Уровень B. Прочее .

The use of reading

No matter how many times people have spoken about the role of reading, I’d like to express my point of view too. I am absolutely sure that reading is very important in our life. We really can"t imagine our world without books, texts, and words. Why?

Firstly, books are very popular with people because they provide different information. We can read about people, important events of our history, and many other interesting things. There are many educational books on various subjects. We use textbooks at schools, higher educational institutions, and courses. Secondly, books are very important for self-expression. Many people write stories, novels, poems… Some books are not always very popular, but sometimes we need to read easy literature to relax from our serious and everyday thoughts. Thirdly, nowadays the mist popular way to get information is the Internet. But we can also get books from it too. We can read online or download books, and we do not need to carry heavy books with us. Moreover, books teach us to be kind, honest, and understanding. These qualities are very important for everybody. If you want to understand people around you, to be a good moral person, you should read books and think about their examples of characters" behavior.

Despite a great number of advantages, a lot of people don"t like reading. It"s very bad because they cannot become well educated. They don"t know many facts, useful stories… They don"t read even school literature. I think that, if they want to be good specialists, to have a well-paid job, they ought to read many books about their specialty.

So reading is very important in our life. Read books and love their characters!

Неважно, сколько раз люди говорили о роли чтения, я бы тоже хотела выразить свою точку зрения. Я абсолютно уверена, что чтение очень важно в нашей жизни. Мы действительно не можем представить наш мир без книг, текстов и слов. Почему?

Во-первых, книги очень популярны среди людей, потому что обеспечивают нас различной информацией. Мы можем читать о людях, важных событиях нашей истории и многих других интересных вещах. Существует много образовательных книг по разным предметам. Мы используем учебники в школах, в высших учебных заведениях, на курсах. Во-вторых, книги очень важны для самовыражения. Многие люди пишут истории, романы, стихи… Некоторые книги не всегда популярны, но иногда нам нужно почитать легкую литературу, чтобы отдохнуть от наших серьезных ежедневных мыслей. В-третьих, в наши дни самым популярным способом получения информации является Интернет. Но мы также можем брать оттуда книги. Мы можем читать онлайн или скачивать книги, и нам не приходится таскать тяжелые книги с собой. Более того, книги учат нас быть добрыми, честными и понимающими. Эти качества необходимы для каждого. Если ты хочешь понимать людей, окружающих тебя, быть высокоморальным человеком, тебе следует читать книги и думать над примерами характеров героев.

Несмотря на огромное количество плюсов, многие люди не любят читать. Это очень плохо, потому что они не могут стать хорошо образованными. Они не знают многие факты, полезные истории… Они не читают даже школьную литературу. Я думаю, если они хотят стать хорошими специалистами, иметь высоко оплачиваемую работу, им следует читать много книг по их специальности.

Таким образом, чтение очень важно в нашей жизни. Читайте книги и любите их персонажей!

Даже в нашем «информационном» мире тема (топик) «Books» никогда не потеряет своей актуальности. Ведь только чтение художественной литературы позволяет нам проанализировать опыт предыдущих поколений, поданный великой рукой мастера-писателя. Давайте учиться рассказывать о прочитанных книгах и о том впечатлении, которые они на вас произвели. И, конечно же, о любимом писателе. Кстати, вот

Books. Список английских слов №2 (intermediate)

Запомните распространенные фразы на английском языке по теме «Books»:
1. I am fond of (kind of books) – Я люблю …
2. I prefer reading (kind of books) – Я предпочитаю читать …
3. What kind of reading do you prefer reading? – Какие книги ты предпочитаешь читать?
4. I enjoy reading (kind of books) – Я люблю читать …
5. As for me, I like reading (kind of books) – Что касается меня, я …

ПРИМЕР I am fond of detectives. / I am fond of reading detectives.

Существительные по теме «Genres. Жанры книг» (Kinds of books).

Выделяют следующие виды книг, которые часто называют жанры. Постарайтесь вспомнить существительные, перевод к которым отсутствует.

