People think that writing short stories is easy because they are short. But in fact they are hard to write well. There are only a few writers of good short stories and the American writer O. Henry is one of them.
His real name was William Sydney Porter and he grew up in North Carolina. He was not very successful at school but he loved reading. When he was about twenty years old he left North Carolina and moved to Texas. He thought there would be more opportunities for work there. At first he worked on a newspaper but as this did not provide enough money he changed his job. He decided to work in a bank. All went well until some money went missing. William was believed to have stolen it and was sent to prison. Although this was a horrible experience it helped in one way because he realized that he could write well. William began writing short stories and O. Henry was born! When he left prison he began writing as a career and published many of his stories. They were mostly about the people that he met or he knew in New York and they had interesting or surprising endings. People enjoyed reading them. His life, however, was not a happy one. He drank too much and died in 1910 in New York but he left behind stories that are still read and enjoyed by millions of people.
61. In which order did O. Henry do the following things?
a. Lived in New York. b. Worked in a bank. c. Travelled to Texas.
d. Was put in prison. e. Had a newspaper job. f. Learned to write stories.
A. e, c, f, b, d, a B. c, e, b, d, f, a C. e, b, d, c, a, f D. c, b, e, d, a, f
62. People enjoyed reading O. Henry’s stories because .
A. they had surprise endings B. they were easy to understand
C. they showed his love for the poor D. they were about New York City
63. O. Henry went to prison because .
A. People thought he had stolen money from the newspaper.
B. He broke the law by using violence.
C. He wanted to write stories about prisoners.
D.People thought he had taken money that was not his.
64. What do we know about O. Henry before he began writing?
A. He was well-educated. B. He was not serious about his work.
C. He was devoted to the poor. D. He loved reading.
65. Where did O. Henry get most material for his short stories?
A. His life inside the prison. B. The newspaper articles he wrote.
C. The city and people of New York. D. His exciting early life as a boy.