Question

Even at school there had been an unhealthy competition between George and Richard. 

   “I’ll be the first millionaire in Coleford!” Richard used to boast. 

   “And you’ll be sorry you knew me,” George would reply “because I’ll be the best lawyer in the town!”

   George never did become a lawyer and Richard never made any money. Instead both men opened bookshops on opposite sides of Coleford High Street. It was hard to make money from books, which made the competition between them worse. 

   Then Richard married a mysterious girl. The couple spent their honeymoon on the coast—but Richard never came back. The police found his wallet on a deserted beach but the body was never found. He must have drowned.

   Now with only one bookshop in town, business was better for George. But sometimes he sat in his narrow, old kitchen and gazed out of the dirty window, thinking about his formal rival(競爭對手). Perhaps he missed him? 

   George was very interested in old dictionaries. He’d recently found a collector in Australia who was selling a rare first edition. When the parcel arrived, the book was in perfect condition and George was delighted. But while he was having lunch, George glanced at the photo in the newspaper that the book had been wrapped in. He was astonished—the smiling face was older than he remembered but unmistakable! Trembling, George started reading. 

   “Bookends have bought ten bookstores from their rivals Dylans. The company, owned by multi-millionaire Richard Pike, is now the largest bookseller in Australia.” 

1.George and Richard were ______ at school.

A. roommates     B. good friends    C. competitors    D. booksellers

2.How did George feel about Richard after his disappearance?

 A. He envied Richard’s marriage.

 B. He thought of Richard from time to time.

 C. He felt lucky with no rival in town.

 D. He was guilty of Richard’s death.

3.George got information about Richard from ______.

 A. a dictionary collector in Australia

B. the latter’s rivals Dylans

 C. a rare first edition of a dictionary

D. the wrapping paper of a book

4.What happened to George and Richard in the end?

 A. Both George and Richard became millionaires.

 B. Both of them realized their original ambitions.

 C. George established a successful business while Richard was missing.

 D. Richard became a millionaire while George had no great success.

 

Answer 1

【答案】

 

1.C

2.B

3.D

4.D

【解析】

試題分析：本文講述了Richard和George競爭的故事。他們上學時就揚言要分別成為百萬富翁和最好的律師，結果Richard實現了自己的夢想，George卻沒有。

1.細節理解題。根據“Even at school ... an unhealthy competition between George and Richard”可知，兩人是競爭對手。故選C。

2.細節理解題。根據第六段的“But sometimes he sat in his narrow，old kitchen ...，thinking about his former rival.”可知George有時會想起Richard，故選B。

3.細節理解題。根據倒數第二段“George glanced at the photo in the newspaper t...had been wrapped in...”可知，George是在包書的報紙上得到了Richard的消息。故選D。

4.根據文章最后一段可知，Richard最后成功了，而George依然開著書店，沒有成為百萬富翁，也沒有成為有名的律師。根據倒數第三段“Now with only one bookshop in town, business was better for George.”可知，George沒有成為百萬富翁，排除A；根據“George would reply “because I’ll be the best lawyer in the town!”可知，George最初是想成為最好的律師，排除B；George開書店，Richard成了百萬富翁，而不是失蹤，排除C。故選D。

考點：人物類短文閱讀