World Book Day – the test teen reads

by Genny Haslett, 24, English literature teacher at Bathampton Secondary School

It is often suggested that teachers and librarians aren’t pushing secondary school
readers towards titles that challenge them enough, and so the organisers of World
Book Day have announced a list which might provide some inspiration for anyone
who’s stuck for ideas. This list of popular books for young adults, voted for by
10,000 people across the UK, features a top 10 to ‘shape and inspire’ teenagers, and
handle some of the challenges of adolescence.

All but one of the books have already been made into films, demonstrating that
when a book makes it to the big screen, it often then acquires more readers thanks
to the film’s success. Of course, this isn’t always the case, as with George Orwell’s
1984, where the rather mediocre film does not compare so favourably with the
book’s ability to conjure up a dark vision of life in a police state.

James Bowen’s A Streetcat Named Bod, published in 2012, is one of the few
relatively contemporary books here. It’s also certainly for me the least predictable
member of the list, but its extended stay on the bestseller list earned it – and its
author – a devoted following. It is the touching story of Bob, the cat who helped a
homeless man called James get his life back on track. Bob sits on James’s shoulder
and sleeps at his feet while he plays the guitar on the street, and soon becomes the
centre of attention. What makes the story particularly powerful is that it is based on
author James Bowen’s real life.

Also on the list are J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books. In this case it’s actually the
whole series rather than one particular title that makes the shortlist. Perhaps the
judges struggled to agree which one book to pick. For me, the books are rather
more pre-teen than the rest of the books on the list, which are aimed at a more
mature readership.

But Harry Potter is a special case: as Harry gets older in each successive book in the
series, the stories do become more complex and darker. In a way, readers
themselves grow up with Harry and his friends. Rowling asks some tough questions
about standing up to authority, challenging ‘normal’ views and many other subjects
close to teenage readers’ hearts. This should get rid of the idea that the whole
series is just for young kids. In actual fact, half of all Harry Potter readers are over
the age of 35, but that’s another story.
The list goes right back to the nineteenth century with Charlotte Bronte’s great
romance Jane Eyre, showing that some books never grow old, though the majority
are twentieth-century works such as Anne Frank’s heartbreaking wartime memoir
The Diary of a Young Girl, which even now I find hard to get through without
shedding tears. Personally, I would have swapped J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the
Rings for one of the many classics that didn’t make the final selection, Lord of the
Flies perhaps, William Golding’s nightmare vision of schoolboys stuck on an island.

Of course there’ll always be some choices we don’t agree with, but that’s what I
think makes a list like this so fascinating. I’ve been using it with my class of 16-year-
olds, and I got them to evaluate it and make other suggestions for what to include
or how it could be changed. But what I hope can really make a lasting difference is
if it stimulates them to try out writers on the list, perhaps ones they haven’t come
across before, and be introduced to new styles of writing.

1 What criticism does the writer make in the first paragraph?

A World Book Day has been poorly organised.

B School librarians aren’t working hard enough.

C Teenagers are reading books that are too easy.

D Teachers don’t encourage pupils to read enough.

2 What point is made about books which are made into films?

A The best books tend to be made into films.

B The film of a book makes more people read the book.

C Many people prefer to watch a film than read the book.

D It is useful to be able to compare the book and the film.

3 What does the writer suggest about A Streetcat Named Bob?

A She is surprised that it is on the list.

B The book did not sell as well as it deserved to.

C It is the most recently published book on the list.

D It is the only autobiography on the list.

4 How does the writer justify the presence of the Harry Potter books on the list?
A The books’ fame can help the list get more attention.

B The later books in the series are more suitable for teenagers.

C Teenagers should read books that they will also enjoy as adults.

D It makes sense to have a whole series as well as individual books.

5 Which book does the writer feel shouldn’t be on the list?

A Jane Eyre

B The Diary of a Young Girl

C The Lord of the Rings

D Lord of the Flies

6 What does the writer intend to do?

A be more fully developed in future

B prompt pupils to read more widely

C enable pupils to write more effectively

D provide a useful topic for discussion in class

 The fake hairdresser remembers
Some years ago, a British TV company came up with an idea for a reality TV show.
People with no experience would be trained in a profession in a very short period
of time, then would try and pass themselves off as the real thing with the general
public. The show was called Faking It, and the format has since been imitated the
world over. One of the first contestants was Gavin Freeborn, a twenty-three-year-
old farmer’s son, who trained with celebrity hairdresser Trevor Sorbie in London.
Gavin remembers the experience.

‘I was at university, studying for a degree in agriculture, when some friends

mentioned that a TV company had advertised for people to take part in Faking It.
They were looking for someone who’d never picked up a pair of scissors or thought
of hairdressing as a career, which I certainly hadn’t. I reckoned it would be a laugh.
Having spent my school holidays shearing sheep on my parents’ farm, I was used to
the idea of haircutting, but obviously it’s harder doing it on people – because they
have an opinion about it!’

‘I’d never been to London before and it was so busy that I felt a bit overwhelmed at
first. Meeting Trevor for the first time, he seemed really strict, but once he realised I
was taking the challenge seriously we got on like a house on fire and they often had
to stop filming because we couldn’t stop giggling. Fortunately, I didn’t have to do
any of the washing or sweeping floors other people new to the business have to do.
I went straight into blow-drying and cutting instead.’

‘At first I practised on a dummy’s head, which was a welcome safety net, but I did
make a really bad mistake halfway through filming when I was cutting one real
man’s hair. I’d been shown how to use clippers to get a cropped effect but hadn’t
been warned to angle the comb. I ended up shaving off a huge patch of hair! He
couldn’t see what I’d done, but the camera crew couldn’t stop laughing, so it was
obvious I’d made a mistake. Luckily, I managed to rectify the situation and told the
client, who was alright about it, so I forgave them.’

‘By the day of my final test, I knew I was capable but I felt sick with nerves. I didn’t
want to let Trevor down. But even though I failed to convince the client that I was a
real hairdresser, she approved of the haircut and the judges were impressed by it,
too. It didn’t worry me at the time but, looking back now, I think it was a bit unfair
that I was penalised for taking too long – and hour-and-a-half – when I’d been
taught the most important thing was to ensure your client walks out of the salon
feeling like a million dollars.’

‘After the programme, I went home for a week but I decided to come back to
London because I’d fallen in love with the buzz of the city. People in town kept
stopping and staring at me as if I was famous. I found this unnerving at first, but
with time I got used to it. There were a few comments about me being too full of
myself, but I took no notice.’

‘When I agreed to do Faking It, I had no idea how much I was signing my life away,
but I couldn’t say I have any regrets. The thing is that I’ve discovered growing up on
a farm doesn’t mean I can’t work in a creative field. What’s more, I’ve now got
choices I didn’t realise I had, which is brilliant. Although I still keep in contact with
everyone from Trevor’s salon, and we all go out when I’m in London, I’m hardly a
celebrity anymore.’

1 Why did Gavin first apply to be on the programme?

A He thought it would be fun.

B He liked the idea of going to London.

C His friends managed to talk him into it.

D He had some experience of hairdressing.

2 How did Gavin feel about the hairdressing mistake he made one day?

A sorry that the client was dissatisfied

B relieved that the client didn’t notice it

C pleased that he was able to find a solution

D annoyed by the reaction of the camera crew

3 How did Gavin feel on the day of his final test?

A unsure if he was good enough

B worried that he might not succeed

C unconvinced that the client was really happy

D disappointed by the feedback from the judges

4 Thinking about the final test now, Gavin feels that he

A was too slow in completing the haircut.

B didn’t take enough notice of his client’s wishes.

C was unjustly criticised for one aspect of his performance.

D should have paid some attention to things he’d been taught.

5 What does the word ‘it’ in line 33 refer to?

A people making comments about Gavin

B people looking at Gavin in the street.

C Gavin feeling proud of himself

D Gavin feeling uncomfortable

6 Looking back on the whole experience, Gavin now

A wishes he’d thought more carefully before applying.

B realises that his life is different as a result.

C appreciates his farm upbringing more.

D accepts that it’s helped him socially.

A MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE
Sara Adelardi, 17, tells us about taking part in a TV
cooking competition.
Since I was a child who stood in my grandmother’s kitchen sniffing the delicious
smell of freshly baked bread and homemade soups, I’ve known there is only one
thing I want to do in life: cook. So, when I spotted an advert on a website inviting
young people to apply for a TV cooking competition, there was little doubt I’d be
first in line to take part. I thought ‘This could be the beginning of my cooking
career!’
The application process was far from straightforward, as I soon discovered. First, I
had to fill in a lengthy form, detailing everything from how I became interested in
cooking (that was the easy part), to things like what I hoped to get out of being part
of the show (these were much trickier!). Once I’d got through that stage of the
process, the next step was to cook a test dish for the show’s judges: scary but
exciting, too. If that was good enough, I’d be invited to take part in the four-week
televised competition. One person, selected by the judges, would be voted out of
the competition in each programme, until the winner was announced during the
final.

Until I had to create a test dish, I’d been pretty positive about my cooking ability; I
often cooked big meals for my family at the weekends, and my friends loved the
little snacks I took into school for break times. But suddenly I found myself up
against 11 other young people who’d been cooking for longer. Some of them – I’d
known this might be the case – had even had part-time jobs as waiters, surrounded
by top-class food prepared by professional chefs. Would I really be able to
compete? As I stood at my counter in the test kitchen, ready to start cooking, I
remembered my grandmother’s advice: ‘Stick to what you know best’.

The judges tasted each test dish, made a few notes, and sent us all home. Then the
wait began. Had I made it to the televised competition? Eventually, the phone call
came. I’d be in the first live programme of the series the following week! Our first
challenge would be to make a meal with a selection of ingredients chosen by the
judges. It was impossible to know what they’d pick in advance, and I knew I’d just
have to use my creativity on the day, but I was still desperate to do some
preparation, and rushed straight to my parents’ kitchen, pulling everything from the
cupboards in a panic. All day I experimented with new flavour combinations, testing
them out on my parents and sister. Most things they liked, some they didn’t. What if
the judges weren’t keen on my dishes?

The day of the first programme dawned and suddenly there I was with the other
competitors, waiting to be given our instructions. The lights were hot in the TV
studio, but although I’d expected to be nervous about being filmed for a TV show,
my excitement soon took over. I recognised all the ingredients spread out on the
table in front of me and I was eager to get to work. I knew exactly what I was going
to cook! My grandmother’s words rang in my ears again. ‘Keep it simple,’ I thought,
as I started chopping.
I didn’t make it any further in the competition. The judges liked my dish and said I
showed promise as a cook, but the other competitors were better on the day. I’d
learnt a lot from seeing how they worked, and how imaginative their dishes were
compared to mine, so I wasn’t too disappointed. It had been a memorable
experience, and (line 70) confirmed in my mind that cooking was the career for me.
Years of learning still lie ahead of me, but one day I’d love to own my own
restaurant – and help other young people fulfil their dreams too!

1 What is the writer’s purpose in the first paragraph?

A to highlight the writer’s relationship with her grandmother

B to describe the kinds of meals that the writer enjoyed cooking

C to help readers identify with the writer’s ambitious character

D to explain why the competition appealed to the writer

2 What does the writer say about applying for the competition in the second
paragraph?

A It took much longer than she had hoped it would.

B She found it challenging to answer some of the questions.

C The process was as complicated as she had expected it to be.

D She discovered details about the competition which she did not like.

3 How did the writer feel after she met the other competitors for the first time?

A confident that she had the necessary skills to do so

B determined to use the advice that she had been given

C concerned that they would be better at cooking than she was

D surprised by how much experience some of them had

4 When it was confirmed that the writer would be taking part in the televised
competition, she

A decided to practise making some of her favourite recipes.

B knew there was little point trying to guess what she’d have to do.
 C asked her family to make suggestions about what she should cook.

D felt she ought to find out about ingredients she didn’t ordinarily use.

5 On the first day of the competition, the writer says she felt

A keen to get on with the task before her.

B anxious about appearing on camera.

C relieved to have ideas about what to cook.

D grateful for the family support she had received.

6 What does it refer to in line 70?

A the judges’ feedback

B her time at the studio

C other competitors’ food

D a feeling of disappointment

Pen Hadow – polar explorer

The explorer is risking his life in the Arctic again,
this time for all of us. Cole Moretonin reports.
In 2004, Pen Hadow became the first person to trek to the North Pole alone,
without being resupplied on the way. That meant swimming through unimaginably
cold waters, fighting frostbite and risking encounters with polar bears. Just eight
months later, he made a similar trip to the South Pole. Now he is back in the Arctic
again, preparing for an expedition he says is even more ambitious. Explorers are
confident, driven individuals. They have to be. This time, however, there is far more
at stake. Pen and two colleagues will set out on a three-month, 1,000-kilometre trek
to the North Pole, taking detailed measurements of the thickness and density of the
ice. Nobody has ever done this before, and he knows the results will be of vital
importance to the scientific community. This will be the truest picture yet of what
global warming is doing to the ice that covers the polar region.

Pen is married to Mary, a horsewoman, who says he has a ‘spine of steel’ and who
shares his love of the outdoors. She helps to run his polar guide business and
claims to be more worried about him when he’s at home: ‘He’s in more danger
driving along the motorway because I know that in his head he’s somewhere in the
Arctic.’ For fun, she once competed against him in a famous mountain event in
which riders on horseback race against people on foot. Mary and her horse finished
an hour ahead of Pen.

