Amazon just released its list of the 10 best-selling books of 2014，and chances all you’ve already seen people reading them on the train．It's not too late to read—or reread—the bestsellers of the year．The following are the top four of them．

“The Invention of Wings”by Sue Monk Kid

 Set in the south in the early 1800s，this Oprah Book Club book follows the complicated relationship between Handful，a slave，and Sarah，her owner，as they grow up together from childhood．Their confusing friendship，in the face of politics and societal norms，becomes a beautiful and difficult thing to watch as it changes over time．

“Gray Mountain”by John Grisham

When the economic recession(萧条)causes Samantha Kofer to lose her Wall Street law firm job．she takes a job at a legal aid clinic in Virginia until she can hopefully get back to big law．But while her new job，for the first time，puts her front and center in the court room，it also puts her in terrible danger．

“All the Light We Cannot See”by Anthony Doerr

This National Book Award Finalist follows both Marie—Laure，a blind French girl living with her father during World War II，and Werner，a German orphan with a skill for building and  fixing radios．As their paths cross，this moving story will question how life and art are influenced by war．   

“Twenty Seconds Ago(Jack Reacher，#19)”by Lee Child

After years of being out of the Army，Jack Reacher is pulled back into service at the CIA and State Department after someone tried to shoot the president of France．In Child’s latest Jack Reacher installment(系列丛书)，Reacher finds himself face to face with all old enemy and old memories．

25．If you prefer emotional(情感)stories，you’ll choose _______________.

A．The Invention of Wings and Gray Mountain

B．All the Light We Cannot See and Twenty Seconds Ago

C．The Invention of Wings and All the Light We Cannot See

D．Twenty Seconds Ago and Gray Mountain

26．What is Samantha Kofer?

A．A lawyer．    b．A doctor．    C．A merchant．      D．An official．

27．Which book has won the top honor?

A．The Invention of Wings           B．All the Light We Cannot See

C．Gray Mountain                   D．Twenty Seconds Ago

28．What type of writing is this text?

A．A test report．           B．An announcement.

C．A book review．    D．Introduction of books．

The Man Booker Prize for Fiction is awarded for a novel written by a writer from the Commonwealth or the Republic of Ireland and it aims to represent the very best in contemporary fiction. The prize was originally called the Booker-McConnell Prize, which was the name of the company that sponsored it, though it was better-known as simply the ‘Booker Prize’. In 2002, the Man Group became the sponsor and they chose the new name, keeping ‘Booker’.

Publishers can submit books for consideration for the prize, but the judges can also ask for books to be submitted that they think should be included. Firstly, the Advisory Committee gives advice if there have been any changes to the rules for the prize and selects the people who will judge the books. The judging panel changes every year and usually a person is only a judge once.

Great efforts are made to ensure that the judging panel is balanced in terms of gender(性别) and professions within the industry, so that a writer, a critic, an editor and an academic are chosen along with a well-known person from wider society. However, when the panel of judges has been decided, they are left to make their own decisions. Meanwhile, the prize sponsor has no further right to take part in any more.

The Man Booker judges include critics, writers and academics to maintain the consistent quality of the prize and its influence is such that the winner will almost certainly see the sales increase considerably, in addition to the￡50,000 that comes with the prize.

13. Who can submit books to the prize?

A. Judges.     B. Writers.

C. Readers.    D. Sponsors.

14. Why is the prize named the Man Booker Prize?

A. Because the prize is given to writers from the Commonwealth.

B. Because the prize was known as simply the ‘Booker Prize’.

C. Because the prize is sponsored by the Man Group and they kept the name.

D. Because the prize is aimed to award the very best contemporary fiction.

15. Which task can be done by the Advisory Committee?

A. Changing the rules for the prize on their own.

B. Selecting the judging committee.

C. Making decisions on who is the winner.

D. Submitting books for consideration for the prize.

16. The consistent quality of the prizes is guaranteed by ________.

A. the prize money

B. the gender of the judges

C. the make-up of the panel of judges

D. the increase in sales of the winner

 --- Why hasn’t Steve contacted us up to now? ______ anything have happened to him?

   --- I’m not sure, but I guess something ______.

  A. Must ; may           B. Could ; might            C. May ; must have      D. Can ; may have

The British Isles are surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west，and ________.

A．the North Sea is to the east         B．the North Sea to the east

C．to the east is the North Sea        D．to the east the North Sea

Secret codes (密码)keep messages private。Banks, companies, and government agencies use secret codes in doing business, especially when information is sent by computer.

   People have used secret codes for thousands of years. _31_ Code breaking never lags(落后) far behind code making. The science of creating and reading coded messages is called cryptography.

