Про­чи­тай­те текст. Для каж­до­го пред­ло­же­ния А–Е вы­бе­ри­те один пра­виль­ный ва­ри­ант от­ве­та из четырёх пред­ло­жен­ных (1, 2, 3 или 4).

There are a lot of famous books for children. One of them is "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer", which is a novel by Mark Twain. It was published in 1876. The novel is about a clever naughty young boy living in a town along the Mississippi River.

Tom Sawyer is an orphan. He doesn't have parents and lives with his Aunt Polly and half-brother, Sid. Tom doesn't like to do what his aunt tells him to do but he likes to trick his aunt.

They live in St. Petersburg. It is a town in the state of Missouri, on the Mississippi River. The town is fictional, it does not really exist but it looks like the town Hannibal, in the state of Missouri, where Twain grew up.

The first chapters describe how Tom makes his aunt angry. First he eats jam, then he gets in a fight with another boy. As punishment, Aunt Polly orders him to whitewash a very long fence. However, Tom makes other children believe that whitewashing is fun, and they end up giving him various items for a turn at the fence.

All the events that take place in the novel are connected with one character and are impossible without Tom Sawyer. Tom is a person who can overcome any problem, and nothing is impossible for him. He looks at the difficulties as a challenge and immediately tries to solve them. He is full of a great optimism in spite of everything bad that has happened to him.

In November 1875, Twain gave the manuscript to the American Publishing Company and the company sent it to True Williams for the illustrations. A little later, the book was published at Chatto and Windus of London, in June 1876, but without illustrations. Pirate editions appeared very quickly in Canada and Germany. The American Publishing Company finally published its edition in December 1876, which was the first illustrated edition of Tom Sawyer.

A.  The main character of the book …

1)  is not very clever.

2)  is well-behaved.

3)  enjoys tricking his aunt.

4)  always does what he is told to do.

B.  The town where Tom lives …

1)  looks the same as a real town in the USA.

2)  can be found in the USA.

3)  is called Hannibal.

4)  is far from sources of water.

C.  Tom has to whitewash the fence because …

1)  he wants to play with other children.

2)  his aunt makes him do it.

3)  he wants to get jam from his aunt.

4)  his aunt thinks it’s fun for Tom.

D.  When Tom has a difficult task he …

1)  tries not to do it.

2)  believes it’s impossible to do it.

3)  is afraid that something bad may happen to him.

4)  is ready to find a way to do it.

E.  The earliest official publication of the book was in …

1)  Great Britain.

2)  Canada.

3)  Germany.

4)  the USA.

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Про­чи­тай­те текст. Для каж­до­го пред­ло­же­ния А–Е вы­бе­ри­те один пра­виль­ный ва­ри­ант от­ве­та из четырёх пред­ло­жен­ных (1, 2, 3 или 4).

Have you heard about Pippi Longstocking? The collection of stories about a little girl became a popular classic of children's literature. Pippi is a nine-year-old girl. She lives by herself in an old house  — Villa Villekulla  — with her monkey, Mr. Nilsson, and her horse. Her mother died when she was a baby, and her father is lost at sea, but he left her with a suitcase full of gold coins, and she believes that he will return one day.

The first chapter introduces Pippi and the children next door, Tommy and Annika. They are bored and want a new child to come. When they first see Pippi they are happy because she has an unusual look and behaviour.

Pippi calls them for breakfast and they become friends. She introduces them to her pets. Each chapter describes an adventure. For example, from one of the chapters we can learn that Pippi is «the strongest girl in the world», and makes criminals dance with her or climb a tree. At a circus, Pippi defeats the circus strongman.

Pippi has a lot of money but she is not greedy. She gives money to different people. She and Mr. 

Nilsson help boys get out of house which is on fire when firemen cannot help them. The final chapter describes Pippi's 10th birthday party.

Pippi Longstocking began as stories that the author A. Lindgren told her young daughter when she was ill; according to A. Lindgren, her daughter invented the name. A. Lindgren also became the author of two other books about Pippi: in 1946 "Pippi Goes on Board" and in 1948 "Pippi in the South Seas". There are some films about Pippi, beginning with a Swedish film in 1949. The best film is a Swedish TV serial in 1969. "The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking" is a 1988 musical adventure film written by Ken Annakin.