Pen and Mary live in the country with their two children. ‘It’s much harder to be
away from them this time,’ he admits. ‘They were one and five when I last went, and
I made a mistake in the way I said goodbye. I thought it would be a good idea to say
to my son, “You’re the man of the house now, look after your mum and your sister.”
He absolutely took it to heart (line 40), asking his mum how she was all the time,
but the strain eventually became too much. While it was well intentioned, it was an
unfair thing to do.’ For similar reasons he is planning to have very little contact with
them while in the Arctic. ‘If you call them, you remind them how far away you are.’

He is spending these last days before departure preparing his kit, obsessively. ‘Out
on the ice, one is virtually incapable of mending things or doing anything that isn’t
absolutely straightforward,’ he says. With him will be Ann Daniels, one of the
world’s leading polar explorers, and the expedition photographer, Martin Hartley.
They will be supported by a crew of six, flying in supplies. Being part of a team is
actually more stressful to someone with his mentality, says Pen, and something
else is on his mind too. ‘I’m going to be 47 on Thursday. I’ve done far less training
than I’m comfortable with.’ Why? ‘Organisational things always seem more urgent.
So I’m almost fearful of what I’m going to ask of myself.’

Pen believes his mission reconnects exploration with the search for knowledge that
drove previous generations into the unknown. ‘Making it to the North Pole was
ultimately a personal ambition,’ he admits, ‘and of limited value to anyone beyond
the polar adventuring community. This time, scientists will profit from the data, and
we’re creating a platform in which to engage as many people as possible in what’s
happening in the Arctic Ocean. This is important work, and nobody can do it but us,’
he says. ‘Our skills, which are otherwise bizarre and socially redundant, have
become hyper-relevant. Suddenly, we’re socially useful again.’

1 In the first paragraph, what do we learn about Pen Hadow’s opinion of the new
expedition?

A He feels certain that it will be successful.

B He thinks it may be harder than his previous journeys.

 C He is aware of the huge significance of its aims.

D He is looking forward to the scientific work it will involve.

2 What does Mary Hadow think about her husband?

A He isn’t as determined as she is.

B He can’t run as quickly as he thinks he can.

C He hasn’t got enough time to manage his business properly.

D He finds it hard to think about anything except his expeditions.

3 When talking about leaving his children for long periods, Pen mentions feeling

A ashamed that his wife has had to look after them so much.

B guilty that he once added to the pressure caused by his absence.

C sad that he is missing so much of their growing up.

D sorry that he can’t telephone more often.

4 What does ‘took it to heart’ mean in line 40?

A He memorised his father’s words.

B He carried out his father’s words precisely.

C He started to feel unwell.

D He was afraid of the responsibility

5 What is worrying Pen about the new expedition?

A whether he will still be fit enough to take part

B whether he will be mentally prepared

C whether the equipment will work properly in icy conditions

D whether the arrangements he has made will turn out well

6 When he compares the new expedition to his previous ones, Pen feels

A pleased that more people will benefit from it.

 B uncertain if it will collect information.

C doubtful about its long-term usefulness.

D relieved that the general public will be more supportive.

Night flight
The flight is busy and the last few passengers to board are searching for places to
stow their hand luggage. The Asian woman in the seat next to me is in her late
twenties, probably travelling on business. I am wondering if I should talk to her
when the man in the window seat shows up and we have to let him in. She settles
back in the middle seat. When I try to strap myself back in I find she’s picked up the
buckle of my belt by accident and we look at each other and laugh.

‘What have you been doing in Bangalore?’ I ask.

‘My office is there. It’s where I’m based.’ I notice that she has a North American
accent. She tells me she works for a multinational company that makes clothing
and that she is on her way to Thailand. She has to visit a couple of factories and
meet with some other people from the company. She’s also trying to complete her
PhD thesis, which is on a laptop she has under the seat in front of her. While she’s
talking she puts her passport away in her bag and I see she’s Canadian.

She asks me what I do and I tell her. Then I ask her some more about her job and
she tells me about that. By this time we are in the air and climbing towards our
cruising altitude. The cabin is quiet, lights still dimmed, just the gentle sound of the
air conditioning and the murmur of conversations. The flight to Singapore is three
and a half hours. I can’t decide whether to attempt sleep. It is nearly midnight and it
hardly seems worth it. The man in the window seat has put on eye-shades and has
an inflated pillow around his neck. He has slipped down in the seat with his head
lolling to one side, his blanket pulled up to his chest. The woman shows no
inclination to sleep so I ask her where she grew up.

She tells me her father is a medical doctor and that he went to Canada before she
was born. They spent a few years in Montreal but most of the time she lived in
Saskatchewan. ‘It was OK,’ she says. ‘There are things happening there, it’s not as
dull as you might think.’ She tells me sometimes in the winter it would get down to
minus sixty.
‘Really it was minus thirty,’ she says. ‘But the wind chill factor made it feel like minus
sixty. I remember them saying on the weather forecast “human flesh will freeze in
1.4 seconds.” Things like that.’

‘I’ve never been anywhere that cold,’ I say.

‘Somehow it didn’t feel that bad,’ she says. ‘It was like a dry cold. When the sun was
shining it didn’t seem that cold. It makes your skin kind of tingle. We used to play
out in it. You can get seriously cold and not realise it. When you’re back indoors
your face and hands ache as the blood comes back. I suppose that is how polar
(line 52) explorers end up losing toes. They don’t realise how cold they are.

‘I suppose so,’ I say. There’s a pause in the conversation and I wonder what to say
next.

‘I guess you get the other extreme living in India.’

‘Bangalore is fine,’ she says, ‘though we need rain. The drought is very bad in south
India right now.’

The woman asks me how I got into my present job and I tell her a bit about my life.
At least I tell her the story which over time has fashioned itself into what I call my
life. It’s not that I’m being deliberately secretive or deceitful. I just don’t know how
to talk about what really happened.

1 What do we find out about the woman in the first paragraph?

A She is annoyed at having to change seats with another passenger.

B She finds a mistake she makes amusing.

C She wants to get on with her work during the flight.

D She has difficulty finding room for items she brought on board.

2 What does the woman say at the beginning of the conversation?

A She has Canadian nationality.

B She usually works in Thailand.

C She is currently both studying and working.

D She is going to work for a different employer.

3 Why does the writer stay awake throughout the flight?

A There is a lot of mechanical noise on the plane.

B Nobody else on board seems to want to sleep.

C Some of the passengers are talking loudly.

D He would not be able to sleep very long.

4 Woman talks about temperatures in Canada to show that

A it could sometimes be extremely cold in Montreal.

B India is a more pleasant country to live in than Canada.

C the place where she grew up could be interesting.

D in Saskatchewan children had to stay at home all winter.

5 What does ‘that’ refer to in line 52?

A failing to notice how cold some parts of the body really are

B wearing clothes that do not cover the skin in very cold weather

C playing games outside in extremely low temperatures

D going into a warm place straight from somewhere much colder

6 The writer mentions the weather in India because

A he realises the woman wants to change the subject.

B he wants to keep the conversation going.

C he finds the weather an interesting topic to discuss.

D he had wanted to ask the woman about it while she was talking.

“Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.”

 A varied career
Chloe Kelling, a successful model and singer-songwriter,
now has a new venture
I arrive for my interview with Chloe Kelling and I’m asked to wait in the garden. I
hardly have time to start looking round at the carefully tended flowerbeds when
Chloe appears. Every bit as tall and striking as I’d expected, Chloe emerges from the
house wearing an oversized man’s jacket, a delicately patterned top and jeans.
Chloe is known for her slightly quirky sense of fashion and, of course, she looks
great as she makes her way towards me through the flowerbeds.

‘Let’s talk in my office,’ she says, leading the way not back to the house, but instead
to an ancient caravan parked up next to it. As we climb inside the compact little van,
the smell of fresh baking greets us. A tiny table is piled high with cupcakes, each
iced in a different colour. Chloe’s been busy, and there’s a real sense of playing tea
parties in a secret den! But what else should I have expected from a woman with
such a varied and interesting career?

Chloe originally trained as a make-up artist, having left her home in the country at
nineteen to try and make her name as a model in London, and soon got work in
adverts and the fashion business. ‘I went to Japan to work for a short period, but
felt very homesick at first,’ she recalls. ‘It was very demanding work and, though I
met loads of nice people, it was too much to take in at nineteen. If I’d stayed longer,
I might have settled in better.’

Alongside the modelling, Chloe was also beginning to make contacts in the music
business. ‘I’d been the typical kid, singing with a hairbrush in front of the mirror,
dreaming of being a star one day,’ she laughs. She joined a girl band which ‘broke
up before we got anywhere’, before becoming the lead singer with the band
Whoosh, which features on a best-selling clubbing album. Unusually though, Chloe
also sings with two other bands, one based in Sweden and another in London, and
each of these has a distinct style.

It was her work with Whoosh that originally led to Chloe’s link with Sweden. She
was offered a song-writing job there with a team that was responsible for songs for
some major stars, but gradually became more involved in writing music for her own
band.

Although she now divides her time between London and Sweden, her first stay
there turned out to be much longer than she’d bargained for. ‘The rooms are very
tall over there and so people have these rather high beds that you climb up to,’ she
explains. ‘I fell as I climbed up the ladder and cracked three ribs. Although the
people at the hospital were very kind, I was stuck there for a while, which was very
frustrating. Sneezing and laughing were so painful at first, let alone singing!’

It was while recovering from her injuries that Chloe hit upon the idea of staging
what she calls vintage fairs. ‘It was snowing in Sweden and I wanted something nice
to look forward to.’ Chloe had always loved vintage clothes, particularly from the
1950s, and decided to stage an event for others who shared her passion. The first
fair was held in her home village and featured stalls selling all sorts of clothes and
crafts dating back to the 1950s. It was a huge hit, with 300 people turning up.

‘When I had the idea of the first fair, it was only meant to be a one-off, but we had
so many compliments, I decided to go ahead with more,’ says Chloe. ‘There’s
something for all ages and people find old things have more character than stuff
you buy in modern shops. It also fits perfectly with the idea of recycling.’ Looking
round Chloe’s caravan, I can see what she means.

31. In the first paragraph, the writer suggests that Chloe

A usually keeps people waiting.

В is much taller than he expected.

C lives up to her stylish reputation.

D is surprisingly interested in flowers.

32. What do we learn about Chloe in the second paragraph?

A She’s cooked something for her guest.

В She’s expecting some other visitors today.

C She has no room in her house for an office.

D She invites very few people into her caravan.

33. What does Chloe say about her trip to Japan?

A She soon got used to her life there.

В She felt lonely most of the time there.

C She wishes she’d done the work better.

D She wasn’t old enough to appreciate it fully.

34. In the fourth paragraph, we find out that Chloe

A gave up modelling to become a singer.

В had always had ambitions to be a singer.

C has now left the first successful band she joined.

D sings in three bands that have a very similar sound.

35. Chloe ended up in hospital in Sweden after

A breaking a rib whilst trying to move her bed.

В hurting her leg in a fall from her bed.

C falling off a ladder in her bedroom.

D tripping over in her room at night.

36. What does Chloe say about her ‘vintage fairs’?

A Her main aim is to raise awareness of environmental issues.

В She has responded to positive feedback from customers.

C Certain shops are now showing interest in the idea.

D They are mostly popular with older people.

 UNTITILED
A whole year had gone by since Tyler and I’d hung out together and I’d grown used
to people reporting bad things about him. Mostly I just sighed. I’d accepted the fact
that he was no longer the lad I once knew. He’d chosen the wrong kind of people to
hang around with and had got into trouble. I knew these things only too well. Still,
the news that he was in hospital shook me all the same. It was Beth’s brother who
told me.

‘Wait for me outside Whitechapel station, Ashe,’ Beth had said. She was late and I
kept looking at my mobile to check the time.

The odd thing was that I’d been thinking about Tyler since the previous afternoon.
I’d seen him while walking home from college. He’d got out of a car about ten
metres in front of me. It had taken me only a second to recognise who it was and I’d
darted into the doorway of a closed shop to avoid coming face to face with him.

When eventually I’d peeked out, he was standing on the pavement speaking on the
phone. He had a long coat on over jeans and boots. His hair was cropped and his
face was pale. He wasn’t wearing his glasses and his free hand was cutting the air as
if he was making points while talking. He was looking round but his attention was
on the call. Suddenly, he brought it to an abrupt end and slipped the mobile into a
pocket. He walked a couple of steps and then, to my dismay, he spotted me. He
smiled and headed in my direction. I kept my face towards the glass window and
studied one of the posters that had been stuck there. ‘Ashe!’ he’d called.

‘Oh, hi!’

‘What are you up to?’ he said, glancing at the poster on the shop window. I
stumbled out some words about looking for a gig to go to. I’d no idea what my hair
looked like or if I’d got a spot on my chin or if he’d noticed me earlier watching him
from the shop doorway. ‘Fancy a coffee?’ he said.

‘I’ve got to be somewhere,’ I said, stepping out of the shop doorway and making off.

‘See you, Ashe,’ he’d called after me.

After about twenty metres, I looked round and saw that he was in exactly the same
position, staring at me. He raised his hand in a tiny wave and I turned and went on.
I didn’t look back again.

I’d thought about him on and off during the previous evening. Now, while waiting
for Beth, I thought about him again. I wondered what he was doing. I pictured the
funny brown glasses he’d worn to read with and wondered if he still read books by
George Orwell. Perhaps I should have gone for that coffee, I might not get another
chance to find out what he was really up to these days.