   There are three main types of cryptography. _32_ For example, the first letters of “My elephant eats too many eels” Spell out the hidden message “Meet me.”

_33_ You might represent each letter with a number, For example, Let’s number the letters of the alphabet, in order, from 1 to 26. If we substitute a number for each letter, the message “Meet me” would read “13 5 20 13 5.”

   A code uses symbols to replace words, phrases, or sentences. To read the message of a real code, you must have a code book. _34  For example, “bridge” might stand for “meet” and “out” might stand for “me.” The message “bridge out” would actually mean “Meet me.” _35_ However, it is also hard to keep a code book secret for long. So codes must be changed frequently.

A. It is very hard to break a code without the code book.
B. In any language, some letters are used more than others.
C. Only people who know the keyword can read the message.
D. As long as there have been codes, people have tried to break 

them.
E. You can hide a message by having the first letters of each 

word   spell it out.
F. With a code book, you might write down words that would stand 

for other words.
G. Another way to hide a message is to use symbols to stand for 

specific letters of the alphabet.

John worked hard at his lessons and gained _____to a famous university last year.

A. permission             B. admission

C. agreement              D. freedom

One day a rich man took his son on a trip to the country. He wanted to show his son how the poor lived so he could be thankful   61   his wealth.

They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of   62   would be considered a poor family.

On their return the father asked his son    63   (explain) what he had learnt. The boy, who had remained silent and deep in thought on the journey home,   64   (reply) in a way that shocked his father.

The boy said he wanted to become a farmer. He envied the farmers who had the beautiful night stars to give them light    65   his family had only expensive lanterns. His wish to have a farm   66   he could go swimming in an endless river instead of the garden pool in their home. Finally he asked his father, "What makes us safer, large walls around our house   67   friends that will protect us?"

The boy finished by saying, "  68   the trip I thought we were rich but today I learnt who is  69   (true) rich. "With this the boy got up and walked away, leaving his father sitting on their comfortable sofa, totally  70  (speech).

_{George Gershwin，born in 1898，was one of America’s greatest composers．He published his first song when he was eighteen years old．During the next twenty years he wrote more than five hundred songs．}

_{Many of Gershwin’s songs were first written for musical plays performed in theatres in New York City．These plays were a popular form of entertainment in the 1920s and 1930s．Many of his songs have remained popular as ever．Over the years they have been sung and played in every possible way—from jazz to country．}

_{In the 1920s there was a debate in the United States about jazz music．Could jazz，some people asked，be considered serious music? In 1924 jazz musician and orchestra leader Paul Whiteman decided to organize a special concert to show that jazz was serious music．Gershwin agreed to compose something for the concert before he realized he had just a few weeks to do it．And in that short time，he composed a piece for piano and orchestra which he called Rhapsody in Blue．Gershwin himself played the piano at the concert．The audience were thrilled when they heard his music．　　It made him world-famous and showed that jazz music could be both serious and popular．}

_{In 1928，Gershwin went to Paris．He applied to study composition(作曲)with the well-known musician Nadia Boulanger，but she rejected him．She was afraid that classical study would ruin his jazz-influenced style．While there，Gershwin wrote An American in Paris．When it was first performed，critics(评论家)were divided over the music．Some called it happy and full of life，to others it was silly and boring．　 　　But it quickly became popular in Europe and the United States．It still remains one of his most famous works．}

_{George Gershwin died in 1937，just days after doctors learned he had brain cancer．He was only thirty-nine years old．Newspapers all over the world reported his death on their front pages．People mourned the loss of the man and all the music he might have still written．}

_{1．Many of Gershwin’s musical works were　　　　．}

_{A．written about New Yorkers}

_{B．composed for Paul Whiteman}

_{C．played mainly in the countryside}

_{D．performed in various ways}

_{2．What did Gershwin do during his stay in Paris?}

_{A．He created one of his best works．}

_{B．He studied with Nadia Boulanger．}

_{C．He argued with French critics．}

_{D．He changed his music style．}

_{3．What do we learn from the last paragraph?}

_{A．Many of Gershwin’s works were lost．}

_{B．The death of Gershwin was widely reported．}

_{C．A concert was held in memory of Gershwin．}

_{D．Brain cancer research started after Gershwin’s death．}

_{4．Which of the following best describes Gershwin?}

_{A．Talented and productive．}

_{B．Serious and boring．}

_{C．Popular and unhappy．}

_{D．Friendly and honest．}

 My _________(本国的)language is Chinese.

短文改错

假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处，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（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：1.每处错误及其修改均限一词。

2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

Dear Robert,

Thank for your letter of May 12^th . How glad I was when I get it. I’d be very happy to be your pen friends. Now allow me introduce myself to you. I’m a boy student aged seventeen, study in Senior Three of Binhai High School. I’m a monitor of my class. I am about to take the National Matriculation Entrance Examination after twenty days, that is, between June 7 and 8. You know. I want very much to be a doctor working for poor peasants that I try to make fully use of every hour and study far into the night every day.

Best wishes！ 

                                                   Yours truly,

                                                      Bob

    During the past Spring Festival, many children may have received red packets from their families. But Xing Pu, a 40-year-old economist, is asking the government to give red packets to every Chinese citizen.

    Xing suggested the government give out 1,000 yuan to each Chinese since the government income has increased rapidly in recent years. He said his suggestion would allow everyone to directly enjoy the fruits of the country's economic success, help the lower-income groups deal with rising prices and increase consumption around the country.

    Recent years we have seen the government carry out a series of pro-poor() and pro-rural() policies, including increasing spending on public health care and calling off the agricultural tax. But the lower-income group still needs more help while being hit hard by an 11-year high in prices.

    Xing said while making the draft, he has borrowed many ideas from practices in countries like the Unites States and Singapore, whose governments offered cash handouts() to their citizens earlier this year as the result of a surplus in government income. As for in China, "We can even encourage the rich to donate their 1, 000 yuan red packets to the poor," said Xing.

    Although Xing's suggestion has gained wide support among ordinary Chinese on the Internet, many other economists criticized it as unpractical. Even Xing himself admitted he made the suggestion without any careful calculation. But they agreed with Xing's point that the growing economic pie should be shared among the people.

    "To better use the increase of money, handing out money is not a solution that holds good for all time. It could be better to improve the public service or cut the price of energy use in daily life," said Qiao Xinsheng, an economic professor.

32. Xing Pu suggested that the government give out one thousand yuan to each Chinese because ________.

A. the poor should get help from the rich B. the government should increase consumption

C. all people should benefit from the economic growth  D. the government should carry out pro-rural policies

33. What has the government done to help the lower-income group?

A. Spending less on public health care B. Reducing the agricultural tax

C. Handing out money to every Chinese D. Carrying out policies to assist the poor

34. According to some experts, what is better than giving out money?

A. Supplying food to everyone every day B. Cutting the price of energy use in daily life

C. Controlling the rising prices D. Increasing the government' s income

35. Xing Pu's idea of giving red packets to every Chinese citizen mainly came from ______.

A. customs of the Spring Festival B. what other nations have done

C. the increase in public health care D. the high prices in the past years

一Are you sure you will be back for the class get-together next weekend.

---               .

    A.  Forget it.   B.  You bet！C.  I will.       D.  So what?

_{_____ his great courage, the boy was left alone in a dark room, no lighted candle_____ it up．}

_{A． Considered；lighted}

_{B． Considering；lighting}

_{C． Having considered；lighted}

_{D． To consider；lighting}

写作任务: 假定你是李华，将于今年七月从新星外语学校毕业。你从报纸上得知 B&B 公司要招聘一名英文秘书，你很感兴趣写一封求职信，包括下列要点:

1. 年龄:

2. 学习情况及英语水平:

3. 兴趣和特长:

4. 性格特点.

 注意:

1. 词数100-120

2. 可适当增加细节，以使行为连贯；

3. 开头语和结束语己为你写好

Dear Sir/Madam,

                                             _______________________________

 

                                                                                      

 

                                                                               

     

.

                                                               Sincerely yours,

                                                                      Li Hua

 Don’t take a chance to do violence to the law. If you did, you could never ________it.

A. get away from                 B. break away from  

C. do away with                  D. get away with

 If he takes on this work, he will have no choice but _____ an even greater

    challenge .

   A. meets                    B. meeting       C. meet           D. to meet

Attractions in Wisconsin

Swiss Historical Village

612 Seventh Ave, New Glares

The Swiss Historical Village offers a delightful look at pioneer life in America’s heartland.14 buildings in the village give a full picture of every day life in the nineteenth-century Midwest.

Tue.---Fri., May 1st---October 31st, 10:00am---4:00pm. Admission is $20

( 608 ) 527-2317 www.swisshistoricalvillage.com

Artisan Gallery & Creamery Cafe`

6858 Paoli Rd., Paoli WI

One of the largest collections of fine arts and crafts (手工艺品)in Wisconsin. Over 5000 sq. Ft. of exhibition space in a historical creamery. While visiting enjoy a wonderful prepared lunch at our cafe` overlooking the Sugar River. Just minutes from Madison!

Gallery open Tue.—Sun.,10:00am—5:00 pm

Cafe` open Wed.—Sat, 11:00 am—3:00 pm Sun. brunch with wine, 10:00---3:00 pm

( 608 ) 845-6600 www.artisangal.com

Wisconsin Historical Museum

30N. Carroll Street On Madison’s Capital Square

Discover Wisconsin’s history and culture on four floors of exhibits. Open for public program.

Open Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00am---4:00 pm. Admission is free.

(608)264-6555 www. wisconsinhistory. Org/museum

Christopher Columbus Museum

239 Whitney St., Columbus

World-class exhibit---2000 quality souvenirs marking Chicago’s 1893 World Columbus Exhibition.

Tour buses are always welcome

Open daily, 8:15 am---4:00 pm

(608)623-1992 www. columbusantiquemall.com

33. Which of the following is on Capital Square?

   A. Wisconsin Historical Museum             B. Swiss Historical Village

   C. Artisan Gallery & Creamery Café           D. Christopher Columbus Museum

34.Where can visitors have lunch?

A. At Wisconsin Historical Museum           B. At Swiss Historical Village

C. At Christopher Columbus Museum         D. At Artisan Gallery & Creamery Cafe`  

35.We can learn from the text that_________.

A. Tickets are needed for Wisconsin Historical Museum

B. Swiss Historical Village is open for half a year.

C. Artisan Gallery & Creamery Cafe are open daily for 4 hours.

D. Christopher Columbus Museum overlooks a river.

A Letter of Invitation

Dear Mr. Smith,

    I'm writing                                    (代表全班) to invite you to join us in

our English corner during the School English Week.

                            （按照计划），the activity will be held in the school lecture hall

from 4:30p.m. to 5:30p.m., when we will first                       （交换英语学习经验），

read aloud English poems and learn to sing some English songs. Then, we would like to ask you to                                              (简介美国文化)so that we will have a better understanding of it.

    I would appreciate it if you could come and have fun with us.                          

                                                                         ，（如有

任何特别要求请提前通知我们）and we can                     （做充分的准备）for you.

    I'm looking forward to your reply.

                                                         Yours,

                                                        Li Hua

A Letter of Thanks

Dear Mum and Dad,

I am writing to                                                               

                                （感谢你们在我18岁这一天送给我的生日卡和礼物）．

I'd like to                          （表达我对你们18年以来为我做的一切的感激之情）．

    Reading the words you wrote on the card, I                                         

                                                                               

(忍不住想起你所教我的一切，如独立、与人为善以及面对困难时保持勇敢)．Thanks to    

                                                                 （你的鼓励和无

条件的爱），I believe that I will                                         （不辜负你们

的期望）and become the one you are proud of.

Mum and Dad, I promise I will                                                  

                            （高考后为你做一顿大餐以表达我对你们的深爱）．

    Best wishes,

                                          Yours,

                                          Li Hua

A Letter of Apology

Dear Tom,

    I'm writing to                                                                

              ，as                              （这周六无法按上周计划那样与你外

出郊游而道歉）I'm sorry for breaking my promise.

    Actually, I've been expecting to meet you                                         

（在我们约定的时间）to have a great time together. However, something unexpected happened. My grandfather，                             （他七十多岁），fell over and broke his leg yesterday while having a walk in the park. He                                          

                                                                           （受

伤如此重以致马上被送去医院）．Now he                                         （正

在接受治疗）there and I must look after him at the weekend.

    I wonder                                                              （我们

下周天是否外出）if                                                  (你方便的话)．

Again, I'm sorry for                                                          （我给

你带来的不便）．

    I'm looking forward to your reply!

                                                                   Yours,

                                                                  Li Hua

How to remember your passwords

    Remembering and then forgetting your passwords can be a frustrating business, and one that contributes to more than half of calls made to helplines. ___36___  Once you have reset your password, you’re going to need to remember that one too. Follow our tips on breaking the password-frustration cycle.

___37___

We often create so many user IDs but there are only a small number of passwords that you really need to remember. It’s important for you to remember your banking and email passwords, but do you really need to worry about your occasional eBay visit? If you can commit(交付) just a few to memory, you can hand the rest over to a password keeper to do the remembering for you.

Sign up for a password keeping service.

___38___ You just need to encrypt(加密) your data and keep it in a safe server. Many password keepers require you to remember just one master password, which will give you access to the accounts you have chosen.

Write them down

“Just keep them in a safe place, such as a locked box,” says Internet security blogger Bruce Schneier. ___39___ Thus, it isn’t entirely discouraged and can be an efficient back-up plan when all else fails.

Work on your memory

___40___ Practising memory techniques or making certain lifestyle changes, including reducing stress, might just prevent you from having to make that frustrating password phone call ever again.

A. Download a mobile password app.

B. Of course, it doesn’t just stop there.

C. Try to make a note of your passwords.

D. Work out which passwords matter most.

E. Put your money into different accounts.

F. It will remember your passwords for you.

G. Many exercises can help improve your memory.