” mean in Chinese?

A. 昏厥B. 傳遞C. 出去

【3】What did Brendon do to save his teacher?

A. He called his mother for help.

B. He gave the inhaler to his teacher.

C. He went out quickly and got help.

【4】Are We There Yet, mentioned in Paragraph 5 is ________.

A. a songB. medical bookC. a movie

【5】What’s the best title for the passage?

A. A Kid Hero Saved His Teacher.

B. Kids with Autism Are Amazing.

C. Learning First Aid Is Important.

Online Courses in Creative Writing

Do interesting ideas always flood in your head? Are you looking for a way to express your feelings? Then join the Writers Club where you can have the chance to work on new writing, finish personal writing projects, and help others review their works. Mr. Mitchell wants to work with students who are crazy about writing and exploring ideas.

Time and place: Every other Tuesday from 2:30-3:30

Contact Mr. Mitchell: Brian-Mitchell@scusd.edu

Online Courses in Creative Writing

Do interesting ideas always flood in your head? Are you looking for a way to express your feelings? Then join the Writers Club where you can have the chance to work on new writing, finish personal writing projects, and help others review their works. Mr. Mitchell wants to work with students who are crazy about writing and exploring ideas.

Time and place: Every other Tuesday from 2:30-3:30

Contact Mr. Mitchell: Brian-Mitchell@scusd.edu

【1】What can you do in the Writers Club?

A. Meet famous writers.

B. Help others to review their writings.

C. Shout out your feelings.

【2】How long does a lesson last?

A. For one hour.

B. For two hours.

C. For three and a half hours.

【3】How can you contact Mr. Mitchell?

A. By making a phone call.

B. By sending an e-mail.

C. By leaving a note.

【1】Who can join Sunshine Rock Band?

A. A guitar lover aged 15B. A music player aged 20C. A singer aged 30

【2】If you want to teach children to swim, you should ________.

A. have no experience in training

B. be under 30

C. love children

One very cold wet night at about 3:30 a.m., there was a ______ on the front door of our house. A young man, wet from head to toe, explained that he had ______ out of petrol (汽油) and left his pregnant (懷孕) wife and his two children ______ in the car. He said that he would hitchhike (搭便車) back.

Once I had ______ a can with petrol, I took him back to his car. When we got there, his 2-year-old and 4-year-old children were both crying. I invited them to my house. I had turned the heater on in the roadhouse ______ I left, so when we went in, it was nice and warm. And then I prepared bread and butter for the ______. and hot chocolate for the adults.

It was about 5 a.m. before they left. The young fellow asked me ______ he owed me and I told him that the petrol pump (加油泵) had shown $15.

About a month later, I ______ a letter from Interstate, a large bus company that we had been trying to get to stop off at our roadhouse for a long time. It ______ that the young fellow was its general manager.

In his letter, he thanked me again and informed me that, from then on, all their ______ would stop at my service station. In this case, a little bit of kindness was rewarded (報(bào)答) with a huge amount of benefits (益處).

【1】A. signB. knockC. noise

【2】A. gotB. stayedC. run

【3】A. awayB. behindC. off

【4】A. filledB. dealtC. played

【5】A. onceB. sinceC. before

【6】A. childrenB. wifeC. man

【7】A. how manyB. how longC. how much

【8】A. lookB. receivedC. accepted

【9】A. turned upB. turned aroundC. turned out

【10】A. lettersB. childrenC. buses

--- Every coin has two sides. We need to use it wisely.

A. so; whichB. so; thatC. such; that

--- Sure. Go along this street and turn left. It’s on your right.

A. when I can get to the bookstore

B. how can I got to the bookstore

C. how I can get to the bookstore

--- No, it ________ be him. He is holding a meeting in the office now.

A. must; mustn’tB. must; can’tC. can; needn’t