Beth was very late. A couple of cars started hooting and there were some raised
voices from a group of pedestrians who were ignoring the red man and crossing
the road. I looked through the shoppers to see if I could see Beth’s cheery face but
there was no sign. I took my mobile out of my pocket again and stared at the
screen, but again drew a blank. I wondered what to do. I was stamping my feet with
the cold. Something must have happened. Beth wouldn’t just leave me standing in
the freezing cold for no reason. Tyler came into my mind again. That’s when I saw
her brother walking towards me.

31 In the first paragraph, Ashe is surprised to discover that Tyler

A has got into trouble again.

B has made unsuitable friends.

C has been admitted to hospital.

D has been the subject of rumours.

32 How did Ashe feel when she’d first seen Tyler the previous day?

A unsure if it was him

B surprised that he was driving.

C keen that he shouldn’t see her

D upset that he didn’t recognise her.

33 The word ‘it’ (Paragraph Four, underlined) refers to

A a movement.

B a conversation.

C a way of looking.

D a piece of equipment.

34 When Tyler finally noticed her, Ashe felt

A relieved that he was smiling.

B sure he’d been waiting for her.

C offended by something he said.

D concerned about her appearance.

35 After meeting Tyler the previous day, Ashe had felt

A sorry that she’d been rude.

B curious about his current life.

C guilty about refusing his invitation.

D convinced that she would see him again.

36 The phrase ‘drew a blank’ (last paragraph, underlined) suggests that

A Beth had left no message.

B Ashe’s mobile wasn’t working.

C Ashe had decided to wait no longer.

D Beth was just being typically unreliable.

“You can’t be that kid standing at the top of the waterslide, overthinking it.
You have to go down the chute.”
 THE DICTIONARY
‘How is the Dictionary getting on?’ said Winston, raising his voice to overcome the
noise.

‘Slowly,’ said Syme. ‘I’m on the adjectives. It’s fascinating.’

He had brightened up immediately at the mention of Newspeak. He pushed his

bowl aside, took up his hunk of bread in one delicate hand and his cheese in the
other, and leaned across the table so as to be able to speak without shouting.

‘The Eleventh Edition is the definitive edition,’ he said. ‘We’re getting the language
into its final shape – the shape it’s going to have when nobody speaks anything else.
When we’ve finished with it, people like you will have to learn it all over again. You
think, I dare say, that our chief job is inventing new words. But not a bit of it! We’re
destroying words – scores of them, hundreds of them, every day. We’re cutting the
language down to the bone. The Eleventh Edition won’t contain a single word that
will become obsolete before the year 2050.’

He bit hungrily into his bread and swallowed a couple of mouthfuls, then continued
speaking, with a sort of pedant’s passion. His thin dark face had become animated,
his eyes had lost their mocking expression and grown almost dreamy.

‘It’s a beautiful thing, the destruction of words. Of course the great wastage is in the
verbs and adjectives, but there are hundreds of nouns that can be got rid of as well.
It isn’t only the synonyms; there are also the antonyms. After all, what justification
is there for a word which is simply the opposite of some other word? A word
contains its opposite in itself. Take “good”, for instance. If you have a word like
“good”, what need is there for a word like “bad”? “Ungood” will do just as well –
better, because it’s an exact opposite, which the other is not. Or again, if you want a
stronger version of “good”, what sense is there in having a whole string of vague
useless words like “excellent” and “splendid” and all the rest of them? “Plusgood”
covers the meaning, or “doubleplusgood” if you want something stronger still. Of
course we use those forms already. But in the final version of Newspeak there’ll be
nothing else. In the end the whole notion of goodness and badness will be covered
by only six words – in reality, only one word. Don’t you see the beauty of that,
Winston? It was B.B.’s idea originally, of course,’ he added as an afterthought.
A sort of vapid eagerness flitted across Winston’s face at the mention of Big
Brother. Nevertheless Syme immediately detected a certain lack of enthusiasm.

‘You haven’t a real appreciation of Newspeak, Winston,’ he said almost sadly. ‘Even
when you write it you’re still thinking in Oldspeak. I’ve read some of those pieces
that you write in ‘The Times’ occasionally. They’re good enough, but they’re
translations. In your heart you’d prefer to stick to Oldspeak, with all its vagueness
and its useless shades of meaning. You don’t grasp the beauty of the destruction of
words. Do you know that Newspeak is the only language in the world whose
vocabulary gets smaller every year?’

Winston did know that, of course. He smiled, sympathetically he hoped, not trusting
himself to speak. Syme bit off another fragment of the dark-coloured bread,
chewed it briefly, and went on.

‘Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought?
In the end we shall make thought crime literally impossible because there will be no
words in which to express it. Every concept that can ever be needed, will be
expressed by exactly one word, with its meaning rigidly defined and all its
subsidiary meanings rubbed out and forgotten. Already, in the Eleventh Edition,
we’re not far from that point. But the process will still be continuing long after you
and I are dead. Every year fewer and fewer words, and the range of consciousness
always a little smaller. Even now, of course, there’s no reason or excuse for
committing thought crime. It’s merely a question of self-discipline, reality control.
But in the end there won’t be any need even for that. The Revolution will be
complete when the language is perfect. Newspeak is Ingsoc and Ingsoc is
Newspeak,’ he added with a sort of mystical satisfaction. ‘Has it ever occurred to
you, Winston, that by the year 2050, at the very latest, not a single human being will
be alive who could understand such a conversation as we are having now?’

31 Winston and Syme are

A in a cafeteria.

B at a party.

C at school.

D in an office.
32 Syme likes

A the food.

B hearing Winston’s opinions.

C talking about his work.

D to shout.

33 What kind of words are being the most greatly reduced?

A adjectives

B verbs and adjectives

C nouns

D everything except antonyms

34 What can be gathered about Winston’s attitude towards Newspeak?

A He finds it exciting.

B He studies it eagerly.

C He is outspokenly against it.

D He accepts it unhappily.

35 Which of the following best describes Newspeak?

A It is a historical language being reconstructed.

B It is a highly simplified language designed to prevent thought.

C It was invented to help citizens escape an oppressive government.

D It is a new language that is incredibly difficult to learn.

36 What kind of future does Syme imagine?

A Everyone will be better educated.

B People will be safe because there will be no violent crime.

C People will not have enough language to think at all.

D People will communicate better and more effectively.

ALICE IN WONDERLAND
Before she had drunk half the bottle, she found her head pressing against the
ceiling, and had to stoop to save her neck from being broken. She hastily put down
the bottle, saying to herself ‘That’s quite enough – I hope I will not grow any more –
as it is, I can’t get out at the door – I do wish I hadn’t drunk quite so much!’

Alas, it was too late to wish that! She went on growing, and growing, and very soon
had to kneel down on the floor: in another minute there was not even room for
this, and she tried the effect of lying down with one elbow against the door, and the
other arm curled round her head. Still she went on growing, and, as a last resource,
she put one arm out of the window, and one foot up the chimney, and said to
herself ‘Now I can do no more, whatever happens. What will become of me?’

Luckily for Alice, the little magic bottle had now had its full effect, and she grew no
larger: Still it was very uncomfortable, and, as there seemed to be no sort of chance
of her ever getting out of the room again, no wonder she felt unhappy.

‘It was much pleasanter at home,’ thought poor Alice, ‘when one wasn’t always
growing larger and smaller, and being ordered about by mice and rabbits. I almost
wish I hadn’t gone down that rabbit hole – and yet… and yet – it ’s rather curious,
you know, this sort of life! I do wonder what can have happened to me! When I
used to read fairy-tales, I fancied that kind of thing never happened, and now here l
am in the middle of one! There ought to be a book written about me, that there
ought! And when l grow up, I’ll write one… but I’m grown up now,’ she added in a
sorrowful tone; ‘at least there’s no room to grow up any more in here.’

‘But then,’ thought Alice, ‘will I never get any older than I am now? That’ll be a
comfort, one way… never to be an old woman… but then… always to have lessons
to learn! Oh, I shouldn’t like that!’
‘Oh, you foolish Alice!’ she answered herself. ‘How can you learn lessons in here?
Why, there’s hardly room for you, and no room at all for any lesson books!’

And so she went on, taking first one side and then the other, and making quite a
conversation of it altogether; but after a few minutes she heard a voice outside, and
stopped to listen.

‘Mary Ann! Mary Ann!’ said the voice. ‘Fetch me my gloves this moment!’ Then came
a little pattering of feet on the stairs. Alice knew it was the Rabbit coming to look for
her, and she trembled till she shook the house, quite forgetting that she was now
about a thousand times as large as the Rabbit, and had no reason to be afraid of it.

Presently the Rabbit came up to the door, and tried to open it; but, as the door
opened inwards, and Alice’s elbow was pressed hard against it, that attempt proved
a failure. Alice heard it say to itself ‘Then I’ll go round and get in at the window.’

‘That you won’t’ thought Alice, and, after waiting till she fancied she heard the
Rabbit just under the window, she suddenly spread out her hand, and made a
snatch in the air. She did not get hold of anything, but she heard a little shriek and a
fall, and a crash of broken glass, from which she concluded that it was just possible
it had fallen into a cucumber-frame, or something of the sort.

Next came an angry voice – the Rabbit’s – ’Pat! Pat! Where are you?’ And then a
voice she had never heard before, ‘Sure then I’m here! Digging for apples, your
honour!’

’Digging for apples, indeed!’ said the Rabbit angrily. ‘Here! Come and help me out of
this!’ (Sounds of more broken glass.)

‘Now tell me, Pat, what’s that in the window?’

‘Sure, it’s an arm, your honour!’

‘An arm, you goose! Who ever saw one that size? Why, it fills the whole window!’

‘Sure, it does, your honour: but it’s an arm for all that.’

31 Why didn’t Alice leave the house when she noticed she was growing?

A She couldn’t find her way out.

B She was already too big.

C She was hiding from the Rabbit.

D She was comfortable there.

32 As she grew, Alice had to

A keep changing position.

B break the roof of the house.

C be very gentle.

D climb up the chimney.

33 Alice had a long conversation with

A the Rabbit.

B herself.

C an old woman.

D Pat.

34 Mary Ann is most likely

A the name of the Rabbit.

B what the Rabbit calls Alice.

C Alice’s little sister.

D Alice’s friend.

35 Before the Rabbit called him, Pat was spending his time

A doing something secret.

B hiding from the Rabbit.

C doing something silly.

D growing food.

36 Why does the Rabbit argue about what they see in the window?

A He knows that Pot is foolish.

B He can’t see it clearly.

C He can’t believe his eyes.

D He is trying to trick Pat.

REMEMBERING NAMES
‘Claire, it’s Ruth.’ Claire held back a sigh and walked into the kitchen to put the
coffee machine on. A phone call from her sister was never over quickly.

‘Ruth, darling. How are you?’ As she waited for her sister to start describing in detail
her latest disaster, Claire mulled over how much to reveal about her new business
assignment. Her family would have to be told something, of course. Not that they
ever came to visit, or called her home phone, or sent her letters. Still, it seemed
only right to tell them it meant she was moving out for twelve months. Tuning back
into the phone call, Claire realised she had missed some key information and tried
to catch up with what her sister was talking about.

‘So the doctor said it was probably lack of sleep. You know Sky is a bad sleeper and
her nightmares have been worse since she started Year Two.’ Claire worked out
that someone was unwell, but was unsure whether it was her sister or her six-year-
old niece.

Claire thought about her own schooling. Her parents had paid for the best,
obviously, although Claire often wondered whether that was to ensure their three
children didn’t affect their lifestyle, rather than to give their offspring a good start in
life. The school had encouraged independence and character but had no time for
tears and tantrums. Claire had learned quickly to work hard and stay out of trouble.
More than could be said for Ruth. It had been a constant disappointment to her
parents that, while their first and third children both achieved academic success,
Ruth only acquired a reputation for bad behaviour.

Ruth’s next sentence sharply interrupted Claire’s thoughts.

‘The tests are the week after next. That’s why I’m calling. Is there any chance you
could come and look after Sky? It’s half-term and most of her friends are going
skiing. Of course we can’t afford that…’
Claire inhaled deeply and forced herself not to rise to the bait. Ruth was always
poor and begrudged Claire her success. Claire accepted that looking after a child on
your own probably limited your career options, but look at the ‘Harry Potter’ author
J. K. Rowling, it hadn’t held her back. She was convinced Ruth could help herself if
only she’d try harder. Claire was almost too irritated by the thinly-veiled criticism to
react to the request, but not quite.

‘Have Sky? How long for? When?’ Claire could hear panic in her voice and forced
herself to breathe in deeply. Once she was sure she was back in control of her
emotions she said in a slow voice,‘I start a new work assignment on 1st March, and
I’ll… be on the road a lot. You know. Meeting clients.’

‘Dining out on someone else’s credit card.’ Ruth’s voice cut in.

‘There’s more to it than that,’ Claire responded quickly. Then, before Ruth could
start the age-old argument, Claire consciously lowered her voice.

‘Tell me the day you need me to have Sky, I’ll check my diary.’

‘Well, it’s two days, actually.’ Ruth sounded embarrassed.

Thinking about minding a six-year-old for two days almost made Claire choke. She
gulped down her coffee and wondered if she could use the new assignment as an
excuse.

