A Book Review—The Snake-Stone by Berlie Doherty
The setting: Urban England (the cities), but also rural England (the countryside) including remote English villages．
The theme: The main theme is a teenage research of self-discovery, in this case the search for a mother from whom the hero was separated at an early age．Its other concerns are love, getting on with others, being persistent and courageous and trying to deal with doubts, troubles and worries．As the book moves to a close, James’ swimming coach says to him: “You are not like a kid obeying instructions any more．You are diving like a young man who knows where he is going．”
The characters: James is the hero of the story．He is a championship diver, and has a comfortable life with his foster parents (養(yǎng)父母)．Yet he also has the qualities to take him on a long journey to find his birth mother．The other characters in The Snake-Stone, James’ parents, his diving instructor, best friend, the villagers, people he meets on his journey, are pictured realistically．
The turning point: The turning point in the story comes while James’ foster parents are away in London, and he wonders about the identity of his birth mother．The only clue he has is a fossil, “the snake stone” which she left behind along with a note on which she had written: “Take good care of Sammie．It was written on a torn envelope with parts of an address still there．
The journey: Instead of going to London, James decides to find his birth mother．With help from his geography teacher, James sets out for the remote country village where his mother might be found．James has painful, challenging, but also humorous and happy travels．The mother he finally meets, Anne, has a minor yet powerful voice in the novel．He comes to understand why she left him at a stranger’s door fifteen years before．Although the meeting is not long, it leaves him with a feeling of completeness．As a journey of self-discovery The Snake-Stone also provides its readers with a happy ending．Its hero says, on returning to his foster parents, “I was home．”
【小題1】What is the main theme of the novel?
| A．A journey of self-discovery． |
| B．Life in the world of diving． |
| C．Life with foster parents． |
| D．A travel around the country． |
| A．James is a successful diver． |
| B．James is an independent young man． |
| C．James is an outgoing young man． |
| D．James is a hopeful swimmer． |
| A．a stone with an address on it |
| B．a gift from the swimming coach |
| C．a clue left by the birth mother |
| D．a fossil left by the foster parents |
| A．The story has a sad ending． |
| B．The story takes place in the city of London． |
| C．The characters are vividly described． |
| D．The turning point comes after the hero meets his birth mother． |
| A．disappointing | B．boring |
| C．comfortable | D．worthwhile |
【小題1】A
【小題2】B
【小題3】C
【小題4】C
【小題5】D
解析試題分析：
【小題1】A主旨題。題目中的關鍵詞theme對應文章當中的第二段的第一句?The main theme is a teenage search of self-discovery。所以答案選A。
【小題2】B句義理解。you are not like a kid obeying instruction any more. You are diving like a young man who knows where he is going.你并不再像個服從命令的小孩了?你現在是一個知道何去何從的男人。一般而言?句子的理解一定是從現象到本質?所以最表面的理解通常是錯誤的?故排除A,D選項。C是說他是一個外向的年輕男人?并未提及他的性格?故選擇B?他是一個獨立的男人
【小題3】細節(jié)理解?用snake stone定位�？梢钥吹絻删湓�?第三段?The other characters in The Snack –Stone, James’s parents, his diving instructor, best friend, the villagers, people he meets on his journey, are pictured realistically.這句話對解題并沒有用處。就再看到第四段的?The only clue he has is a fossil, ―the snake stone‖ which she left behind along with a note on which she had written, ―Take good care of Sammie.‖他擁有的唯一的一個線索就是一個化石---她所留下來的―the snake stone‖并且伴隨著一張紙條?上面寫著―照顧好Sammie‖。故選擇C.—一個由他的親生母親留下來的線索。
【小題4】細節(jié)判斷題。這個故事有一個悲傷的結尾。?錯誤原因?文章第五段說The Snake-Stone also provides its readers with a happy ending. The Snake-Stone給讀者提供了一個開心的結尾??B?這個故事發(fā)生在倫敦。?錯誤原因?文章第四段?Instead of going to London, James decides to find his birth mother.而不是去倫敦?James決定去找他的親生母親??C?角色都被生動的描述。?正確原因?文章第三段?The other characters in The Snack –Stone, James’s parents, his diving instructor, best friend, the villagers, people he meets on his journey, are pictured realistically.在The Snack –Stone,當中的其他角色?James的父母?他的潛水老師?最好的朋友?村民們?在他旅途當中遇見的人?都被描述的很真實。vividly described.對應著pictured realistically.??D?故事的轉折點發(fā)生在英雄遇見自己親生母親之后。?錯誤原因?文章中第四段?The turning point in the story comes while James’ foster parents are away in London, and he wonders about the identity of his birth mother.在故事中的轉折點發(fā)生在James的養(yǎng)父母離開在倫敦的時候?他很想知道他親生母親的身份C
