四六级

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　　As if by magic, virtually all British parents havesuddenly picked up the habit of reading to theirchildren. A poll commissioned by UK electricityutility1 Powergen found that Harry Potter, as well asolder classics, had created a veritable bedtime reading revolution. Ninety percent of Britishparents now read to their children, up from only 40 percent in 2000. Powergen claimed the risewas due to the popularity of what it called“ kid-ult2 ” books, which appeal to children andadults alike .“With the current revival of children's classics like the Lord of the Rings3 at thecinema, parents are rediscovering books they read when they were younger or are feelinginspired to read them for the first time, ”a Powergen statement quoted psychologist AricSigman as saying.“ Just as both parents and children can enjoy escapism and fantasy4 thesestories also raise important issues that they can talk about together. This sharing of ideas andopinions is critical to the emotional and creative development of children. ”

　　Barry Cunningham still laughs about that moment in 1997, when he told a single mother with aknack for fantasy storytelling to find herself a day job, because writing children's books did notpay.

　　He could not have known then that his decision to publish a book about a boy wizard wouldstart an international publishing phenomenon, or that within six years the first-time children'sbook writer in question would be richer than the Queen of England. The“find a day job ” blunderhas become part of the legend of Harry Potter, as has Mr Cunningham's role in picking up thebook on behalf of Bloomsbury, its publisher in the UK, after other longer-establishedcompanies had turned it down.

　　But the cheerful 51-year-old's story does not end with the career-making move of signing、 J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter's creator. In fact, the former marketing director left Bloomsburyweeks before the publication of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first instalment5 of the boy wizard's adventures. Today, he is running his own boutique children's book publisher —The Chicken House — and, once again, being credited with turning little -known storytellersinto bigtime bestsellers.“I did not see any direct financial benefits ( from signing J. K. Rowling) but it has given me a huge reputation — and the intangible thing is the confidence it gaveme in my own judgment. ”

　　Word of mouth about his eye for talent even prompted executives at Scholastic, the largestpublisher of children's books in the world, to approach Mr Cunningham in 2001 after reading ina trade publication that the man who discovered Harry was looking for a distributor for his newpublishing company. “We thought greatly of his talent and we knew his taste. We felt he had asense for looking for new voices ( combined with ) a commercial sense, ”says Barbara Marcus, the president of Scholastic children's books and distribution.

　　“ It's odd to say a 50-year-old man knows what a 13-year-old wants to read, but I do, ”says MrCunningham.

　　练习题：

　　Ⅰ. Translate the followin g Chin ese e xp res sio ns into En glish e quiva le nts according to the passage:

　　1. 由于, 因为

　　2. 复活, 重生, 重新出现

　　3. 经典作品, 古典作品

　　4. 民意调查

　　Ⅱ. Questions :

　　1. Which country buy the most gold to make jewelry?

　　2. What are“reserved currencies”?

　　参考答案：

　　Ⅰ. 1. due to 2. revival 3. classic 4 . poll

　　Ⅱ. 1. Lord of the Rings 2. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

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