There was something in Ruth’s voice, though, that made her pause.

‘Can’t Mum take care of her? I thought Mum and Dad were the perfect
grandparents?’ It seemed odd to Claire that two people who had no time for their
own children could go mad over someone else’s, even if they were their grandkids.

‘Er, Mum’s coming with me, to the hospital.’

Ruth’s words finally got through to Claire. ‘Just what tests are you having exactly?’

‘Weren’t you listening? You never listen to me.’

Claire almost smiled at the petulant tone in Ruth’s voice. For a moment they were
twelve and fourteen again.
31 When Claire realises who is phoning her, she

A expects to hear some good news

B tries to hide her true feelings.

C hopes it will be a long conversation.

D knows exactly what she will say to Ruth.

32 Why doesn’t Claire know who is ill?

A Ruth didn’t make it clear who she was talking about.

B None of her other relatives had written to her about it.

C She was away on business when the illness began.

D She wasn’t paying attention when Ruth was speaking.

33 How does Claire feel about her school?

A She would have achieved more at a better school.

B Her parents never appreciated how successful she was there.

C Her sister was better suited to that school than she was.

D She may have been sent there for the wrong reasons.

34 What is Claire’s attitude to Ruth’s financial problems?

A She feels they are largely Ruth’s own fault.

B She wishes she could do more to help Ruth.

C She thinks Ruth could get any well-paid job she wanted.

D She feels guilty about having more money than Ruth.

35 What does ‘There’s more to it than that’ refer to? (second half of the text,
sentence underlined)

A spending the firm’s money

B the task Claire has been given

C looking after Ruth’s daughter

D the reason Claire sounds stressed

36 What do we learn about Claire and her family?

A Her relationship with her sister has completely changed since their childhood.

B She realises that her parents treated her very well when she was a child.

C She doesn’t understand why her parents are so close to their grandchildren.

D She accepts that her mother is more interested in Ruth than in her.

A lot can happen in a year abroad

Like many students before her, studying abroad bad a profound affect on Sarah
Morrison

As I sat staring out at California’s spectacular Big Sur coastline, I felt fortunate to
have a sister who had persuaded me to spend a year of my degree abroad. It
seems that there are not enough older siblings explaining just how easy it is to take
part in an international exchange.

While most universities offer worldwide exchanges, where students swap places
with others from all over the world for a semester or a year during their degree, the
number and quality on offer, together with the cost and time spent abroad, vary
dramatically.

A deciding factor for me in choosing to study at the University of Edinburgh was the
fact it offered more than 230 exchange places at overseas universities in the US,
Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, China, South Korea, Japan, Singapore and
South America.
Despite all this choice, I still found that deciding to spend a year abroad was
something of a novelty, with most of my friends giving more thought to embracing
Edinburgh than packing their bags to leave a city that had only just become their
home. Yet, fortified by my sister’s advice and a Californian friend who told me I
would love the coast, I applied to spend my third year at the University of California,
Berkeley – never guessing that this would affect almost every future decision I
would make.

From the start of your exchange, you are aware that the time you have in your new
country is limited and not to be wasted. Your experience is shaped by a
predetermined start and end, which immediately increases the significance of the
time in between.

From the first week I arrived, I started to work at The Daily Californian, Berkeley’s
student newspaper. I moved from an international house with more than 600
students from all over the world into a co-operative house where 60 of us shared
responsibility for management of the building. I met people from Calcutta, Cairo
and Chile, and learnt that holding on to any stereotypes I might have about
Americans would be about as useful as assuming that all European people lived on
farms.

The grades I earned at Berkeley didn’t actually count towards my degree

classification at Edinburgh. However, I studied under a Pulitzer Prize-winning poet,
signed up for student-led seminars and took an African American literature class
that shaped my dissertation in Edinburgh. Whether I was learning about
contemporary poets on a tour of San Francisco or reporting on the President’s
speech in San Francisco for the next day’s newspaper, my stay there enabled me to
return to Edinburgh with an increased sense of awareness about what I wanted to
gain from my English literature degree.

While the expense might seem like an initial barrier to international exchanges, in
reality they can actually save a student money. Visas, health insurance and flights to
the chosen country will have to be bought, but a student will usually only be
charged 25 to 50 per cent of their home university’s annual fees. A student
travelling abroad is entitled to a larger student loan, and grants are available at
many institutions for students going on an exchange.

Taking part in an exchange may not appeal to all students. You have to research the
options independently, apply almost a year before you go away and be aware of
the grades required in the first year to qualify for a place on one. Even so,
Edinburgh’s international exchange officer, Helen Leitch, says: ‘If I had a pound for
every time that students told me it was the best experience of their life, I would be
a very wealthy woman indeed.’

31 One reason Sarah became a student at Edinburgh University was that

A she could first study abroad and then move to Edinburgh.

B her sister had previously studied at Edinburgh.

C she could do part of her studies at a suitable university abroad.

D most of the students at Edinburgh spend a year at an overseas university

32 How did Sarah feel when she went to Berkeley?

A She was pleased to find the people were exactly as she had expected.

B She knew she wanted to make the most of her stay there.

C She wanted to get a job rather than begin studying immediately.

D She began to wish her stay there could be a little shorter.

33 What does Sarah feel she achieved at Berkeley?

A She formed a clearer idea of what her long-term aims were.

B She took the first steps towards becoming a teacher.

C She developed her poetry-writing skills significantly.

D She ensured that she would graduate with a first-class degree.

34 What does Sarah say about the cost of an international university exchange?

A As a student you can get reduced rates for health insurance.

B Your fees may be cut by half for every year of your course.
C It can be cheaper overall than studying in your own country.

D Taking cheap flights abroad can save you a lot of money.

35 What does ‘one’ refer to in the last paragraph (underlined)?

A an international exchange as part of a university course

B a research degree at a university in another country

C a university course that is paid for by the government

D the first year of a university course in your own country

36 What does Helen Leitch suggest in the final paragraph?

A Students who do international exchanges often go on to become extremely rich.

B Most students who’ve done an international exchange believe it was highly

worthwhile.

C Only students from rich families can afford to do an international exchange.

D She should be paid a far higher salary for organising international exchanges.
 SKATING IN SWEDEN
Alex North felt uncomfortable. With little time to pack, she’d forgotten her
professional suit jacket. So she was wearing flat black boots, dark denim jeans, a
longsleeve white T shirt and fawn shawl; she looked more like a protestor than a
journalist. Tiredness added to her misery. As she made her way home last night,
she had expected to be enjoying a Saturday morning lie-in. But after a panicky 2
a.m. phone call from her editor Gerome, a tense cab ride to the hospital and then
an 8 a.m. plane from Heathrow to Prague, her day was far off course. She’d had
little rest on the plane; after embarrassing herself by flinging out an arm in her
sleep and hitting the crew-cut young American sitting next to her, she sat awake
and rigid for the rest of the flight.

Bernie was meant to be in Prague covering this story. ‘It all boils down to this, my
dear,’ he had said last night during their evening out with the others from the office.
‘If I can get a really good story at the international conference, I might actually
retire. Job done. Go home. It’s that important.’

Bernie left earlier than Alex, keen to go over his notes and finish packing. Alex
stayed out with the rest of her colleagues, and she’d barely made it into bed when
Gerome had called to pass on the terrible news. Bernie was in hospital. His wife
said he collapsed when he got home. The doctors diagnosed a stroke. Alex was so
horrified that the Prague conference, and the large number of protestors expected
to turn up there, was the last thing on her mind. But Gerome insisted she go in
Bernie’s place. He told her to get a good night’s sleep, knowing full well she would
get dressed and rush to visit Bernie.

Bernie Cook and his wife Laura had been like parents to Alex since she arrived in
London from Australia four years ago. ‘Aren’t you a bit old to be a trainee?’ was the
first of many questions Bernie asked. Alex explained that journalism wasn’t her first
career choice. She tried her hand at accounting, but found her office job was
torture. Her three-year communications degree was far more satisfying, but left her
jobless and penniless at age 28. So off to London it was, with a traineeship at the
UK’s best investigative daily newspaper, living in the city’s smallest, cheapest flat
and sustained by a weekly roast dinner at Bernie and Laura’s.
Anyone overhearing Alex and Bernie talking would never think there was a 30-year
age difference. Bernie’s passion for political debate – and conspiracy theories – kept
Alex enthralled for hours. And his talent for journalism had rubbed off. Seeing him
lying there unconscious, so still and frail, was a shock to Alex. Laura looked visibly
withered, leaning over Bernie’s face as if frightened she might miss something if
she glanced away. She barely looked up long enough to give Bernie’s iPad to Alex so
she could study his notes for the assignment.

Alex pretended to feel confident as she hurried across Charles Bridge towards the
conference venue – Prague Castle. She was staying near the Old Town Square, in
the predictably modest hotel booked by Bernie. Alex had politely endured the
hotelier’s gossip; Bernie always said the people were the best thing about Prague.
But Alex loved the pastel feel of the city, the swans on the river and the winding
cobbled streets. She knew her way around, having visited once before with a
forgettable ex-boyfriend. She recalled being more impressed with Prague than with
him. It was no wonder the relationship petered out like all the others.

31 In the first paragraph, what do we learn about Alex?

A She was excited at the prospect of working in Prague.

B She was feeling better after sleeping on the plane.

C She was worried her clothes were unsuitable for work.

D She had known it was going to be a busy night.

32 What does ‘it all boils down to this’ mean? (Paragraph Two, underlined)

A as far as I am aware

B this is the only problem

C what annoys me is this

D to sum up the situation

33 When Alex’s boss rang her

A he expected her to do everything he said.

B he told her to go to the airport immediately.

C he said she had to cover the story in Prague.

D he wanted her to go to Bernie and Laura’s house.

34 Why did Alex become a journalist?

A She was an unemployed graduate looking for work.

B She was attracted by the high salaries in London.

C Bernie had encouraged her to do the same job as him.

D That was what she had always wanted to be.

35 What upset Alex at the hospital?

A Laura’s attitude towards her.

B Bernie’s notes about the conference.

C What Bernie said when she arrived there.

D The contrast with how Bernie usually was.

36 How did Alex feel when she arrived in Prague?

A She was sad her ex-boyfriend wasn’t there with her.

B She was glad to be there again.

C She was sure she would do a good job there.

D She liked the luxury accommodation she had there.

Caitlin’s life on an island

We live on the island of Hale. It’s about four kilometres long and two kilometres
wide at its broadest point, and it’s joined to the mainland by a causeway called the
Stand – a narrow road built across the mouth of the river which separates us from
the rest of the country. Most of the time you wouldn’t know we’re on an island
because the river mouth between us and the mainland is just a vast stretch of tall
grasses and brown mud. But when there’s a high tide and the water rises a half a
metre or so above the road and nothing can pass until the tide goes out again a few
hours later, then you know it’s an island.

We were on our way back from the mainland. My older brother, Dominic, had just
finished his first year at university in a town 150 km away. Dominic’s train was due
in at five and he’d asked for a lift back from the station. Now, Dad normally hates
being disturbed when he’s writing (which is just about all the time), and he also
hates having to go anywhere, but despite the typical sighs and moans – why can’t
he get a taxi? what’s wrong with the bus? – I could tell by the sparkle in his eyes that
he was really looking forward to seeing Dominic.

So, anyway, Dad and I had driven to the mainland and picked up Dominic from the
station. He had been talking non-stop from the moment he’d slung his rucksack in
the boot and got in the car. University this, university that, writers, books, parties,
people, money, gigs…. And when I say talking, I don’t mean talking as in having a
conversation, I mean talking as in jabbering like a mad thing. I didn’t like it … the
way he spoke and waved his hands around as if he was some kind of intellectual or
something. It was embarrassing. It made me feel uncomfortable – that kind of
discomfort you feel when someone you like, someone close to you, suddenly starts
acting like a complete idiot. And I didn’t like the way he was ignoring me, either. For
all the attention I was getting I might as well not have been there. I felt a stranger in
my own car.

As we approached the island on that Friday afternoon, the tide was low and the
Stand welcomed us home, stretched out before us, clear and dry, beautifully hazy
in the heat – a raised strip of grey concrete bound by white railings and a low
footpath on either side, with rough cobbled banks leading down to the water.
Beyond the railings, the water was glinting with that wonderful silver light we
sometimes get here in the late afternoon which lazes through to the early evening.

We were about halfway across when I saw the boy. My first thought was how odd it
was to see someone walking on the Stand. You don’t often see people walking
around here. Between Hale and Moulton (the nearest town about thirty kilometres
away on the mainland), there’s nothing but small cottages, farmland, heathland and
a couple of hills. So islanders don’t walk because of that. If they’re going to Moulton
they tend to take the bus. So the only pedestrians you’re likely to see around here
are walkers or bird-watchers. But even from a distance I could tell that the figure
ahead didn’t fit into either of these categories. I wasn’t sure how I knew, I just did.

As we drew closer, he became clearer. He was actually a young man rather than a
boy. Although he was on the small side, he wasn’t as slight as I’d first thought. He
wasn’t exactly muscular, but he wasn’t weedy-looking either. It’s hard to explain.
There was a sense of strength about him, a graceful strength that showed in his
balance, the way he held himself, the way he walked…

31 In the first paragraph, what is Caitlin’s main point about the island?

A It can be dangerous to try to cross from the mainland.

B It is much smaller than it looks from the mainland.

C It is only completely cut off at certain times.

D It can be a difficult place for people to live in.

