“I left Tangier, my birthplace, the 13th of June 1325 with the intention of making the pilgrimage ¹ [ to Mecca]... to leave all my friends both female and male, to abandon my home as birds abandon their nests. ” So begins an old manuscript in a library in Paris—the travel journal of Ibn Battuta.

    Almost two centuries beforeColumbus, this young Moroccan set off forMecca, returning home three decades later as one of history"s great travelers. Driven by curiosity, he journeyed to remote comers of the Islamic world, traveling through 44 modem countries, three times as far as Marco Polo. Little celebrated in the West 2, his name is well known among Arabs. In his hometown of Tangier, a square, a hotel, a cafe, a ferry boat, and even a hamburger are named after him.

    Ibn Battuta stayed inMeccaas a student for several years, but the urge to travel soon took over. In one adventure, he traveled toIndiaseeking profitable employment with the Sultan of Delhi. 3 On the way, he described his group being attacked in the open country by 80 men on foot, and two horsemen：“we fought ... killing one of their horsemen and about twelve of the foot soldiers ….I was hit by an arrow and my horse by another, but God in his grace preserved me .... We carried the heads of the slain to thecastleofAbu Bak, har ... and suspended them from the wall. ” InDelhi, the sultan gave him the position of judge, based on his prior study atMecca. But the sultan had an unpredictable character, and Ibn Battuta looked for an opportunity to leave. When the sultan offered to finance a trip toChina, he agreed. Ibn Battuta set off in three ships, but misfortune struck while he was still on the shore. A sudden storm grounded and broke up two ships, scattering treasure and drowning many people and horses. As he watched, the third ship, with all his belongings and slaves一one carrying his child—was carried out to sea and never heard from again.

    After a lifetime of incredible adventures, Ibn Battuta was finally ordered by the Sultan of Morocco to return home to share his wisdom with the world. Fortunately, he consented and wrote a book that has been translated into numerous languages, allowing people everywhere to read about his unparalleled journeys.

词汇：

 pilgrimage /"pilgrimidʒ/ n．朝圣，远游

ferry /"feri/ n．渡船

sultan /"sʌltən/ n．苏丹（yī sī lán jiāo 国王，某些伊斯兰国家统治者的称号）

suspend /sə"spend/ vt．吊，挂；暂停

finance /fai"næns/ v．给…提供资金

scatter /"skætə/ vt．撒播，驱散；vi．消散

consent /kən"sent/ vi．同意，赞成

slain: slay的过去分词slay/"slei/ v．杀死，杀戮

unparalleled /ʌn"pærəleld/ adj．无比的，空前的，绝无仅有的

the open country野外

foot soldier 步兵

注释：

1.    …with the intention of making the pilgrimage ..．……打算去朝圣……

2.    Little celebrated in the West,…虽然在西方社会不怎么知名，……

3.    …seeking profitable employment with the Sultan of Delhi.……在德里的苏丹王那里谋到了一份收人颇丰的工作。

The Sultan of Delhigave Ibn Battuta a position of judge because________.

A:the sultan needed a translator B:Ibn Battuta had been a judge before C:Ibn Battuta had studied in Mecca D:Ibn Battuta had traveled to many countries

He （　）a book, and now he needs a holiday

A:has been writing B:was writing C:will write D:wrote

Passage One
E.B. White was born Elwyn Brooks White in 1899. He was born in Mount Vernon, New York. His father was a successful piano manufacturer.
E.B. White went to Cornell University and graduated in 1921. He worked as a re- porter for various newspapers, and in 1924 returned to New York to work on the new New Yorker magazine. He married the magazine’s literary editor, Katherine Sergeant Angell, in 1929. E.B. White wrote for the magazine and other publications, mostly for adults.
In 1945, he wrote his first children’s book, Stuart Little. This book is about a mouse and all his adventures with a human family. Charlotte’s Web was published in 1952. This book is a story about a friendship between a young pig and a spider. In 1970, E. B. White wrote another children’s book The Trumpet of the Swan. This book is about a boy named Sam, and his love of nature, and of a swan born without a voice. Sam and Louis first meet in a pond in Canada, and the story continues with Louis’ attempts to learn to read and write.
E. B. White continued to write essays for adults until his death in 1985. Children and adults have made his children’s books classic. They are enjoyed as much today as when they were written.

A:wrote children's books B:wrote for the New Yorker C:wrote essays D:all the above

He ______ a book, and now he needs a holiday.

A:has been writing B:was writing C:will write D:wrote

Mark Twain is a good (representative) (of) post-Civil War authors because of his (place) of birth, education, and (how he wrote).

A:representative B:of C:place D:how he wrote

Mark Twain is a good (representative) (of) post-Civil War authors because of his (place) of birth, education, and (how he wrote).

A:representative B:of C:place D:how he wrote

He ______ a book, and now he needs a holiday.

A:has been writing B:was writing C:will write D:wrote