1. a novel – роман
2. a historical novel – исторический роман
3. a story
4. a detective story
5. a love story
6. an adventure story – приключенческий роман
7. a short story
8. a horror story
9. a ghost story – история о привидениях
10. a fairy tale
11. a travel book
12. a fantasy book
13. a science fiction book – научно-фантастический роман
14. a legend / a myth – легенда (миф)
15. a biography – биография
16. a poem – стихотворение
17. poetry – поэзия

Составление отзыва о книге на английском языке

6. The title of the book – название книги
7. It is written by – она написана (имя писателя)
8. interesting / exciting / funny / true-to-life / well-written / easy to read — интересный, увлекательный, забавный, правдоподобный, хорошо-написанный, легко читается
ПРИМЕР. I find this book exciting and easy to read.

9. boring / sad / awful / badly-written / difficult to read — скучный, грустный, ужасный, плохо-написанный, трудно читается
ПРИМЕР. I find the book boring and difficult to read.

10. writer — писатель

• children’s writer — детский писатель
• short story writer — автор рассказов
• author — автор
• dramatist= playwright — драматург (пишет пьесы)
• poet — поэт
• poetess — поэтесса

11. world-famous — всемирно-известный

• well-known — хорошо-известный
• great — великий
• talented — талантливый
• modern — современный
• classical — классический
• medieval — средневековый
• eighteenth- century — восемнадцатого века

12. he is considered to be — он считается
13. a plot — сюжет

• interesting — boring — интересный — скучный
• simple – intricate — простой — запутанный
• fast-moving – slow-moving – быстро-развивающийся – медленно-развивающийся

14. cheap stuff — ерунда, макулатура
15. to read more than half way through — прочитать больше, чем до половины
16. to be worth reading — стоит почитать
17. for a change – для разнообразия
18. characters (imaginative – true-to-life) — герои (вымышленные – правдоподобные)
19. the story takes place (the scene is laid) — действие происходит
20. the contents — содержание
21. episodes / moments — эпизоды / моменты

• funny – sad — забавные – грустные
• humorous – tragic — комичные – трагические

22. I could not help smiling / laughing / crying — не могла не улыбнуться / рассмеяться / заплакать
23. I couldn’t help feeling sad — не могла не почувствовать грусть
24. on the whole — в целом
25. to ruin your eye-sight — испортить зрение
26. poor eye-sight — плохое зрение
27. the cover of the book — обложка книги
28. an edition (cheap, pocket, abridged) — издание (дешевое, карманное, сокращенное)
29. a book in two volumes — книга в двух томах
30. a book (in translation — in the original) — книга (в переводе – в оригинале)
31. a collection of stories / poems — сборник рассказов / стихов
32. a book with colorful illustrations — книга с красочными иллюстрациями
33. in his works — в своих произведениях
34. to advise — посоветовать

Выделенные жирным шрифтом вы скорее всего уже знаете, так как они входили в Постарайтесь выучить остальные английские слова (уровень 2 — intermediate)

Books. Задания для активизации лексики по теме «Книги». Пример отзыва о книге на английском языке. Сообщение на тему «My favourite writer»

Задание. Выучите диалог.
— What kind of reading do you like ?
— Well, I am fond of adventure stories.
— As for me, I enjoy fantasy books.
— Oh, I prefer reading fantasy books, too.

Обратите внимание, что наряду с обычным глаголом like – нравиться в этом диалоге используются более интересные выражения be fond of — увлекаться, prefer — предпочитать, enjoy — получать удовольствие.

Пример отзыва на книгу на английском языке для начинающих / The opinion about the book «“The Hound of the Baskerville”

This summer I’ve read a book by Conan Doyle “The Hound of the Baskerville”. I liked this book very much.

I liked the plot of this book and its main characters. Sometimes I told my friends about the book and they liked to listen to me.

One day my Mum asked me to read aloud and for several days I read this book to her. My Mum knows English a little and she could understand what I read.

It was very useful for me to read this book, because I learnt many new English words. Now I’m going to read one more English book, because while reading “The Hound of Baskerville” I got a great pleasure.