32 What does Caitlin suggest about her father?

A His writing prevents him from doing things he wants to with his family.

B His initial reaction to his son’s request is different from usual.

C His true feelings are easily hidden from his daughter.

D His son’s arrival is one event he will take time off for.

33 Caitlin emphasises her feelings of discomfort because she

A is embarrassed that she doesn’t understand what her brother is talking about.

B feels confused about why she can’t relate to her brother any more.

C is upset by the unexpected change in her brother’s behaviour.

D feels foolish that her brother’s attention is so important to her.

34 In the fourth paragraph, what is Caitlin’s purpose in describing the island?

A to express her positive feelings about it

B to explain how the road was built

C to illustrate what kind of weather was usual

D to describe her journey home

35 In ‘because of that’ in Paragraph Five (underlined), ‘that’ refers to the fact that

A locals think it is odd to walk anywhere.

B it is easier for people to take the bus than walk.

C people have everything they need on the island.

D there is nowhere in particular to walk to from the island.

36 What do we learn about Caitlin’s reactions to the boy?

A She felt his air of confidence contrasted with his physical appearance.

B She was able to come up with a reason for him being there.

C She realised her first impression of him was inaccurate.

D She thought she had seen him somewhere before.

 Distance learning
Distance learning can give students the chance to work
and learn at the same time
Nineteen-year-old Jamie Henderson hasn’t had what you’d call a typical student
experience. Despite wanting to read for a degree in Law, Jamie decided against the
usual university route and instead opted to study from home. ‘With course fees
now so high in this country, I was really put off by all the debt I would have when I
came out of university,’ he says.

Having made this decision, Jamie was able to look into alternatives – which in the
end turned out to be a degree validated by a university through a distance learning
provider. ‘It was a massive weight off my mind and it was a perfect option for me,’
Jamie says. ‘It has allowed me to stay near my friends and my family and still work
part-time.’

Jamie has been able to take on two part-time jobs – alongside his studies – but has
also been free to undertake work experience for a law firm, which has led to a full-
time job offer before he has even completed his course.

Jonathan Smith, who is studying for a BA in Business, chose to study via a distance
learning course when already in full-time employment. ‘I’d studied History, Politics
and Economics at school but going to university wasn’t even a consideration for
me,’ he explains. ‘My friends were at home, I didn’t want to be burdened with debt
and I wanted to get straight into a career.’

Jonathan completed a Business and Administration Apprenticeship with the local

council. While working as a medical administrator, he studied for a diploma and
after 12 months had valuable workplace experience. ‘I ’d done so well at work that
they kept me on. But after six months getting settled into my new role, I was
financially stable and ready to progress my career with a degree. I didn’t want to
give up what I’d achieved to go to university, so distance learning was an appealing
choice.’

Obviously, one of the downsides to a distance learning course is that students miss
out on the experience of attending university, which means missing out on
traditional lectures. ‘Reading feedback and instructions from a screen isn’t quite the
same as talking to someone face-to-face,’ Jamie says. ‘It’s also a lot of work to do on
your own. I don’t have a close circle of friends going through the same thing, so I
can’t really ask my peers for help and advice. However, I’ve found the online
student forums helpful and the firm I’ve been working for have offered advice and
guidance when I’ve needed it.’

‘I haven’t met as many new people as I would have, had I moved away,’ says Jamie.
‘But I have met new people through work instead. It’s just a different type of
experience, which is just as rewarding and ultimately, in my opinion, makes me
more employable.’

For anyone considering a distance learning course, there are several other factors
to be considered; perhaps most importantly, motivation. ‘Distance learning isn’t an
easy option,’ says Dr Philip Hallam, Chief Executive Officer of a distance and online
learning provider. ‘It’s going to be a substantial commitment, not only financially
but also on your time. We need to make sure that people have really thought it
through and understand why they want a degree. You will need to dig deep
occasionally.’

Jonathan Smith is confident in the choices he’s made regarding education, but
believes more could be done to make young people aware of the choices they have.
‘When I left school with good qualifications, I was shocked at how little advice was
available on options other than university. Everyone is different and education
should reflect that. I’m glad I took the route I did and I think it is important that
more people have the opportunity to study in a way that suits them.’

31 Why did Jamie decide to do his degree from home?

A His friends were also studying by distance learning.

B He had already been offered a full-time job.

C He wanted to avoid owing a lot of money.

D He was unable to obtain a place at university.

32 Jonathan’s reason for studying from home was that

A he wanted to remain in his job.

B the job he was doing was badly paid.

C his preferred subject wasn’t available at university.

D it was too late for him to apply to university.

33 In the underlined part, what does ‘my peers’ mean?

A the university staff

B students who have already graduated

C the management of the firm

D students of the same age

34 Jamie says that studying from home has enabled him to

A work with people who were also studying at the same time.

B improve his chances of finding work in the future.

C get to know more people than he would have done at university.

D concentrate on studying rather than spend time socializing.

35 Dr Hallam recommends distance learning for students who

A dislike having to work very hard.

B have little time available for study.

C cannot afford to go to university.

D know exactly what it involves.

36 In the last paragraph, Jonathan says that young people should

A be advised not to go to university.

B be made more aware of the choices they have.

C apply for work with employers like his.

D ensure they get high grades at school.

Daniel Radcliffe
I first meet Daniel Radcliffe at the offices of his agent, just before he takes to the
stage for an evening performance of The Cripple Of Inishmaan. He’s wearing tight
jeans, no glasses, and is a super ball of energy. He is extraordinarily polite, slim,
well turned out. If you’d never seen him before, you might assume he was a
children’s television presenter. But at the age of just 24 he has 16 movies behind
him, eight of them Harry Potter blockbusters. It feels as if he’s been with us forever.
The funny thing is, apart from the facial hair, he doesn’t really look any different
from the schoolboy wizard who made his screen debut in 2001.

Yet over the past half-dozen years, it seems he has done everything he could to
distinguish himself from Harry in the parts he has chosen to play. Radcliffe
disagrees with this, saying ‘I pick films based on scripts and directors and parts. I’m
not interested in making films I’ve seen before. There’s nothing more exciting to me
when I read a script than originality. That’s all it’s governed by, there’s no master
plan to distance myself from Potter.’

He says he doesn’t want to sound ungrateful. ‘I know that Potter is going to be with
me for the rest of my life, so to try to stop people talking about that any more is
stupid. It’s just a fact of your life, so you can’t get annoyed by it. You have to accept
the fact that you were involved in this incredibly cool thing and though you might
not always be happy with the work you did on it, the opportunity it has given you to
make a career for yourself is amazing.’

Was he aware how much Harry would change his life when he was offered the part?
‘No, I knew I was signing on for the first two, that four books had come out. Warner,
the film company, genuinely didn’t know at that stage if they were going to make
more than one film. If it flopped, then they certainly weren’t going to put up all that
money again.’ Did he ever consider exercising his opt-out clause? ‘By the third film, I
thought, if there’s a time to get out, it’s now; there’s still enough time for another
actor to come in and establish himself. For a while, I thought, if I do all of them, will I
be able to move on to other stuff or should I start doing other stuff now? But in the
end I decided I was having way too much fun. And actually there aren’t many great
parts out there for teenage boys, certainly not as good as Harry Potter.’

Nowadays, of course, he is incredibly wealthy. I ask whether he sometimes worries

people might socialise with him purely because of that. He laughs, and says people
are going to be sadly disappointed if they befriend him for his lavish spending.
‘Anyone who is my friend knows that I don’t spend money. So they can hang around
with me as much as they like and they still aren’t going to get anything. Haha!’ But,
he says, he has never had a problem with working out who to trust. ‘I’m a fairly
good judge of character, and I have a small but very close circle of friends. I’m not
looking to recruit new friends, though I’m actually very open with people. I had a
similar conversation with myself when I was about 17, the first time somebody had
really betrayed that trust, and I said to myself you have two options: you either
become totally insular and shut down and not let anybody into your life ever, or
you can continue to be open and amiable when you meet people, and trusting, and
occasionally get hurt. And I do think that is the best way.’

1 What do we learn about Daniel in the first paragraph?

A He is now working in TV programmes for children.

B His appearance has changed considerably since his childhood.

C He is currently acting in the theatre.

D He is amused by the way he looked in his early films.

2 What does Daniel say about his current work?

A He likes to make changes to the film scripts he is given.

B He sometimes has to accept roles he would rather reject.

C He finds it difficult to play roles that are not Harry.

D He denies he chooses roles as unlike Harry as possible.

3 What does Daniel appear to be criticising in the third paragraph?

A Some of his acting in the Harry Potter films.

B The overall quality of the Harry Potter films.

C The effect of playing Harry Potter on his career.

D Attempts to talk to him about Harry Potter.

4 When Daniel was first asked to play Harry Potter

A he thought the first film would be made on a low budget.

B he thought that only two Harry Potter books would be published.

C he had no idea how many films in the series there would be.

D he only wanted to be in the first film in the series.

5 Why did Daniel eventually decide to be in every film?

A He thought nobody else could play the role of Harry.

B He was enjoying making the films so much.

C He never considered doing any other kind of work.

D He knew it would eventually lead to different roles.

6 How does Daniel feel about friendship?

A He believes he knows how to choose friends well.

B He would like to have more friends than he has now.

C He finds it difficult to trust people these days.

D He likes to be generous to those he is close to.

 A hop, skip and a jump away
‘I want you warming up. Do some bouncing on the grass while you wait to sign in.’ It
was Paula, our coach. I wasn’t too keen on this idea, knowing it would only tire me.
My eyes met those of my three fellow triple-jumpers. We all sighed in agreement,
all wanting to conserve our energy. Nobody moved. What’s more, I needed to
qualify for the state championships. It was all I could think about. I had to jump
twenty-nine feet, six inches to do this.

The sun was bright in the cloudless sky as I looked down the runway to the sand-
filled triple-jump pit. Sounds of feet pounding on the track and cheers filled the air.
I closed my eyes and tried to imagine it; the perfect jump. I’d only recently taken up
this event and wished I’d had more practice. It’s so much more than a hop, skip and
a jump. It’s a take-off. The announcer’s voice boomed, ‘All triple-jump girls please
sign in now.’ About nine of us meandered down to the pit where he was holding a
clipboard and measuring tape.

Waiting for my turn, I checked out the competition, seeing who had the longest legs
or greatest muscle tone. My legs were still aching a little from the hundred-metre
hurdles. I stretched them out, feeling the lump in my left one, the remnants of a
pulled muscle. When I heard my name called, I began to feel nervous. What if I
didn’t make it? This was the last chance to qualify and I had three jumps to do it. I
bounced on my toes as I watched the girls before me jump. Analysing their form,
you could see those who didn’t have enough momentum from the board.

Finally my turn came. I stepped onto the runway and found my chalk mark.
Steadying myself, I narrowed my eyes and took a deep breath. Pushing off my back
foot, I lunged forward into a sprint. One, two, three, four, five and by six strides I
was on the board. The actual jump is hard to remember; a one-legged hop, a skip
and a long jump into the hot sandy pit. A long breath escaped me as I stepped out
of the pit and waited to hear my measurement. ‘Twenty-eight feet, five-and-a-half
inches’ called the clipboard guy.

I walked down the runway to be met by Paula, and was thankful for her kind face. ‘I
want you to try something. Alright? Where’s a relaxing place for you?’ ‘In the water, I
guess. Swimming.’ It was the first thing that came to mind and I didn’t realise how
silly it must sound. ‘Perfect’, she responded. ‘Right before you jump, I want you to
imagine you’re in the water, just floating, OK?’ I agreed, smiling to show my
appreciation. I paced until my name was called again.

‘Pirog, you’re up!’ I closed my eyes and imagined the water running over me,
soothing me. My muscles relaxed and I exhaled as I pushed into take-off. This sprint
felt loose and free. When I took off from the second board, I was sure my first
phase was too high, that my second was chopped, and my landing wasn’t quite
what it should have been. I stood up, shaking off the sand as the officials drew out
the long measuring tape. The suspense was killing me.

‘Twenty-nine feet, ten inches.’ I couldn’t stop myself from screaming and jumping
into the air. My team-mates rushed to me, I was encircled and soon my hand stung
from the force of all the customary high-fives. It was a relief finally to have made it
and my success couldn’t be put down to sheer luck. My face ached from smiling but
I knew I wouldn’t stop. I found Paula and ran to hug her. ‘That was all thanks to you.’
She smiled in return: ‘Thank the water.’

31 From the first paragraph we understand that Audrey

A was already feeling very tired.

B needed to beat the other jumpers.

C had a specific aim in mind that day.

D felt guilty about ignoring her coach.

32 The word ‘it’ underlined in Paragraph Two refers to

A background noise at the event.

B the place where this event is held.

C the amount of practice needed for the event.

D a technically good performance in the event.

33 In the third paragraph, Audrey reveals that

A she once suffered a leg injury.

B she had already won another event that day.

C she felt confident in her ability to achieve her goal.

D she was impressed by the performance of the other jumpers.

34 When she was talking to Paula, she felt

A embarrassed by a question her coach asked her.

B amused by a suggestion her coach made.

C sad that she’d let her coach down.

D grateful for her coach’s support.

35 During her second jump, Audrey

A was still feeling very tense.

B felt unhappy with one aspect of her jump.

C was rather self-critical of her performance.

D felt that everything was going better than last time.

36 When she heard the length of her second jump, Audrey

A realised that she had actually been very lucky.

