Traditional fairy tales are being abandoned by parents because they are too scary for their young children, a study has found.

A research has discovered one in five parents has given up old classics such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Rapunzel in favour of more modern books. One third of parents say their children have been left in tears after hearing the horrible details of Little Red Riding Hood. And nearly half of mothers and fathers refuse to read Rumplestiltskin to their kids as the themes of the story are kidnapping and killing. Similarly, Goldilocks and the Three Bears is also a tale likely to be left on the book shelf as parents feel it forgives stealing.

The survey of 2,000 adults was completed to mark the launch of the hit US drama GRIMM, which starts tonight at 9 p.m. on Watch, and sees six drama series based on traditional fairy tales. The survey has found a quarter of parents polled will not consider reading a fairy tale to their children until they have reached the age of five, as they have to face too many awkward questions from their children.

Steve Hornsey, General Manager, Watch, said, “Bedtime stories are supposed to soothe children and send them off to sleep soundly. But as we see in GRIMM, some fairy tales can be dark and dramatic tales so it’ s understandable that parents worry about reading them to young children. As adults, we can see the innocence in fairy tales, but a five-year-old child would take them too seriously. Despite the dark nature of some classic fairy tales, as we see in GRIMM, good will defeat evil and there is always a moral to the story.”

The study also shows two thirds of mums and dads try to avoid stories which might give their children nightmares. However, half of parents think traditional tales are more likely to have a strong moral message than a lot of modern kids’ books, such as The Gruffalo, The Hungary Caterpillar and the Mr. Men books.

60. We can learn from Para. 3 that GRIMM is _________.

   A. a fairy tale book                    B. a movie for children

   C. a play loved by children             D. a drama based on traditional fairy tales

61. The underlined word “soothe” in Para. 4 can be replaced by “_________”.

   A. put down        B. calm down        C. take down      D. come down

62. Which of the following may Steve Hornsey agree to?

   A. A moral always exists in a classic fairy tale.

   B. All fairy tales are dark.

   C. Adults take fairy tales too seriously.

   D. All fairy tales are good for children’s sleep.

63. What’s the author’s attitude towards traditional fairy tales?

   A. Optimistic.    B. Not mentioned.         C. Casual.      D. Disapproving.

Harry Houdini was one of the greatest American entertainers in the theater this century. He was a man famous for his escapes from prison cells, from wooden boxes floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water. He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America. Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his “magic” tricks.

　 Of course, his secret was not magic or supernatural power. It was simply strength. He had the ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers. He could move his body into almost any position he wanted.

　 Houdini started working in the entertainment world when he was 17, in 1891. He and his brother Theo performed card tricks in clubs in New York. They called themselves the Houdini Brothers. When Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant. But for a long time they were not very successful. Then Harry performed his first prison escape in Chicago in 1898. Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local newspapermen to watch.

　 It was the publicity (宣傳) that came from this that started Harry Houdini’s success. Harry had fingers trained to escape from handcuffs and toes trained to escape from ankle chains. But his biggest secret was how he unlocked the prison doors. Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good luck and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks. She passed it quickly from her mouth to his.

　 Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame. He arranged to escape from the local prison of every town he visited. In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full. What was the result? Worldwide fame and a name remembered today.

56. According to the passage, Houdini’s success in prison escapes depends on ______.

　 A. his special tricks and supernatural powers

　 B. his unusual ability and skeleton key

　 C. his magic tricks and supernatural powers

　 D. his wisdom and magic tricks

57. It can be inferred from the passage that Houdini became famous ______ .

58. According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?　　　　　　　　 　　　　

A. Houdini was a famous American magician.　

B. Houdini was first recognized in Chicago.　

C. Houdini first entered the entertainment world together with his wife.　

D. Houdini was popular with people from Europe and America.

59. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

At the age of eight, I went to hear a live rock concert for the first time. My brother and his friends were all 36 of a heavy metal group called Black Wednesday. When they 37 that Black Wednesday were going to perform at our local theatre, they all bought 38 for performance. However, at the last minute, one of the friends couldn’t go, so my brother 39 me the ticket. I was really 40!I remember the buzz (嘈雜聲) of excitement inside the theatre as we all found our 41. After a few minutes, the lights went down and everybody became 42. I could barely make out the stage in the 43. We waited. Then there was a roar from the crowd, like an explosion, as the first members of the band 44 the stage. My brother leaned over and shouted something in my ear, but I couldn’t 45 what he was saying. The first song was already starting and the music was as 46 a jet engine. I could 47 the drum beats and bass notes in my stomach.

I can’t recall any of the songs that the band played. I just 48 that I really enjoyed the show and didn’t want it to 49. But in the end, after three encores (加演), the show finished. We left the 50 and walked unsteadily out onto the pavement. I felt a little dizzy, as if I had just 51 from a long sleep. My ears were still 52 with the beat of the last song.
   After the 53 , I became a Black Wednesday fan too for a few years before getting into other kinds of music. Once in a while, 54, I listen to one of their songs and 55 I’m back at that first show.

36 A.memebers    B. friends     C. volunteers      D. Fans

37A. discovered   B. guessed    C. thought        D. Predicted

38A. flower      B. drinks      C. Clothes        D. Ticket

39A. booked     B. returned     C. offered        D. Found

40A. relaxed     B. embarrassed  C. excited        D. Encouraged

41A. space      B. entrance      C. spots          D. Seats

42A. comfortable B. quiet         C. serious         D. Nervous

43A. darkness   B. noise         C. silence         D. Smoke

44A. fell upon    B. got through   C. broke into      D. stepped onto

45A. forget       B. repeat       C. hear           D. Bear

46A. heard       B. loud         C. sweet         D. Fast

47A. enjoy        B. touch       C. feel           D. Digest

48A. realize       B. understand   C. believe        D. Remember

49A. continue      B. finish       C. delay         D. Change

50A. party         B. stage        C. opera         D. Theatre

51A. escaped       B. traveled      C. benefited      D. Woken

52A. ringing        B. burning      C. aching        D. Rolling

53A. performance    B. competition   C. interview     D. Celebration

54A. though         B. otherwise     C. instead      D. Besides

55. A. imagine        B. regret         C. conclude    D. decide

—I was awarded a prize for doing volunteer work.

—__________.

　 A .You’ve got it　　　　 B. You deserve it　　

　 C .Good idea　　　　　 D. Here we are

— I can’t find my favourite magazine.

— I saw Jack going away with _____,but I am not sure whether it is yours.

　　 A .it　　　　 B. that　　　　 C. one　　　 D. some

—Where _____ Mary have put the empty bottles?　　　　　　　

— She _____ them away. They must be somewhere.　

　 A. can; can’t have thrown 　　B. must; needn’t　

　 C. must; must have thrown D. can; mustn’t have thrown

As a boy of six, 　　　　　　　　　　　 .

　　　 A．Tim’s parents asked him to play the piano every day.

　　　 B．Tim and his parents would play the piano together.

　　　 C．Tim had to practice playing the piano every day.

D．to learn playing the piano is too hard for Tim.

Is this the reason _______ to you for his carelessness in the exams?

　　A. how he explained B. he explained 　

C. what he explained 　　　　　　　 D. why he explained

One is expected to behave _________ on some special occasions.

A. accurately           B. precisely   C. appropriately         D. rightly

 The police are trying to find out the ______ of the woman murdered in the bathroom．

A. evidence   B. characteristic   C. status        D. identity