【小題5】歸納題。通過文章的最后一段Although the meeting is not long, it leaves him with a feeling of completeness. As a journey of self-discovery The Snake-Stone also provides its readers with a happy ending.可以得知?形容這個旅程的詞一定不是負面的。所以排除A和B。剩下D有價值的?值得做的,和C舒適的。但由于James has painful, challenging, but also humorous, and happy travels.這句話當中說到了painful?也就意味著這一定不是舒適的。故選D
考點：考查一個書評?
點評：這篇書評的每段的內容都很明確?做題時要注意每段粗體開頭的提示。以細節(jié)題的考查為主， 解此類題需要結合上下文提供的語境和信息進行簡單的概括和判斷。
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| B．the family was very poor |
| C．he disliked school very much |
| D．he could learn what he liked from the people he met |
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| C．All kinds of travelers he met | D．His brother |
| A．Samuel loved writing from his early age |
| B．Samuel did not love writing at the beginning |
| C．his writings to the newspaper were successful |
| D．his brother encouraged him to write more |
| A．write a lot for his readers |
| B．make a lot of money for his family |
| C．cause his readers to laugh |
| D．travel everywhere he wanted |
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| B．understood their language |
| C．lived in so many underground cities |
| D．were ahead of them in space technology |
| A．Discovering the moon’s inner space. |
| B．Using the earth’s inner space. |
| C．Meeting the “moon people” again. |
| D．Traveling to outer space. |
| A．Offices, shopping areas, power stations. |
| B．Tunnels, car parks, shopping areas. |
| C．Gardens, car parks, power stations. |
| D．Tunnels, gardens, offices. |
| A．Alice Cities—cities of the future |
| B．Space travel with H. G. Wells |
| C．Enjoy living underground |
| D．Building down, not up |
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| B．gained a lot from her career as an editor |
| C．promoted（促進） her books through social relations |
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| C．Jacqueline's role as First Lady was more brilliant than as an editor |
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| C．Jacqueline's achievements were widely known |
| D．Jacqueline's views and beliefs were reflected（反映） in the books she edited |
| A．a brief account（敘述） of Jacqueline's career as an editor in her last 20 years |
| B．a brief description of Jacqueline's lifelong experiences |
| C．an introduction of Jacqueline's life both as First Lady and as editor |
| D．an analysis of Jacqueline's social relations in publishing |
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| A．repeated without any change | B．treated as a joke |
| C．made some changes by the parent | D．set in the present |
| A．in a realistic setting | B．heard for the first time |
| C．repeated too often | D．told in a different way |
| A．makes them less fearful |
| B．develops their power of memory |
| C．makes them believe there is nothing to be afraid of |
| D．encourages them not to have strange beliefs |
| A．fairy stories are still being made up |
| B．there is some misunderstanding about fairy tales |
| C．people try to modernize old fairy stories |
| D．there is more concern for children's fears nowadays |
| A．they are full of imagination |
| B．they just make up the stories which are far from the truth |
| C．they are not interesting |
| D．they make teachers of history difficult to teach |
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| C．Human Capital． |
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| D．an European mountain famous for its winter skiing |
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| A．written in English |
| B．concerned about OECD countries |
| C．involved with education and economy |
| D．published by the same print |
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