B acknowledged the contribution of her coach.

C was surprised by her team-mates reaction.

D was lost for words for a few moments.

Student life and technology

Last Saturday, as my grandfather drove me and my sister home from a dinner to
celebrate his birthday, he got frustrated at not being able to remember the name of
the singer of a song he’d just heard on the radio. Without a second thought, I
grabbed my smartphone, searched for the song and found the name, Bob Dylan.
For me and my friends, this is a completely natural course of action, but it totally
astonished my grandfather, who didn’t understand how I had checked the
information so quickly. My sister and I laughed and explained, but afterwards, it
made me think about how much I depend on technology.

The list of the ways I use technology is endless: writing, planning, socialising,
communicating and shopping, to name a few. When I reflected on its impact on my
education, I saw that, for my fellow students and I, technology has been significant
in many ways. Returning to the story of my grandfather and the smartphone, he
had asked me more about how I used it and about university life. He said he
thought we had an easy life compared to previous generations. My sister caught my
eye and we exchanged a smile. But whereas she was thinking our grandfather was
just being a typical 65-year-old, I could see his point.

Not only are we lucky enough to have the same educational benefits as those of
previous generations, we have so many more as well. We still have walk-in libraries
available to us, and I can see why some students choose to find and use resources
in these distraction-free locations. However, the only option for studying used to be
sitting in these libraries with as many books from your reading list as you could
find, yet now a single search for your chosen study topic online can immediately
provide access to a huge range of resources. At universities, interaction between
students and university staff is another area that has changed considerably with
developments in technology. We can have face-to-face time with our tutors when
we need it, and also communicate using our electronic gadgets from the comfort of
our homes, or on the bus. The most popular means of doing this is via instant
messaging or social media – email is often considered too slow, and it has become
unacceptable for messages to be unanswered for any length of time. While this
puts an extra strain on the university’s academic support team, who usually have to
answer the queries as they come in, we students are greatly benefitted.

It’s important that we remember to appreciate how much the advances in

technology have given us. Electronic devices such as tablets, smartphones, and
laptops are now standard equipment in most classrooms and lecture halls, and why
shouldn’t they be? The replacement of textbooks with tablets allows students the
luxury of having up-to-date, interactive and even personalised learning materials,
with the added benefit of them not costing the earth.

When we compare the student life of the past and that of the present day, it is
tempting to focus on the obvious differences when it comes to technology. In actual
fact, students are doing what they’ve always done: embracing the resources
available and adapting them in ways which allow them to work more efficiently and
to live more enjoyably. The pace of change in technology continuously gathers
speed, so we have to value each innovation as it happens.

31 What does the writer illustrate by describing the incident in the car?

A the older generation’s frustration at people’s dependence on technology

B how unaware young people are of some effects of technology

C the difference in attitudes to technology between two generations

D how technology helps different generations communicate

32 What did the writer think of her grandfather’s comment, mentioned in the
second paragraph?

A It showed how out-of-date he was.

B It had an element of truth in it.

C It was an annoying thing to say.

D It made her feel sorry for him.

33 What does the writer say about getting study resources from libraries?

A She considers libraries more preferable places for study than home.

B She cannot understand why anyone chooses to go to a library now.

C She appreciates the fact that people can still study in libraries if they want to.

D She thinks libraries are limited by the quantity of resources they can store.

34 What disadvantage of new technology does the writer mention in the third
paragraph?

A Those who can afford the best gadgets gain an unfair advantage.

B Sometimes slow internet connections make communication difficult.

C A heavier workload is created for teaching staff at the university.

D Students cannot escape from dealing with university issues.

35 What is the purpose of the question ‘Why shouldn’t they be?’ in the fourth
paragraph?

A to express an opinion

B to introduce some problems

C to make a criticism

D to indicate uncertainty

36 What is the writer’s conclusion about students today in the final paragraph?

A They have such different lives to previous generations that it’s unwise to
compare them.
B They deal better with change than previous generations did.

C They take advantage of new resources more quickly than previous generations
did.

D They are behaving in a similar way to previous generations of students.

The homes of the future viewed from today

Mark Finchley reviews TV series Tomorrow’s Homes
Having just watched the whole of Channel 8’s TV series Tomorrow’s Homes, I’ve
been wondering about how anyone can predict the future of domestic life. You’d
imagine that if you knew what architects and technology companies were
developing now to make life easier, more exciting and more beautiful, you’d have a
pretty good idea of what to expect in tomorrow’s homes. In reality, it’s more
complicated, and just as much about what we’ll choose to hang on to from today’s –
the things that are ‘future-proof’. In the 1950s, people thought that in the twenty-
first century household tasks would be done by labour-saving devices or robots –
with food pills for dinner. Yet people still wash up and cook, even though the
technology exists that makes neither of these tasks necessary.

Tomorrow’s Homes, however, dared to make predictions which it turned into reality
using an average home belonging to a family called the Forseys. Four miles of cable
were installed in the house so that all the electrics, from lights to the fridge, could
be controlled via the internet, and various other devices and gadgets were
introduced in addition to this. The family were then filmed as they got used to their
new home life. Programme presenter Harry Thwaites is also a consultant who
spends his work life imagining the future, so testing out his ideas for the
programme was a fascinating experiment for him. His approach was to use
technology that was not totally brand new, but had only recently become more
affordable. CCTV cameras for security have been around for years, for example, but
they are no longer only an option for the mega-rich.

The Forsey family consists of a husband and wife with four children and two
grandchildren. They appear to be very natural and ordinary on the programme, and
it was always interesting to see how they reacted to the technology they were
testing. One example that sticks in the mind is when Janine, the mother, enters her
reconstructed, all-white home (after successfully unlocking her new front door by
using her thumb print as a key), and she immediately bursts into tears – quite
understandably it has to be said. A short while later, her husband Ben gets locked
out because the skin on his thumb is too rough. As the series progresses, however,
they slowly come to accept the technology, and even start to believe it could have
some value in their lives.

I was keen to see during the show if anything emerged as potentially future-proof,
and there were some great examples. To help Janine deal with various worries, she
was provided with a mind-controlled relaxation tool. This was a kind of headband
connected to a DVD, which, incredibly, she could control with her thoughts. When
she relaxed mentally, she made an image of the sun go down, as it would at night,
on the DVD. When she had tried the gadget and achieved the sun set, she was
asked how effective the gadget had been. Janine commented, ‘Nothing can
compare to a nice cup of tea and a good soap opera!’

31 The writer makes the point in the first paragraph that predicting how homes will
be in the future

A requires detailed study of architectural trends

B is impossible if you only look at new developments.

C has been very difficult until now.

D is made easier by programmes and articles about them in the media.

32 What does ‘today’s’ refer to in the first paragraph?

A current ideas

B the present reality

C the homes we currently live in

D modern architecture

33 According to the second paragraph, the technology installed in the Forseys’

house

A was chosen to match the specific needs of the family.

B was previously only used by a limited section of the population.

C was still too expensive for anybody except the wealthiest.

D was tried out by experts before the family used it.

34 What does ‘sticks’ mean in the third paragraph?

A blocks something

B remains there

C corrects an error

D highlights something

35 According to the third paragraph, how did the family members react to the new
technology?

A Their attitude towards it became increasingly positive.

B Some of them adjusted more quickly to it than others.

C The parents struggled with it throughout the series.

D Some of their responses to it were surprising.

36 How did Janine feel about the mind-controlled relaxation tool?

A She was amazed at what it was capable of.

B She thought it would work if used with other things.

C She found it totally useless.

D She preferred more traditional methods of relaxation.

Dream Jobs
During our teens, all the pupils at my school had to have a meeting with a ‘careers
advisor’ who only seemed to know about jobs at the local ship-building works. That
was fine for some, but many of us would have liked to hear about a wider range of
opportunities at that time. If only she had known about the jobs I’ve been
researching for this article! It seems there are positions out there that are almost
too good to be true.

Take, for example, the job with the title ‘Ice cream flavour advisor’ for ice cream
manufacturer Frederick’s. Imagine making and tasting ice cream for a living! From
the Fredrick’s website I learned that the people who do this job are all chefs and
food scientists, and often go on what they call ‘taste hunts’ where they travel to
other countries, trying new foods to get inspiration for new products. The website’s
home page also states that ‘every ingredient deserves consideration’, meaning
anything from peanuts to potatoes could make it into the next flavour advisor’s
invention. I guess the one downside of this job could be tasting failed creations.

For those worried about the health implications of eating so much ice cream, then
how about something more active? The perfect job for water sports lovers was
advertised in 2015 by holiday company Travel Now. They needed a water slide
tester! This involved getting into swimming gear and speeding down slides at
various holiday centres around the world to check for any issues. The company was
seeking applicants with strong written and verbal skills, experience in social media
and a willingness to travel.

Another job that seems impossibly wonderful is one for those who dream of living
on a remote island. As the caretaker of a private island in the Maldives, Simon
Grainger gets to enjoy fabulous weather, fishing and boating as part of his job.
However, he says that while it may sound more like an extended holiday than work,
the responsibilities of the job can be very demanding. These include maintaining
and repairing the island owners’ property and cleaning up after storms. On top of
that, being by yourself on an island means that your social life suffers. Seeing
friends involves an hour’s boat ride, which is never easy and sometimes impossible.
Grainger warns anyone considering a job like his to be realistic about it. He explains
you’ve got be very practical with good physical fitness, and happy in your own
company. If you are this type of person, you’ll do the job well and never want to go
back to life on the mainland.

A fortune cookie is a moon-shaped biscuit given away in Chinese restaurants that

contains a little piece of paper with a message on it. Millions of these are read every
day, but few realise that people actually get paid to write the words of wisdom you
find when you crack your cookie open. Daisy Cheng, president of New Asian Food in
Los Angeles, used to be one such person. It wasn’t exactly her chosen career path, it
was more of a role she fell into. When the company expanded and realised they
needed to update their cookie messages, she was asked to do it because her
English language skills were stronger than other employees’. She found it difficult to
start with, but soon she was finding inspiration everywhere, from subway signs to
newspapers.

As a writer myself, I would love to create messages for fortune cookies, but I would
be delighted to do any one of these amazing jobs. Listen up careers advisors!

31 How does the writer feel about the careers advisor he met when he was
younger?

A He regrets that she was unable to help any of the teenagers.

B He found her guidance quite useful at the time.

C He thought it was unnecessary to see her.

D He wishes she had been aware of a greater variety of job options.

32 What is claimed on the website for Frederick’s ice cream?

A There is no food type that they will refuse to experiment with.

B They are able to make most ingredients taste good in ice cream.

C They trial every new flavour creation internationally before it goes on sale.

D No other ice cream producer has greater expertise.

33 Applicants for the job of water slide tester were required by Travel Now to

A be good at communicating with people.

B have plenty of travel experience.

C have good IT qualifications.

D be very physically fit.

34 What does Grainger say about his role as caretaker on a private island?

A He is considering giving it up so he can move back to the mainland.

B The only thing that is hard about it is being alone on the island.

C It might not be the right job for everyone.

D The holiday lifestyle involved is not always enjoyable.

35 What does the fifth paragraph say about Daisy Cheng getting her job as fortune
cookie writer?

A She did not deliberately choose to do the job.

B She got the job because none of her colleagues spoke any English.

C She applied for it when the company grew and needed more people to do the
job.

D She tried to avoid doing the job at first.

36 What does ‘one such person’ refer to in the fifth paragraph?

A someone who is a company vice president

B someone from New York

C someone who didn’t know fortune cookie message writers existed

D someone who writes the messages in fortune cookies

 Once in a blue moon?
Nature photographer David Smart reflects on his job and the rarity of some of the
unusual natural phenomena he photographs.

I tread carefully, trying to crush as few of the beautiful flowers as possible. But I
need to get in the best position to photograph this stunning display of blue, violet
and yellow that fills the view. Where am I? In one of the royal London parks in
spring? Maybe the famous Kawachi Fuji flower gardens of Japan? No, I’m in the
driest place in the world, the Atacama Desert in Chile. And in front of me is the
wonderful sight known as Desert Bloom. I angle my camera, focus and click. Job
done, I can now stand back, breathe in the scent of millions of flowers and enjoy
the moment.

Seeing a rare natural phenomenon like the Desert Bloom is not a one-off for me;
I’ve photographed the Niagara Falls when they were partially frozen over; I’ve
experienced the weird and wonderful rush of darkness during a total eclipse. I’m
lucky that my work as a professional nature photographer takes me to some of the
most amazing places in the world and pays reasonably well. However, it’s the really
unusual sights which nature occasionally provides for us that really fascinate me. As
one of my photographer friends says, ‘It feels a real privilege.’

But in reality, just how rare are events like these? Tabloid headlines need to sell
copies and imply that they are once-in-a-bluemoon events. ‘Niagara Falls
completely frozen over’, shouts one newspaper,’The only total eclipse you’ll see in
your lifetime’, shouts another and ‘Miracle of flowers in the desert’, says a third. In
fact, these phenomena, although unusual, are not as unlikely as the hype suggests.
Niagara Falls have partially frozen over several times – when winds from the North
Pole brought arctic temperatures further south (a symptom of climate change). And
although apparently inexplicable, those stunning flowers in the desert will flower
again in another five or seven years. The seeds lie in the soil and will grow
whenever there is a lot of rainfall.

