Vocabulary

Слово	Транскрипция	Перевод	Пример
Temper	['tempə]	характер, нрав	She really has a temper!
Inner confidence	['ɪnə 'kɔnfɪdəns]	внутренняя уверенность	I think you lack some inner confidence
Diverse	[daɪ'vɜːs]	разнообразный
Gamut	['gæmət]	гамма, диапазон	The gamut of opinions is very wide
point of view	[pɔɪnt əvjuː]	точка зрения	What is your point of view?
assignment	[ə'saɪnmənt]	задание	Your assignment is to finish these sentences
a contemporary	[kən'temprərɪ]	сверстник, современник	This writer is your contemporary
to value	['væljuː]	ценить	I really value your talent!
faithful	['feɪθfəl]	верный	I admit that he is a very faithful friend
to admit	[əd'mɪt]	признавать
to lack	[læk]	не хватать	I assert that this book lacks sense
to assert	[ə'sɜːt]	утверждать
to bear in heart	[bɛə ɪn hɑːt]	хранить в сердце	I will bear in mind this day
incurable illness	[ɪn'kjuərəbl 'ɪlnəs]	неизлечимая болезнь	He suffers from incurable illness
to penetrate	['penɪtreɪt]	проникать	He has a talent to penetrate into people’s mind and soul
to reveal	[rɪ'viːl]	раскрывать	The book reveals the real feelings of people
to sympathize with	['sɪmpəθaɪz]	сочувствовать	I always sympathize with Tolstoy’s characters.

Books in my life

Books can fit almost every need, temper, or interest. Books are more personal and more impersonal than professors. Books have an inner confidence which individuals seldom show. Books are infinitely diverse; they run the gamut of human activity. Books can express every point of view; if you want a different point of view, you can read a different book. Reading is probably the most important skill you will need for success in your studies. You will have to read large assignments in different subjects with varying degrees of detail and difficulty. If 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 so that your other work may suffer.

I'm fond of reading. Usually I borrow books from the library, but I have a lot of them at home, too. I like to read books about the history of our country, about famous people and the life of my contemporaries abroad. Literature means much in my life. It helps to form the character and the world outlook, to understand life better.

There are some names in Russian and foreign literatures that are very dear to me. In Russian literature I value Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev highly. For me he is a real intellectual and aristocrat, a man of culture, devoted to literature, music and painting. Though he lived abroad for a long time he didn't stop to be a Russian writer for a moment.

He created a number of national characters in his books. The image of Turgenev's woman, deeply feeling, faithful and tender is an ideal of a Russian woman for me. It doesn't lose its charm even today. Turgenev's descriptions of nature are delightful too. Take for example his "Byezhin Prairie", "Torrents of spring" etc.

Turgenev's prose is very poetic. His style is perfect; his dialogues are easy-read, interesting, life-like, and yet always significant. One may think that Turgenev is too balanced, too poetic for the new age, but one must admit that these are the qualities we badly lack today.

Of the present day writers and poets I like Eugene Evtushenko, Valentin Rasputin, Valentin Pikul, Boris Vasilyev, Tatyana Tolstaya, Andrei Dementyev. Their books are very humane and realistic. They assert high moral principles into life. And this is very important nowadays.

My favorite foreign writer is O'Henry. In childhood I was deeply impressed by his story "The Last Leaf". Since then I bear in my heart the image of a young girl suffering from incurable illness and her friends doing everything they can to give her hope and bring back to life. The author penetrates deeply into a person's soul and reveals its best qualities. He obviously sympathizes with common people, describes their feelings to other people, their warm-heartedness and kindness.

5. Замените выделенное слово синонимом:

1. You will remember your student years forever.

2. The task was very difficult.

3. I can’t understand your opinion.

4. She hasn’t got any delicacy!

5. The choice of books in that shop is various.

6. I say that you can’t work here!

7. This situation showed his character.

6. Закончите предложения:

1. Books are…

2. If you mention inner confidence, I can say that…

3. Reading is probably the most important skill… because…

4. A very important thing fact about books is...

5. I like to read books…

6. Of the present day writers and poets I like…

7. My favorite foreign writer is…

7. В каких частях текста можно найти следующую информацию:

• "The Last Leaf";

• famous Russian writers;

• importance of reading;

• characteristics of a foreign writer;

• peculiarities of the writer’s style;

• books in the author’s life

Выделите основные идеи, составьте развернутый план текста.

8. Заполните анкету: