Evergreen Teen Book Club Offer

The Evergreen Teen BookClub invites you to join us and take full advantage of our limited-time introductory offer.

If you join our club, you will receive a certificate for 3 free books. These are yours to keep, even if you decide to cancel your membership. However, if you decide to purchase just one book at the regular club price, you will receive a certificate for an additional 3 free selections after your first order is placed.

As our member, you can benefit from all of our super sales and our Bonus Program. You accumulate 2 bonus points with each cash purchase of one book. Every 6 bonus points will earn you a certificate for one free book!

To join our club, fill in the brief application listing your name, address, and phone number on the postage-paid card at the bottom of this page. Then drop the card in the mail and our present catalogue will be immediately mailed out to you for your 3 free selections!

This catalogue offers a wide selection of over 500 books in every issue, including mysteries, adventures, biographies, cookbooks, sports, and many more. Our catalogue also contains interviews with your favorite authors, reviews of newly published novels, and a teen top-ten list for both fiction and nonfiction.

Once you are a member, you will receive our catalogue monthly, but you don’t need to purchase any selections. We send you only exactly what you order.

If you join before June 30th, we will also provide complimentary shipping (免费送货)，even if you choose to order nothing except your 3 free books.

You can build a great book collection!

Begin now by taking advantage of this great offer.

1. If you join the Evergreen Teen Book Club, you can __________.

A. buy books at cost price           B. get one free book for a cash purchase of 3 books

C. receive a gift after each order      D. expect 3 free books each month

2. If Lily wants to get free delivery, she should __________.

A. accumulate 6 bonus points        B. order at least 3 books

C. purchase the catalogue           D. join the club before June 30th

3. The purpose of the text is to get more people to __________.

A. collect books for the club         B. read different kinds of books

C. join the club and order books      D. learn from famous writers

Yesterday I started the Year of Giving, my first day of a year-long journey into exploring the act of giving and the meaning of charity. I chose December 15 as the starting date, which marked three years since my mother died from heart disease. She was one of the most generous people that I have ever known. She always thought of others first and certainly serves as an inspiration to me.

I had a rather busy day yesterday, ironic (具有讽刺意义的) for someone who is unemployed right now. In the morning I went to the gym, and unsuccessfully got the phone call from the unemployment office for some job searching. Before I knew it, it was noon. I grabbed a quick lunch and rushed down to a meeting. On my way to Connecticut, I wondered if I would see someone that I would feel forced to give my first $ 10 to. I was running late and decided to do it afterwards.

After the meeting I had about half an hour to find the first person of my Year of Giving! I decided to check out DuPont Circle. I had met a guy there named Jerry once and thought he would willingly accept my $ 10. He wasn’t there, but I did see a man sitting by himself who looked really lonely, so I approached him. Now I had to figure out what I was going to say. I think I said something like, “Hi, can I sit down here?” “I would like to know if I could give you $ 10?” He asked me to repeat what I had said, I did; then he looked at me funny, got up and left.

I then started walking south where I spotted a man standing by the bus stop on Connecticut Ave. He appeared to be in his 60s. I don’t know what drew me to him, but I thought I would make my second attempt. I was a bit nervous and asked him which bus came by that stop. Then I explained that I was starting a year-long project to give $ 10 to someone every day and that I wanted to give my $ 10 for today to him. The gentleman, I later found out that his name was Ed, responded without hesitation that he could not accept my offer and that there were many people more deserving the money than him. This was exactly one of the things that I hoped would happen. People would think of others before themselves.

4. The author set the starting date on December 15 to ____.

A. help the charity                                B. honor his mother

C. make an exploration                         D. fulfill a wish for his mum

5. In the author’s first attempt to give away the money, ____.

A. he was considered ridiculous             B. he hesitated for a long time

C. he was forced to donate the money    D. he had no time to take action

6. In the author’s second attempt, the gentleman refused his offer because ____.

A. he didn’t need other’s help                B. he thought more for others

C. he didn’t care about money               D. he wanted to get more money

7. We can refer that the author was inspired by ____.

A. true friendship                                        B. his own kindness

C. generous donations　                           D. human’s good nature

On the banks of Tanzania’s Lake Eyasi lives the world’s last hunter-gatherer tribe (部落) — the Hadza. They don’t grow food, raise animals or build houses. Instead they live a life unchanged for more than ten thousand years.

Their world is one of complete freedom — something modern society can barely imagine and is unlikely to ever experience, let alone have the skills to stay alive. Text messages and phone calls don’t exist. Nor do cars and electricity. No jobs, timetables, and social structures. No laws, taxes and unbelievably, no money — the closest thing to currency (交易，流通) is the trade for a pair of shorts with a neighboring tribe.

We spent our time with the Hadza hunting baboons (狒狒), a daily activity for the men. Their land is packed with sharp bushes, poisonous snakes and man-eating lions. But a successful hunting trip is the difference between eating or going hungry. 