Real, once-in-a-blue-moon events do happen, but it is only by chance that they are
ever seen or recorded. For example, there’s one spectacular event that I would
desperately love to see. It’s known as a Fire Rainbow, but is actually neither
connected to fire, nor a rainbow! Sadly, I’m never likely to see one anywhere apart
from in a photograph. These incredible optical phenomena, which appear to be
amazing combinations of colours in the sky, only occur when there is a very specific
combination of atmospheric conditions. In addition to this, they are only visible
from high altitudes.

Being in the right place at the right time is what a nature photographer like me
longs for, but it doesn’t happen very often. I got my wish once, and like the Desert
Bloom it was in Chile. I was there to film a volcanic eruption at Volcan Calbuco, a
very dangerous active volcano. While filming, I was treated to a rare display of
volcanic lightning. This is a unique type of electrical reaction that happens inside a
great cloud of ash, otherwise known as a ‘dirty thunderstorm’. I say ‘treated’, but the
experience was so terrifying that my first instincts were to run like mad! The
attraction of photographing one of the greatest light shows on earth was, however,
very strong and those pictures are among the best I have ever taken.

I think my obsession with these rare natural phenomena should be quite clear by
now! I’m very fortunate to have a job which allows me to travel to record as many
as I can. The scientific reasons behind such events are certainly fascinating, but for
me it will always be about their magnificent beauty. The powerful surprises that
nature continues to deliver will never cease to amaze me. Whether they are just
unusual or truly once in a lifetime experiences, I can’t see myself ever getting tired
of chasing them.

Now, maybe just one more photo of these incredible flowers…

31 What point is the writer making in the first paragraph?

A He often takes photographs of flowers in different gardens.

B He is more interested in his photography than what he photographs.

C He is photographing something that is unusual because of the climate.

D He needs to be flexible when he’s working.

32 How does the writer feel about his work?

A impressed by the amount of money he earns

B surprised at how often he has to travel

C grateful for the opportunity to observe rare events

D proud to be so well-experienced

33 What is the writer’s attitude towards tabloid newspapers?

A He thinks they are too influential.

B He suspects they exaggerate to attract readers.

C He believes they do not check their facts.

D He wonders why they contradict each other.

34 When talking about Fire Rainbows, the writer regrets that

A he cannot explain the reason for Fire Rainbows.

B he has never seen a photograph of one.

C he is unaware how they got their name.

D his chances of seeing one are very low.

35 The writer repeats the word ‘treated’ in paragraph 5

A to indicate that the experience wasn’t immediately enjoyable.

B to show that the event had never happened before.

C to emphasise how amazing the sight was.

D to stress how special the event made him feel.

36 What does the writer believe about the science behind rare natural events?

A It’s always important to know why an event occurs.

B Science cannot always explain these types of events.

C It’s interesting but not as important as the visual effects.

D Understanding the scientific reasons is not part of his job.

THE PENCIL
The pencil feels good in my hand again; an old friend. The recent weeks in hospital
disappear as I move it across the blank page. I’m feeling content and in my element;
one of those rare moments when you just feel pure joy at being where you are. I
can hear the twins squabbling behind the bench, on the grass. ‘I won!’ Melia.
Triumphant. ‘No, you didn’t! I did.’ Katie. Cross. ‘You can’t do that!’ ‘I just did!’ Then
the inevitable, ‘That’s so not fair! Mummee…’ I can see without looking – the cards
thrown down in anger on the grass, and I can feel the air tremble with Katie’s
growing bad temper.

But my mind is distracted for a moment as a shadow falls over my sketchbook. A

tall, slim woman in a white dress seats herself beside me on the bench and I give an
apology, quickly sweeping some empty sticky chocolate bar wrappers from the
twins’ picnic into my bag. She says nothing, but sits, erect, staring straight in front of
her at the tree I’m sketching. It’s difficult to assess her age behind the dark glasses.
About 55? I carry on sketching, trying to ignore the battle going on between my
children. The lady in white will soon discover that she’s chosen the wrong park
bench to sit on this sunny, Sunday afternoon.

And it kicks off. A screech from Katie. I don’t need to turn. ‘Melia – give Katie back
her cards! Play nicely. Or NO ICE CREAM.’ Silence and I turn to the woman, to offer
an apology for my children doing what children do, but she’s still staring at my tree.
Then I notice something that gives me a little shock. Her fifty-or-so year-old fingers
are curling tightly around a white leather bag on her lap and the ring on her third
finger flashes briefly in the sunshine. It’s large, multi-coloured. I remember that
ring. It flashed in front of me every time she ripped a page from my sketchbook in
Year 10 art class. I used to focus on it as she humiliated my artistic attempts in front
of the group, hoping that my burning cheeks would cool before I had to turn to face
my classmates again.

We all have our trials as a teenager, and mine was that I blushed far more easily
than anyone else. Anything could set me off, not understanding a joke, a comment
about my hair, everyone looking at me when I was asked a question. I just got hot
and went deep pink. And of course, my classmates played on it – they thought I was
hilarious. Teachers, for the most part, were sympathetic. The woman in white
wasn’t one of them.

‘Miss Davenport?’ I say in a small voice. The head turns and I see my reflection in
the glasses, still pale from my illness. The ring flashes again as she removes them,
and I’m looking directly into the cold, blue eyes I remember so well. They drop very
briefly to my sketchbook and then look back at me. ‘Susan Grant,’ she states and
her lips twist as though my name tastes nasty. ‘I should have known. No talent then
and no talent now. It looks like a pineapple.’ And I can’t help it. I’m back in art class
and my cheeks are on fire. I automatically cover my sketchbook so that she can’t rip
the page out. But, of course, she doesn’t. She stands and turns to find another
bench, one without squabbling toddlers or untalented ex-students. As she turns, I
notice, with a naughty pleasure, that I’d missed a chocolate wrapper and her
perfectly white skirt has a dark brown mark on the back. My cheeks cool
immediately.

‘That’s a pretty tree mummy,’ Katie clambers onto the bench. Then she sees Miss
Davenport’s retreating back. Then she states in that loud voice that four-year-olds
have, ‘That lady’s got a dirty skirt!’ Miss Davenport turns, surprised. So do the
people on the opposite bench. I see two pink spots appear on her cheeks and I
think, ‘Yes!’

31 In the first paragraph the writer is

A unaware of her children’s disagreement.

B frustrated by a medical problem.

C engaged in a familiar activity.

D angry that she cannot concentrate.

32 What does the writer suggest about the woman on the bench?

A She shouldn’t wear white in a park.

B She may regret choosing to rest there.

C She is angry about the twins’ behaviour.

D She looks young for her age.

33 What is the significance of the ring on the woman’s hand?

A The writer admires its beauty.

B It brings back bad memories for the writer.

C The writer drew it when she was in art class.

D It looks too small for the woman’s finger.

34 What does underlined ‘it’ refer to in paragraph 4?

A telling jokes about the writer

B the way the writer styles her hair

C laughing at the writer’s discomfort

D seeing the writer blush

35 What do we learn about Miss Davenport in paragraph 5?

A she regrets how she treated the writer at school

B she doesn’t appreciate the writer’s effort at drawing

C she has no interest in the past

D she has no time for art these days

36 How does the writer feel at the end of the extract?

A pleased that Miss Davenport is embarrassed

B proud of her sketch of the tree

C glad that she’s conquered her habit of blushing

D relieved that Miss Davenport is leaving the park

 Hotels of the future
Our Travel correspondent Joana Richards reports about a new
trend in hotels.
I recently visited a hotel in France which has no visible human staff. This is just one
of several hotels in Europe and Asia which runs with apparently no human contact.
Most of the services are provided by robots and machines. The concept is to
provide an environmentally friendly hotel where staff and running costs kept to a
minimum. Personally, I’ve spent my life away from robots and machines, and so
kept having to remind myself that in many parts of the world, its not unusual for
jobs and household tasks to be automated these days.

So I lost no time in booking myself a room at one of these hotels and going to see it
for myself. And sure enough, there are the reception desk instead of a friendly
receptionist wearing a uniform was a machine.

‘I’d like to check in please, I shouted, wondering if the machine would respond to
my voice, and feeling thrilled that I was about to have my first ever conversation
with a check-in machine. Nothing. I said it again but there was silence. I was hoping
the machine would say something like ‘If you want to check in, press 1. But then I
noticed a written message in the machine’s screen. ‘Please insert your credit card
and key in your booking reference, then follow the instructions.’ No conversation.
How disappointing.

Staying at the hotel costs from €35 (more if you want a bigger room). That’s a
bargain for Paris, where a stay in a more conventional hotel can easily cost two or
three times that much. And if you did stay there, it wouldn’t necessarily be any
nicer, and certainly wouldn’t be any more memorable. The hotel is located near to
the amusement park, Disneyland Paris, which was created as a visitor attraction on
the east of the city with lots of amusement rides. In fact, many of the guests book
the hotel purely in order to be close to the park.

Back in the hotel, as well as machines to check in, there are vending machines to
serve drinks and snacks and vacuum cleaners that work without a human, using
sensors to navigate around the rooms. According to the owners, the laundry has
robots which do all the washing unaided. Another innovation is the use of face
recognition instead of keys to get into your room. A photograph of the guest’s face
is taken at the reception desk by the check in machines.

With 60 rooms in the building, there is a lot of coming and going. Guests are
actively encouraged to stop and get a coffee from one of the machines in the guest
lounge with other guests, so there is at least some social interaction. One area
where humans are absolutely essential for the hotel is security. There are scanners
and CCTV cameras everywhere, and the footage from these is watched by human
security guards, no matter whether or not the hotel is full. It is their job to make
sure that the guests are safe – and that no-one causes any damage to hotel
property, including of course making off with a costly robot.

Critics say that businesses like these automated hotels will mean that people lose
their jobs, as more and more roles can be performed by robots and machines. But
there are many who see them as a vision of the future and argue that robots can
make our lives easier. But this can only happen if higher manufacturing and (line x)
operating standards are achieved, and if guests are prepared to put their trust in
machines and don’t mind the lack of personal contact. Only then will this type of
hotel be a success. Time will tell if this is the case.

1 The aim of this hotel is to be very

A efficient.

B friendly.

C profitable.

D unusual.

2 What aspect of the writer’s experience at reception was ‘disappointing’ (line X)?

A the appearance of the reception

B the time she wasted checking in

C the lack of verbal interaction with the machine

D the rudeness of the other guests

3 What does the writer say about the price of the rooms in the hotel?
 A The hotel is good value.

B The prices are likely to rise.

C Other hotels provide better accommodation.

D It is not always clear how much a room will cost.

4 What is the writer’s main point in the fourth paragraph?

A There are limits to what robots and machines can do.

B Robots and machines can learn a wide range of skills.

C Different robots and machines are used for different tasks.

D Humans make mistakes that robots and machines do not make.

5 What risk is mentioned in the fifth paragraph?

A robots being stolen

B security guards being ineffective

C the hotel not doing enough business

D areas of the hotel becoming too crowded

6 What does ‘this can only happen’ in line X refer to?

A more roles being performed by robots and machines

B many seeing the hotel as a vision of the future

C robots and machines making our lives easier

D reduction in social human contact

The reluctant hero

The most endearing thing about Aaron Green – and there are many – is his refusal
to accept how famous he’s about to become. ‘I can walk down the street and not be
hassled, which is really nice. I kind of hope that continues and I’m sure it will,’ he
says earnestly. He seems genuinely to believe that the job won’t change his life.
‘There’s nothing fascinating about my life, and there’s absolutely no reason why
that should start happening.’ You can only wish him well.
How lovely if this turned out to be true, but the chances are it won’t, and he must
know this. Aaron has been cast as the hero in the latest fantasy blockbuster that
will hit our screens next year. The first photo of him in his costume was released
last week to an Internet frenzy.
After an award nomination for his last film, Aaron is having the biggest year of his
life, but it hasn’t gone to his head. ‘It’s nice if your work is praised, but it’s all very
new to me, this,’ he (line 11) says. ‘I really like working in this profession and
exploring its possibilities. Who knows what the future holds? We could dream about
what might happen next, but there’s not much point. I’m just enjoying my job and
want to do well in it in the future, but that’s kind of it, really No big hassles.’
Of all the characters in his last film, which is based on a true story about a group of
university students who start an influential blog, Aaron’s character is the one who
emerges as most likeable. But he insists that the plot is not as straightforward as it
might appear. ‘What’s wonderful about this film is that everyone feels they are the
good guy. I don’t think anyone in the cast felt they were playing the villain. It was
just a group of human beings that had different opinions.’
It’s a typically thoughtful answer from the 27-year-old, who seems to be a bit of a
worrier and prefers to avoid watching himself on screen. Doubtless he doesn’t care
for interviews either, but he is so open and engaging that you wouldn’t know it. He
felt ‘a heightened sense of responsibility’ playing a real-life person in his last film,
but had no contact with the person concerned. ‘These people are living and
breathing somewhere – of course that has a great effect on the care with which you
approach your work. I kept wondering if he’d come and see the film, if he’d
recognise himself in my performance or be angered by it.’
His performance has a vulnerability about it that is almost painful to watch. Does
he seek out those parts or do directors see that quality in him? ‘I don’t know, I think
it’s probably a bit of both. I certainly have that unwillingness to lose naivety; to lose
that childlike way of looking at the world. I find it a very real and profound theme in
my life and, talking to other people my age, I think it’s universal.’
1 In the first paragraph, the writer suggests that he thinks Aaron
A has a sensible attitude towards fame.
B seems confident that he can deal with fame.
C seems unaware that he’s about to become famous.
D has unrealistic ideas about what it’s like to be famous.
2 The phrase ‘hasn’t gone to his head’ (line 11) suggests that Aaron is
A modest about his achievements.
B used to receiving so much praise.
 C doubtful whether he will win an award.
D unsure whether he deserves so much attention.
3 What does Aaron say about his last film?
A There are clear heroes and villains in it.
B The story is not as simple as it may seem.
C He knows why people liked his character best.
D There were often disagreements between the actors.
4 What makes the writer think that Aaron is an anxious person?
A He has no wish to watch his own films.
B He obviously doesn’t like giving interviews.
C He feels responsible for the character he plays.
D He thinks carefully before answering a question.
5 What does Aaron say about playing a real-life person on screen?
A He was disappointed that he never met that person.
B He was sure that person wouldn’t want to see the film.
C He was concerned that the person might easily be offended.
D He was pleased that the person approved of the fact he was playing it.
6 What does Aaron suggest in the final paragraph?
A He only plays parts that suit his own personality.
B He lets the director decide how a part should be played.
C He’s not such an immature person as he may appear.
D He shares certain feelings with lots of other young people