A.  The main character of the book  …

1)  lives with her parents in an old house.

2)  has got pets.  

3)  doesn’t think that her father will return.

4)  doesn’t have any money.

B.  Tommy and Annika are happy to see Pippi because  …

1)  she is a usual girl.

2)  she lives in their flat.

3)  they will not be bored with her.

4)  they have known her for a long time.

C.  From the episode with the criminals the readers learn that Pippi  …

1)  is afraid of criminals.

2)  is a weak teenager.

3)  is brave and very strong.

4)  is not generous.

D.  Pippi and Mr.  Nilsson help boys get out of the house because  …

1)  the house is burning.

2)  there are firemen in the house.

3)  there are criminals in the house.

4)  Pippi invites them for breakfast.

E.  The author of the book  …

1)  wrote only one book about Pippi.

2)  invented the name herself.

3)  first told the story to a Swedish TV producer.

4)  wrote several books about Pippi.

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Про­чи­тай­те текст. Для каж­до­го пред­ло­же­ния А–Е вы­бе­ри­те один пра­виль­ный ва­ри­ант от­ве­та из четырёх пред­ло­жен­ных (1, 2, 3 или 4).

"The Prince and the Pauper" is Mark Twain's first historical novel, which was published in 1881. The novel is about England in the 16^th century when the kings were Henry VIII and Edward VI. The main characters in the novel are two boys: Henry's son, Prince Edward, and Tom Canty, a poor boy. After a chance meeting, the two boys decide to exchange roles.

"The Prince and the Pauper" begins on an autumn day in London in the 16^th century. Two boys are born. The first is Tom Canty, a child born to a poor London family. The second is Edward Tudor, Henry VIII's son and the future king of England.

The next chapter tells us about the boys when they are nine years old. Tom lives in a poor family, where he has to ask people for food because he is hungry. His mother and his elder sisters take care of him. A churchman, whose name is Father Andrew, teaches him to read and write. Tom dreams about living the life of a prince.

Tom wants to see a real prince and comes to the royal palace at Westminster. At Westminster, young Prince Edward sees Tom and invites him to the palace.

Edward understands that he knows nothing about life of people in London, and Tom says he wishes to get some knowledge about the life of a prince. They swap clothes, Tom puts on Edward's clothes and Edward puts on Tom's clothes. They realize that they look the same. Edward hides the Great Seal  — the king's official stamp. When Edward leaves the royal palace dressed up as a poor boy, the palace guards and crowds are rude to him and do not let him back inside the palace.

Crowds of people laugh at Edward. Tom's father John Canty finds Edward and says that he is his son. The court officials do not believe Tom who tells them that he is not a prince. They say that Edward is "mad." King Henry, his daughter Elizabeth and other Henry's relatives want to help Tom understand what court life is like. They ask Tom about the Great Seal is, but he cannot answer.

There are a lot of interesting events in the book. Every child should read it.

A.  The events in the novel take place  …

1)  in the USA in the nineteenth century.

2)  in England in the sixteenth century.

3)  in the USA in the sixteenth century.

4)  in England in the nineteenth century.

B.  The main difference between Edward and Tom lies  …

1)  in the cities where they live.

2)  in the way the look.

3)  in the families they live in.

4)  in the centuries they lived in.

C.  Tom Canty suffers a lot because  …

1)  his family does not have enough money to survive.

2)  his mother doesn’t like him.

3)  there is nobody to educate him.

4)  Father Andrew makes him ask money.

D.  When Edward meets Tom he understands that  …

1)  his life at Westminster is the same as Tom’s life.

2)  he doesn’t know much about life of poor people in England.

3)  doesn’t want to know how people live in England.

4)  he wants to be an heir to the throne of England.

E.  King Henry VIII’s relatives in the royal palace  …

1)  are rude to Tom.

2)  know that Tom is not Edward.

3)  try to help Tom.

4)  try to look for Edward.

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