The Hadza diet consists mainly of honey, fruit and meat. Men often hunt in pairs to shoot animals with bows and arrows. The Hadza show us how to track animals, from baboons to snakes to lions. They are hugely skilled with their handmade bows and arrows — we have a go and barely get the arrow to go three feet in front of us.

The language of the Hadza is believed to be the oldest still-spoken language known to man. The Hadza don’t have conflict, and have no memory of starvation. Their population never reaches numbers that cannot be supported through hunting or gathering. They never get from their land more than they need.

Unlike modern-day office workers, the Hadza enjoy an extraordinary amount of free time. Their “work” — hunting for food — takes up around five hours of their day. They’ve been in such a state of peaceful existence for thousands of years.

8. We can learn from the text that the Hadza_______.

A. lead a very primitive (原始) life            B. live on traditional agriculture    

C. have their own system of currency（流通）  D. show a lot of interest in new technology

9. Which of the following can describe the Hadza’s environment?

A. Stressful.       B. Comfortable.       C. Exciting.             D. Dangerous. 

10. The relationship between the Hadza and nature_______.

A. is going wrong                   B. is full of conflict

C. is in perfect harmony              D. is changing all the time

11. Why does the author come to visit the Hadza?

A. To study their native language.           B. To get to know their way of life.  

C. To learn survival skills from them.        D. To persuade them to protect animals.

     Children are hooked on computers. Some spend up to six hours a day on their gadgets. They can be playing games live with others elsewhere in the world, updating their status on social media, texting friends or looking for the latest app to download to their tablets or smart phones.

     This worried Martin Strott, headmaster of the Old Hall School in Wellington, in the west of England. He was so concerned that he challenged his students to take part in a week of ‘digital detox’. Strott told the local newspaper, the Shropshire Star, that he encourages the pupils to have a good knowledge of the computer from a young age, but is concerned that too much screen time will affect the development of their social skills. He said that this over-reliance on digital devices “erodes family time and they’re missing out on messages from body language and facial expressions from those around them”.

     According to the headmaster, the parents are happy with the movement. But what about the children? Nine-year-old Fred usually spends around two hours on his gadgets at home after school and around 12 hours on weekends. For him, the digital detox experience was “really hard”. Fred spent it playing outside, especially basketball. He said that he’ll probably engage in different activities from now on but he did miss his phone and online games.

     The idea of keeping children away from their tech for a while to prevent ‘addiction’ is not particularly new. There have been similar movements in the US. But are they effective in the long run? Well, even if kids go back to their gadgets, the hope is that at least they’ll think about how they use their time.

     What about you: do you spend too many hours hooked on your digital devices?

12. According to the passage, which of the following is not the reason why children are hooked on computers __________.

A. developing their social skills by having some online conversations.

B. searching for the newest app and install them to their tablets or smart phones.

C. playing games live with people from other places

D. releasing some new information about their status on social media

13. Which of the following words can replace the word “erodes” in Para 2?

A. enriches            B. saves         C. adjusts                     D. ruins

14. According to the article, where else can you find digital detox movements?

A. In Asian countries           B. In the US           C. In Japan           D. In China

15. Why did the headmaster challenge his students to take part in digital detox?

A. Because he wanted to encourage his students to have a good knowledge of computer.

B. Because he wanted them to learn more about body language and facial expressions.

C. Because he hoped to transfer children’s attention to something meaningful.

D. Because he was pushed by many worried parents.

Travel tips that are no longer true

We all love an inside trip, but some of the classic tips for travelers no longer hold true.  16  

1. Book a plane ticket far in advance to save money.

This myth may have been true back in the 1960s, when flights were less common than they are today. Back then, the demand for a flight would naturally increase as the date approached, there being few other options.  17 According to recent studies, the best time to buy a domestic ticket was between six and seven weeks before.

2.  18     

Don’t ignore the benefits of going straight to the hotel to negotiate (商谈) a good deal on a room. Many hotel chains offer rate guarantees and encourage customers to book directly. Hotels also frequently have discounts or some offers that third-party websites don’t know. Apart from this, hotels give the upgrades, not the booking agents.

3. Avoid street food.

 19     If this means standing up at a cheap street stall (摊位), then follow the crowd. Don’t sit down at a restaurant and spend four times more, on the simple assumption that it’s the only safe option. Can you see what’s going on in the kitchen?

4. Carry your money in a special pocket or pouch.

This is the fastest way to stand out from locals — who will have their money in a wallet or purse. Only take what you need when you leave your hotel room.  20   

A. When in Rome, do what the Romans do.

B. And make sure to put your wallet in a front pocket.

C. This is only true if you are buying products that are heavily taxed.

D. Let yourself relax in a warm room for one or two people in single beds.

E. Check the updates on these tall tales (说大话) to save cash and add experience to your trip.

F. These days, many alternatives for the most popular routes mean that demand stays steady.

G. The best hotel prices are on travel websites.