Сообщение на тему «Мой любимый писатель — О. Генри. My Favourite Writer O.Henry»

During this summer I read a lot. I want to tell you about my favourite writer. It is an American writer O. Henry. O. Henry is his pen name. His real name is William Sydney Porter. He was born in Greensboro, a little town in North Carolina in 1862. In his youth he changed many professions: he was a cowboy, a reporter, a clerk in a bank. He travelled about America trying to find a job. He met many common people, and that helped him later in his literary work. It happened that he got into prison and it was there that he started to write. He wrote his first story as a Christmas present for his little daughter.

O. Henry is a great master of short story. He liked to write about common people, whose life he knew very well.

O. Henry is one of the most widely published American writers. His stories are short, humorous and usually have a happy end. He is a master of unusual plots and surprise endings.

Best of all, I like the story with an unusual title “No Story”. It is about a girl who went to New York to look for her boyfriend. He had gone there some years ago to find a good job in New York City. He promised to return and marry her but he never came back. She came across him in a street but didn’t recognize so much he changed. He became a ruined man and not to make her unhappy he sent her back home. He still loved her. It is a very sad story about romantic love. If you like love stories, I advise you to read it.

Reading
Child psychologists believe that reading is one of the best habits that should be encouraged in children. Ninety percent of the things we learn during our lifetime come through books; therefore if we can"t read, we can"t learn.
Books appeared long ago. At first they were written by hand, but after printing was invented, it became easier to publish books. There are two large groups of books: fiction and non-fiction books. Fiction books are most popular with readers and include short stories and novels of different genres and poetry. Non-fiction books are dictionaries, reference books, historical books, biographies, encyclopaedias and others.
In my childhood, my mother read different books to me and that helped me to love reading. When I learnt to read, I was really happy because I could read books which I wanted and liked. At first, they were fairy tales, adventure stories and comics. Later, I was fond of detective stories and thrillers. Now I read historical novels and I realise that I do not know many things from history and it is so wonderful that I can learn them now and understand facts that I could not understand in my childhood. During my studies I also use non-fiction books like dictionaries and encyclopaedias to find necessary information.
Today television and the Internet have almost replaced books because these resources provide any information one wants and some people think that in the modern world we do not need books at all. I think, however, that books will never disappear, because reading gives us pleasure.
Modern technologies also made it possible for us to use electronic readers instead of paper copies of books. On the one hand, such readers are very convenient as you do not have to carry a thick book in your bag: you just take the reader and upload text files into it, so instead of several books you just
carry one light electronic device! In addition, you may also keep pictures and even music files on it. Lastly, it is more environmentally friendly to use an electronic reader - cutting down trees is not needed for their development unlike the process of producing paper copies.
However, everything has its disadvantages. To begin with, such readers are rather expensive and not everyone can afford them. One point against it is that free electronic texts to download are hard to find. Finally, paper books are more pleasant to hold in hands: touch their pages, turn them over, feel their smell. I have an electronic reader and it is convenient, but I still read paper copies of books too.
To sum up, it is impossible to live without reading and even if paper books may disappear in the future, people will never stop reading.

ПЛАН-ОТВЕТ. READING
1. Вступление (the importance of reading, if we can"t read, we can"t learn, etc.).
2. Рассказать кратко об истории книгопечатания и двух группах книг (appeared long ago, were written by hand, printing was invented, two large groups, fiction: short stories and novels of different genres and poetry; non-fiction: dictionaries, reference books, historical books, biographies, encyclopaedias).
3. Рассказать о том, что вы читали в детстве, какие книги предпочитаете читать сейчас (In my childhood, fairy tales/adventure stories, etc.; Now I read...; During my studies I also use...).
4. Рассказать о чтении и книгах в современном мире и современных технологиях (television and the Internet, do not need books at all, modern technologies, electronic readers: advantages and disadvantages, etc.).
5. Заключение (То sum up, it is impossible to live without reading and even if paper books may disappear in the future, people will never stop reading.).