La Mercè Festival
by Adrian Jacobs
Last September, I attended the La Mercè festival in the city of Barcelona, Spain, with
my family. I’d never been to the city before and was looking forward to spending a
few days there. After checking in to our hotel, we wandered into the centre for our
first look around the city I’d heard so much about. With the festival already in full
swing, the footpaths were crowded, making it challenging to move with any speed
around the sights. It was nothing I hadn’t been warned about and we were in no
rush. I could barely take my eyes off the beautiful old buildings as we walked along.
All that fascinating history: I imagined all the stories the buildings would be able to
tell if they had a voice. Traffic buzzed round us, filling the air with sounds of
beeping horns, adding to the atmosphere.
The first event we attended was the building of ‘human towers’. Different teams
competed to create the tallest tower of people by standing on each others’
shoulders. Then the youngest member of each group climbed up the outside to the
very top. I gazed in awe at the height of the towers. They made it look easy but
what an incredible amount of practice and teamwork the activity must need. Now
and then, a tower would collapse to the gasps of the onlookers. The teams had
clearly prepared for this eventuality, though, and caught each other easily. We
stood and watched for ages, transfixed.
Next was the parade of the ‘giants’, where huge brightly painted figures were
carried through the streets representing different neighbourhoods of the city. Kings
and queens dressed in historical costumes hovered over the crowds, spinning and
dancing in pairs to the tunes played on ancient instruments by bands of musicians.
Children stared in wonder, their faces lighting up when they spotted a favourite
character – that was a magical thing. I soon abandoned any attempt at filming the
procession; it was far better just to store the images away in my memory instead.
That evening we saw what, for me, was the highlight of our whole trip: the ‘fire run’.
Another parade, but this one was a procession of huge five-breathing beasts –
again, brightly painted – which were carried along the road, showering the
spectators with sparks from fireworks attached to them. Spectators are advised to
cover up as protection, but there’s no real danger. Even so, I decided to stand well
back away from it! It was an incredible sight and must have been great fun to
participate in. The fire lit up the spectators in the darkness and I recognised my
own feelings of happiness on their faces. I snapped away with my camera, but
when I looked at my pictures the next day, I’d just recorded a blur of movement.
Over the next couple of days we saw everything from a kite flying competition at
the beach to an aerobatic show, sampled local specialities in seaside cafés and sang
and (line 52) danced in the city’s numerous squares. All too soon it was the last
night of the festival. Together with thousands of other people, we stood ready to
watch the final event: the closing of the festival with a magnificent fireworks
display. It was as fantastic as all the other events had been and I knew that even if I
never came back again, I’d go home having made the most of the celebrations I’d so
longed to see, and having gained an insight into another culture.
1 How did Adrian feel when he saw the city of Barcelona for the first time?
 A amazed at the number of visitors there
B excited by the interesting architecture
C annoyed by how noisy the city was
D pleased about how easy it was to get around
2 What does Adrian say about the ‘human towers’ event in the second paragraph?
A It made him feel nervous at certain moments.
B It continued for longer than he would have liked.
C It required a lot of skill on the part of the participants.
D It was not as impressive as he had expected it to be.
3 When Adrian saw the parade of giants in the third paragraph, he particularly
liked
A trying to capture the figures on video.
B seeing other people’s enjoyment of it.
C learning about the history of the activity.
D listening to the music which accompanied it.
4 During the ‘fire run’ in the fourth paragraph, Adrian
A thought it wise to keep at a distance from the parade.
B wished he was able to take part in the procession.
C managed to take some atmospheric photos.
D saw someone he knew in the crowds.
5 What does sampled in line 52 mean?
A checked
B experimented
C observed
D tried
6 How did Adrian feel at the end of the festival?
A hopeful that he would return in the future
B regretful that the experience was over
C satisfied to have fulfilled an ambition
D happy to be heading home

My fastest ever plane ride

Reporter Matt Rudd goes on an extraordinary plane
ride
In The Red Bull Air Race, twelve pilots take it in turns to race through a series of
pylons between 15 and 25 metres high, negotiating sharp turns, barrel rolls and
loops on the way, all at speeds of up to 370 km per hour. I was invited to find out
what it feels like to take part.
An hour before the flight, I had to sign two forms. The first confirmed that I was in
good health, the second that I would empty all my pockets, because tiny objects can
become very dangerous during the flight. I also learnt that I would have to try to
stay orientated throughout. ‘The horizon is your best friend,’ I was told, ‘the pilot will
explain in which direction you have to look.’ I was also asked to promise that when I
was flying upside down, I would ‘completely relax. Try and enjoy the view.’ Half an
hour before the flight, I had a safety briefing in which I was told not, under any
circumstances, to touch anything.
By the time we were taxiing down the runway, my legs up in front of me, feet trying
not to touch the incredibly important steering pedals, hands trying not to rest on
any of the many important switches within reach, my mind had made itself up.
Ignoring all instructions received, I would not relax and enjoy the flight. This is the
cruel paradox of high-speed acrobatic flying. In order to survive it without passing
out, you have to keep calm and focused. You have to tense up at the right time and
you have to relax at the right time. Panicking is a bad idea. None of this was of
particular comfort as we began accelerating down the runway.
Dario, the pilot, and I reached the end of the runway. There we were in the Zivko
Edge 540, upsettingly one of the world’s fastest acrobatic planes, ready to go. The
plane took off and two seconds later we banked sharply to the right. It was an
instant, violent manoeuvre and I felt the air squeeze out of my lungs. I looked up at
the horizon, tensed everything and emitted short gasps as I sank down into the
seat. For a split second I weighed 6.2 times my normal weight. And then we levelled
out. We turned another sharp left and dived, leaving my stomach at 2,000 metres
and my lungs scrunched up on the roof of the plane. Seconds later, we were 10
metres off the ground, aiming for the alarmingly small space between two pylons.
They passed at 400 km per hour but my whoop of momentary excitement
was stolen by a sharp right turn. We hadn’t even (line 55) done any acrobatics yet.
(line 56)
For two minutes, I was allowed to fly the plane, my hand shaking so much the
plane shook too… it’s that responsive. And then (line 59) after that Dario said
something. And I said, ‘Can you repeat that?’ But instead of replying, he did a barrel
roll, a full lateral 360° turn.
‘Are you okay?’
‘Yup.’
‘Have you had enough?’
‘No,’ I lied.
Then he did a loop, flying the plane up and over, turning a full circle in the air. Now,
I am aware that many people would find this exciting. The sort of people who
enjoy rollercoasters. However, I just thought it was (line 71) a bit much. At the top of
the loop, as we were flying upside down, I heard a small voice shouting, ‘Relax,
relax, look up.’ Then I looked up and saw some fields.
The flight was over in 10 minutes. It had been ‘soft’ compared to what the pilots
endure when they race. As if to illustrate the point, Dario got out some sandwiches
the minute we landed and merrily tucked in. I didn’t eat for hours and that night I
did the loop the loop over and over again in my sleep.
1 How did Matt feel as the plane started moving along the runway?
A annoyed that there were so many rules to follow
B surprised that he had to sit in a rather awkward position
C convinced that he was going to be unable to behave as required
D anxious that he had not been adequately prepared for the experience
2 Why does Matt say We hadn’t even done any acrobatics yet in lines 55 and 56?
A to justify his impatience
B to express his disappointment
C to explain why he felt so relieved
D to emphasise how apprehensive he felt
3 What does responsive mean in line 59?
A eager
B sensitive
C active
D helpful
4 In the fifth paragraph, Matt wants the pilot to think that
A he understands the technical terms.
B he needs a break.
C he is feeling fine.
D he had expected to roll.
5 What does it refer to in line 71?
A turning a full circle
B being aware
C finding this exciting
D enjoying rollercoasters
6 What is implied about the pilot in the final paragraph?
A He finds Matt’s reaction amusing.
B He wants to demonstrate that he is tougher than Matt.
C He feels unusually hungry after the flight.
D He is completely unaffected by their experience.
 Teenagers and parents – it’s the same old
story …
Many readers have described the ups and downs of living with teenage children.
This week, we hear from Barry Davros, 15.
OK, I’ll admit it. Things haven’t been so easy at home in the last couple of years. I’d
like to think I’m old enough and wise enough to know that it’s almost certainly
because I’m a teenager now. Teenagers complain to their friends about their
parents. And I think we can be pretty certain that the parents do the same about
their kids. I argue with mine. We don’t talk as much as we did when I was a kid. It’s
not that this is the way I want it – I’d prefer it if we never argued, but found a way to
talk about what was bothering us. That would be so much better, not just for me
and my mum and dad, but for any teenager and their family. So I’ve been reading a
lot – books like The Teenage Brain, and lots of online stuff. And I’m sure that if
people understood more about what goes on inside a teenager’s mind, half of the
arguments over the dinner table wouldn’t even start in the first place. So I’d like to
share what I’ve learnt.
There are so many things that parents have a go at their teenagers for that it’s
almost impossible to know where to start. So let’s just pick mornings. Mornings are
for sleeping. For as long as you need to, or at least as long as you can. Every
teenager knows that. But not parents – they think that we should get up at 7.30,
just because they get up at 7.30, ready for another busy day. So who’s right? Well,
the science says that an adolescent’s body clock isn’t programmed in the same way,
and is on a schedule about three hours behind that of older adults (that means
both going to bed and getting up).
Another ‘issue’ that parents make a big deal about is tidiness. Clothes dumped on
the bathroom floor, an old plate of food under the bed, house keys lost. OK, I
admit, I’ve been guilty of all of these things recently (but at least I owned up!).
Sorting stuff like this takes planning, and the way the teenage brain develops
means that it’s just not our strong point. Sorry! The brain develops a chemical called
myelin, and it’s created over time. Until it’s fully developed in all parts of the brain, it
does unfortunately mean that even very bright teens can do really stupid things. So
just bear with us guys!
Because as already mentioned, the teenage brain goes through all sorts of changes,
sometimes teenagers can get angry. This usually makes parents angry. Which
makes us angrier, which … OK, you get the picture. But parents need to understand
more about what’s going on inside our heads. Like, there might be a perfectly
understandable (to us) reason why we don’t want to do that maths homework this
instant. So, listen parents out there, try and understand! Don’t always respond to us
by getting angry. Just don’t! Calm down, count to ten and think twice. (line 49)
Communication. That’s a big one. Sure, teens and parents need to hang out
together too, not live in separate worlds. But I’m 15, so the topics of conversation I
was into when I was 11 don’t work for me now. Same for all kids my age.
The sooner parents realise that, the better. It’s not that we stop (line 54) loving them
just because we’re in our teens, it’s just that we need more space. To grow up and
find out who we are.
Here’s a tip – if there’s something that needs to be discussed, do it on a car journey.
Whether it’s the whole family together or just two of you, the fact that you’re in a
car means that you’re gazing ahead, rather than staring at each other. For me, it
just makes it easier to talk somehow, because I sometimes feel they’re judging me
or something if they’re observing me. Try it. It works. And you heard it from me.
1 Why shouldn’t parents be surprised if their teenagers sleep late?
A Many teenagers find their busy schedule tiring.
B Some teenagers need more hours of sleep than adults.
C Teenagers prefer not to see their parents in the mornings.
D It’s natural for teenagers to have different sleep patterns from adults.
2 In the third paragraph, the writer admits that teenagers tend not to be very
A honest.
B organised.
C confident.
D intelligent.
3 What does the writer mean when he advises parents to ‘count to ten’ in line 49?
A don’t react too quickly
B repeat what you have said
C find ten reasons for the behaviour
D don’t tell teenagers things they already know
4 What does ‘that’ refer to in line 54?
A Teenagers need to spend time away from their parents.
B Teenagers love their parents less than they did as children.
C Teenagers want to talk about different things as they mature.
D Teenagers need to spend more time talking to their parents.
5 Car journeys are a good opportunity to speak because
A the speakers don’t need to look at each other.
B the vehicle provides more privacy.
C families can travel somewhere nice together.
D teenagers cannot avoid their parents when they are in the same car.
6 Why has Barry written this blog post?
A to help families get along better
B to explain why his parents annoy him
C to encourage parents, doctors and teachers to read more about teenagers
D to suggest that it is important for teenagers to be responsible