Jose Alberto Gutierrez’s life would never be the same again after finding a copy of Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy in the garbage 20 years ago. It happened while he was driving his garbage truck through wealthier neighborhoods at night and seeing deserted books. It sparked his desire to start rescuing books from the garbage. He took home between 50 and 60 books every morning after his nine-hour shift. Eventually, he turned his book collection into a community library.
Colombia’s capital city of Bogota has 13 million residents and 19 public libraries. However, these libraries tend to be far away from where rural and poorer communities live. The option of buying new books is non-existent for families struggling to make ends meet. Having access to a library of books and being taken away to another world while immersed in a book is a luxury for the kids who visit Gutierrez’s library.
Gutierrez grew up poor, and his family could not afford to educate him beyond primary school. Nevertheless, his mother was a keen reader and read stories to him every night. Her love for books left a deep impression on Gutierrez, who never let a lack of formal education stop him from reading classics by the likes of Victor Hugo, Mario Vargas Llosa and Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Today, his community library, called “The Strength of Words”, occupies most of his home and is piled from floor to ceiling with fiction and non-fiction titles. Everything from school textbooks to story books can be found in his collection of more than 20,000 books!
The Strength of Words library opens every weekend. It is not just school-going children who are enjoying the benefits of The Strength of Words library. Adults are also welcome to expand their horizons and develop new skills to build a better life for themselves.
Despite having done so much for his community, Gutierrez is not yet content to call it a day. He continues to search through bins for reading material and has even travelled to book fairs in Mexico and Chile to sell his idea of building library from unwanted books.
【小题1】What inspired Gutierrez to build the community library?| A．Famous novelists he liked very much. |
| B．The dilemma he faced on the night shift. |
| C．Abandoned books he came across at work. |
| D．The hobby he has taken up since childhood. |
| A．Gutierrez’s mother was a good reader. |
| B．Gutierrez was greatly influenced by his mother. |
| C．Gutierrez led a difficult life during his childhood. |
| D．Gutierrez had a disadvantage of poor education. |
| A．Responsible and ambitious. | B．Humble and thoughtful. |
| C．Committed and sensitive. | D．Creative and courageous. |
| A．A book holds a house of gold. |
| B．Constant dropping wears the stone. |
| C．Good things come to those who wait. |
| D．One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. |
Good Literary Podcasts (播客) for Book Lovers
Audio Almanac
The Audio Almanac’s fiction writer Lawson runs this exciting monthly podcast. Here. writers read stories written by other writers. The writers then discuss what they like about the story and what it means to them with Lawson. It is a real treat listening to writers explain their interpretation of the story to us.
Pod Pals
This inspiring podcast invites authors to bring objects that became their source of inspiration in their journey as a writer. They discuss the significance of these objects in their lives. and how it represents their struggles and successes. It is a real treat to listen to good advice from these seasoned guests.
The Starfish Podcast
For all you literary enthusiasts who have ever thought, what makes a writer click? Or what was that great moment that changed their lives? This podcast is for you. This relatively new podcast hosted by Edward interviews other writers about their deeply transformative experiences. They make suggestions for you to begin writing stories.
Insightful Chronicles
This literary podcast will feel right as rain for those who don’t have the patience for big books and stories. Aldridge, the former host of a popular TV show Rain Reading, thrills his audience with every episode (一集) of short story reading. Authors from all around the world from every literary genre (体裁) penned these short stories.
【小题1】Where can you listen to the stories read by writers?| A．From Audio Almanac. | B．From Pod Pals. |
| C．From The Starfish Podcast. | D．From Insightful Chronicles. |
| A．They talk about objects in various books. | B．They deal with writers’ struggling stories. |
| C．They offer suggestions for some listeners. | D．They are hosted by many famous writers. |
| A．It copies a popular TV show. | B．It broadcasts pieces from big books. |
| C．It refers to books on the topic of rain. | D．It invites hosts from around the world. |
Biography（自传）
When Salinger learned that a car park was to be built on the land，the middleaged writer was shocked and quickly bought the neighboring area to protect it ... The towns people never forgot the rescue and came to help their most famous neighbor.
J. D. Salinger: A Life by Kenneth Slawenski (Random House，$27)
Mystery (疑案小说)
“You're a smart boy. Benny's death was no accident, and you're the only one who saw it happen. Do you think the murderer should get away with it? ”The boy was staring stubbornly at his lap again.
A thought suddenly occurred to Annika，“Did you ...You recognized the man in the car, didn't you？”
The boy hesitated, twisting his fingers，“Maybe,”he said quietly.
Red Wolf by Liza Marklund (Atria Books, $25.99)
Short Stories
She wants to say to him what she has learned，none of it in class: Some women are born stupid, and some women are too smart for their own good. Some women are born to give, and some women only know how to take. Some women learn who they want to be from their mothers, some who they don't want to be. Some mothers suffer so their daughters won't. Some mothers love so their daughters won't.
You Are Free by Danzy Senna (Riverhead Books，$15)
Humor
Do your kids like to have fun? Come to Fun Times! Do you like to watch your kids having fun? Bring them to Fun Times! Fun Times's “amusement cycling” is the most fun you can have, legally, in the United States right now. Why spend thousands of dollars flying to Disney World when you can spend less than half of that within a day's drive of most cities?
Happy And Other Bad Thoughts by Larry Doyle (Ecco，$14.99)
【小题1】If the readers want to know about the life of Salinger, they should buy the book published by ________.
| A．Ecco | B．Random House |
| C．Riverhead Books | D．Atria Books |
| A．young children | B．Disney World workers |
| C．middle school teachers | D．parents with young children |
| A．You Are Free | B．J. D. Salinger: A Life |
| C．Happy And Other Bad Thoughts | D．Red Wolf |
Swapping (交换) books is an easy and fun way to share your literature and keep your book collection updated.
You can exchange books you have read with nearby friends and relatives. Perhaps there is a book that you know a local friend has read and that you want to get your hands on. Arrange to leave a book with a wanted-book note on the friend’s doorstep or put the book in his letterbox if it fits. If you have lots of books that you are happy to swap, or even give away, these could be left in a clear plastic container, with a lid (盖子), outside your door or by your garden or driveway. Leave a note in the box telling passers-by that they can look through them and choose some.
You can also join Bookswap, the bookswap.co.uk website. It helps people get rid of books and pick up others. With the help of an adult, visit the site and see if there are any titles you fancy reading. You can list books for swapping. If there are books you want to read, just add them to your Wishlist and make orders. The lists are always revisable.
Read the instructions carefully, before making your swaps.
·International swaps and delivery are not yet available through the Bookswap website.
·Additional delivery zones may be added and the active restriction on the webpage will be updated.
·If a swap is cancelled, all costs are automatically returned to your account.
·You can drop off your books at Evri ParcelShop. Once collected, they are delivered to their destination in about 2-3 working days.
·You can track your order on the Bookswap webpage under My Orders. Click to see further information.
·Cancelling your order is available if the order has not been posted.
If you still need help, please write to info@bookswap.co.uk.
【小题1】According to the passage, what is the best way to swap a book with Jenny in your neighbourhood?
| A．Mail it to Jenny. | B．Leave it on Jenny’s doorstep. |
| C．Place it by your garden. | D．Drop it off at Evri ParcelShop. |
| A．swap books internationally | B．swap books free of charge |
| C．cancel a swap anytime they like | D．monitor the swapping process |
| A．To describe the benefit of book swaps. | B．To share the experience of book swaps. |
| C．To introduce the practice of book swaps. | D．To express the attitude towards book swaps. |
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