QUESTIONS
1. Do you read much?
2. What sort of books do you read?
3. Do you enjoy reading?
4. Should children be encouraged to read?
5. What are the advantages of reading? Are there any disadvantages? What are they?
6. Is it good to get the reading habit?
7. Do you read in English or in your own language?
8. Does reading help to learn a language?
9. When do you usually read?
10. Do you read newspapers?
11. Do you read magazines or journals?
12. What books do you usually use to get ready for your classes?
13. Do you think people should read more?
14. What will happen if we don"t read?
15. When should we start reading?
16. Do you think that people don"t read so much because they are busy watching television or surfing the Internet?
17. What would you do to encourage people to read? Is it difficult to encourage yourself to read? Why (not)?
18. What was your favourite book in your childhood? What is your favourite book now?
19. What is your favourite genre of books?
20. Do you read electronic books or prefer paper copies of books? Why?
21. What are the advantages and disadvantages of electronic readers?
22. Do you think that books may disappear in the future? Why (not)?
23. Where do you usually buy books?
24. Do you borrow books from a library or do you buy them?
25. Do you think that libraries may disappear in the future? Why (not)?

USEFUL WORDS AND PHRASES
Fiction Художественная литература
action and adventure боевики и приключения
children"s книги для детей
contemporary современная проза
crime детектив
fantasy фэнтези
graphic novels/comics комиксы
historical fiction исторический роман
horror ужасы
humour юмористическая проза
mystery детективный роман
romance любовный роман
science fiction научная фантастика
short story collection . сборник рассказов
thrillers триллеры
young adult литература для подростков
Non-Fiction Научно-популярная литература
almanac альманах
art & photography книги по искусству
biography & memoirs биография/мемуары
blueprint план, чертёж
booklet буклет, брошюра
brochure брошюра
business & finance бизнес и финансы
cookbook кулинарная книга
dictionary словарь
encyclopaedia энциклопедия
gardening садоводство
gift books подарочные издания
guide гид, путеводитель
handbook справочник, руководство
history книги по истории
"how-to" инструкция
journalism журналистика
manual руководство пользователя
medical health & fitness медицина и фитнес
nature & ecology природа и экология
periodical периодические издания
pets о домашних животных
picture book словарь в картинках
psychology психология
reference справочник
self-help книги «помоги себе сам»
sports спорт
textbook учебник
travel книги о путешествиях

