高二阅读理解精选精(炼4).doc

Passage 18 As she walked round the large shop, Edith realized how difficult it was to choose a suitable Christmas gift for her father. She wished that he were as easy to please as her mother, who was always satisfied with perfume( 香水). Besides, shopping at this time of the year was a most unhappy job. People stepped on your feet, pushed you with their shoulders and almost knocked you over in their hurry in order to find something cheap ahead of you. Partly to have a rest, Edith paused in front ofa counter, where some beautiful ties were on show .“ They are real silk, ” the shop assistant told her with a smile trying to persuade her to buy one. But Edith knew from past experience that her choice of ties hardly ever pleased her father. She moved on slowly and then, quite by chance, stopped where a small crowd of men had gathered round a counter. She found some fine pipes on sale and the shapes were very beautiful. Edith did not hesitate for long, although her father only smoked a pipe once ina while, she believed this was certainly to please him. When she got home, with her small but well-chosen present hidden in her handbag, it was time for supper and her parents were already at table. Her mother was in great excitement. “ Your father has at last decided to stop smoking, ” she told her daughter happily. Edith was so surprised that she could not say a single word. 1. Which is tru