To develop one’s taste in English，the most effective way is to read English books extensively. However, one may be at a loss to choose the appropriate books，especially as a beginner.I would like to share some of my experience.

My first English novel was Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice，recommended by many English teachers and professors as an ideal book for English learners. But I had great difficulty in understanding the novel，let alone enjoying it. It’s not the vocabulary that troubled me，but rather the way Austen constructs sentences，and her way of thinking，which seemed too remote to me at that time. My fading enthusiasm was much recovered after reading Hemingway’s novel Farewell to Arms. I particularly liked his brief and lively style. So my first suggestion is，as a beginner, you’d better choose contemporary novels instead of classical ones.

However，reading novels is not the only way to improve your English. English essays can at once inform you，entertain you, and improve your taste in English. The best example is Bertrand Russell’s work. Its language is plain, yet you cannot help feeling the elegance and the unique sense of humor. His simple language enables his philosophy(哲理) within the reach of ordinary people. Here comes my second suggestion—essays are indispensable.

Never follow other’s opinions blindly，however famous or influential the person might be. As a saying goes，one man’s meat is another man’s poison. With that in mind，we are sure to find out our favorite writers through reading and develop our fine taste in English.

1.What made the author’s first English novel hard to understand?

A. Complex conversations.

B. Not knowing the social background.

C. The old-fashioned vocabulary.

D. Sentences and Austen’s thinking pattern.

2.Which can best replace the underlined word“ indispensable”?

A. necessary B. challenging

C. related D. inspired

3.What advice does the author give in the last paragraph?

A. Choose books that challenging us most.

B. Read books that are instructive.

C. Don’t be affected by other’s choices.

D. Compare books before buying.

4.What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?

A. Give comments on literature works.

B. Tell beginners how to choose English books.

C. Encourage people to read more English books.

D. Recommend first-class books to English learners.

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短文改錯

文中共有10處語言錯誤，每句中最多兩處錯誤，各涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除或修改。

增加：在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（∧），并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除：把多余的詞用（\）劃掉。

修改：在錯的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改的詞。

注意：1. 每處錯誤及其修改均僅限一詞；

2. 只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計分。

We all enjoy read short stories by O. Henry, such as “The last leaf” and “The Gift of Magi”.

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