Variant 22

1. Read the text and mark the following statements «True» or «False».

1 The man and his wife were old and unhappy. FALSE
2 They didn’t have much money. TRUE
3 The wife had a short haircut. FALSE
4 The wife wanted her hair to grow longer and look neat. TRUE
5 The man couldn’t afford to buy a comb. TRUE
6 The man had broken his watch. FALSE
7 The man went to a watch shop to buy a new watchstrap. FALSE
8 The man earned some money and bought a comb for his wife. TRUE
9 The wife sold her hair in order to make a present for her husband. TRUE
10 They cried as they were sorry about their poverty. FALSE

2. Complete the text with the correct words from the box.

The (1) habit of reading is one of the greatest resources of mankind; and we enjoy reading books that belong to us much more than if they are (2) borrowed. A borrowed book is like a guest in the house; it must not suffer while under your roof. You cannot leave it (3) carelessly, you cannot mark it, you cannot (4) turn down the pages. And then, some day you really ought to return it.

But your own books belong to you; they are for use, not for (5) show; you should own no book that you are afraid to mark up; or to place on the table, wide open and face (6) down. Everyone should begin (7) collecting a private library in youth; the instinct of private property can here be cultivated with every advantage and no evils.

Books have the advantage of being separate personalities, so that if you sit alone in the room, you are (8) surrounded with close friends. You do hot have to read them all. (9) most of my indoor life is spent in a room containing six thousand books; and I have to answer the invariable question, «Have you read all of these books?» «Some of them (10) twice» This reply is both true and unexpected.