       Books surround us. They appeared ages ago and took different forms. The oldest form is probably the roll (30-40 centuries B.C.). It appeared in Ancient Egypt, and was as well used in Ancient Greece. The Egyptians used papyrus, brush and red and black ink to draw hieroglyphs, which at first meant things and animals and then started to mean sounds. There were more than 700 of hieroglyphs! Champollion, a French scientist, solved the riddle of these signs with"the help of Rosetta Stone on which there was a text in Egyptian and in Greek. Another ancient form was codex where pages were put one on another. The form of codex w as used in Mesopotamia (where the pages were made of clay), Rome and other countries. The Chinese invented paper, before this important invention people used different materials, mostly skins of animals. The books were copied by hand and cost a whole fortune. Later the printing press was invented so the books became popular and rather cheap. The first primed book was produced in Korea in the 8th century. In China the priming press began to work in the 11th century, in Europe - in the 15th century.
       There are many genres of books around us. They can be divided into fiction and non-fiction books.
       Non-fiction books contain real information and are used for education and work. They are reference books, dictionaries, atlases, biographies and autobiographies, scientific reports, textbooks and encyclopaedias. In reference books as well as in encyclopaedias you can find facts about different objects and famous people, about countries and animals. At school we use dictionaries to learn the meanings of words. Biographies are a good source of information. Sometimes they can also be a pleasant reading. Fot example, the biography of Moliere by Bulgakov, or of Tchaikovsky by Nina Berberova. Historical books describe different epochs and reigns of kings and queens.
       Fiction books are written to give pleasure. They are also called belles-lettres. This word is mostly used when we speak about stories, novels and romances. «War and Peace» by Leo Tolstoy is an example of fiction. But the young usually prefer fantasy books and science fiction. The difference between them is the following: fantasy books usually describe the events and countries in the form of a legend and narrate about the past. A good example of fantasy is «Conan the Barbarian»; science fiction books describe events in the future, the characters and places are given as imaginary and usually take place in the future. «Starship Troopers» by Heinlein, «Stainless Steel Rat» by Harry Harrison are examples of the style.
       I myself like science fiction most of all. My favourite science fiction book is «Starship troopers». The author of the book is Robert Heinlein. It has been filmed, but I don"t like the film, which is very primitive. The plot of the book, on the contrary, is complex and there are many philosophical ideas built in the sequence of fantastical events and surroundings. The main character of the book is a boy named Johnny. The boy joins the army, because of his love to a girl who wants to be a pilot. But through the book his character and understanding of the situation changes. He understands what it means to be a citizen of the state, to bi responsible for your decisions. While in the army, he understands that only a man who can forget his own interests for the sake of his Motherland is a real citizen. I think, this idea is vital now in our country. I have read many science fiction books by Russian and foreign authors. At the end of the book he is an officer who understands his duty.
       But my favourite fiction book is «Gone with the Wind». It was written by Margaret Mitchell. Her father was the President of the Atlanta Historical Society. You know, Atlanta was one of the important cities in the South. Since her childhood the girl had heard stories about the Civil War between the North and the South. When the girl grew up and got married, she decided to write down those stories. So, she wrote «Gone with the wind». The book was published for the first time in 1936. It was a great success and the next year it got the Pulitzer Prize. In 1939 the book was filmed.
       I like the book because it has several levels of composition. The first level is the love story - the main character, Scarlett O"Hara, loves Ashley Wilkes, but marries for money another man, Rhett Butler. By the end of the book she understands that she and Rhett are alike and have much in common, that she loves Rhett. But Rhett leaves her, and we can only guess if she can get him back.
       The second level is the description of the strong characters oi" the Southerners. Scarlett, a daughter of a rich planter, goes to the field and works as a slave when it is needed. Ashley, so quiet and gentle, goes to the war and fights well and bravely. In difficult situations of my life 1 think that they suffered more, but survived. So, this book helps me to go through the difficulties of my life.
       The third level of the book is the atmosphere of the Southern way of life. On the first page we can read the description of the Tarlton twins. When they are compared, the author does not use the usual English expression «as two peas»; she says that they were as two cotton bolls. Margaret Mitchell describes a planter"s house and his life routine.
       The fourth level is the events of the Civil War between the North and the South, and the post-war life. This is very useful, if you want to understand the modern differences between the northern and the southern states in nowadays America.
       I like the book so much that when the sequel was published, I made my mother buy it. We all have read it, but did not like much. Sequels are usually worse than the first books.

Топик Книги и чтение рассказывает о том, как важно много читать и развивать свои навыки чтения, в том числе, и при чтении литературы на английском языке. Как и в любом деле, нужно целенаправленно практиковаться: читать быстро, вникая в суть предмета. Для успешной учебы, чтение – один из самых важных навыков.

Books can fit almost every need, temper, or interest. Books can be read when you are in the mood; you don’t need to do it all the time. Books are both more personal and more impersonal than professors. Books have an inner confidence which individuals seldom show; they rarely have to be on the defensive. Books can afford to be bold, and courageous, and explanatory; they don’t have to be so careful of boards of trustees, colleagues, and community opinion. Books are infinitely diverse; they run the gamut of all human activities. Books can express every point of view; if you need a different point of view, you can read a different book.

Reading is probably the most important skill you need for successful studies. You will have to read lengthy assignments in different subjects with varying degrees of detail and difficulty. If you you read inaccurately, you will fail to understand some of the information and ideas you read. If you read slowly, you will have to spent too much time reading your assignments and the rest of your work may suffer.

Poor reading may be a problem for you, but it can be solved. Like other skills, your abilty to read English fast and accurately demands careful instruction and purposeful practice. You must keep practising on your own to improve your reading skills.

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