We're always looking for well­written reviews of books， music， movies， television shows， websites， video games and other products. When writing a review， concentrate on exactly what you liked or didn't like. Give examples of strengths and weaknesses，be descriptive and provide background information on an author，director，actor or musician，if possible. Find professional reviews in magazines or newspapers and see how reviewers deal with their topics，but be sure to express your own voice in your review.

    Grammar Hint for Reviews：When describing a book，movie， album or anything else，use the present tense.

Book Reviews

    Discuss an author's technique，strengths and weaknesses instead of focusing on the plot. Does the story flow？ Is there a strong sense of character and place？Did you stay up until dawn to finish it？Is it good reading for teenagers？What influence did it have on you and why？If you've read other books by the same author， discuss how this book compares.

Movie Reviews

    Think of the major Oscar categories and consider the performances， music， lighting and setting， etc. Do these work together？ Did some hold up while others didn't？ If the movie is based on a book， discuss whether one is better than the other and why. If the movie is a remake， compare the film to its original.

    Remember that a well­written movie review should discuss strengths and weaknesses. Some readers may not have seen a movie yet， so don't give away an exciting scene or the ending！

College Reviews

    Begin by providing an overview of the college，including location，size and a description of the campus and/or dorm life. Think about all aspects of your college visit. What academic，athletic and after­class programs are available？ What are the students like？ What makes the college different from others？ Every school has strengths and weaknesses. Be objective. Consider what the school has to offer and who might enjoy or benefit the most from attending there.

    When I was in the fourth grade, I worked part-time as a paperboy. Mrs. Stanley was one of my customers. She'd watch me coming down her street, and by the time I'd biked up to her doorstep, there would be a cold drink waiting. I'd sit and drink while she talked.

    Mrs.Stanley talked mostly about her dead husband, "Mr. Stanley and I went shopping this morning." she'd say. The first time she said that, soda (汽水) went up my nose.

    I told my father how Mrs. Stanley talked as if Mr. Stanley were still alive. Dad said she was probably lonely, and that I ought to sit and listen and nod my head and smile, and maybe she'd work it out of her system. So that's what I did, and it turned out Dad was right. After a while she seemed content to leave her husband over at the cemetery (墓地).

    I finally quit delivering newspapers and didn't see Mrs. Stanley for several years. Then we crossed paths at a church fund-raiser(募捐活动). She was spooning mashed potatoes and looking happy. Four years before, she'd had to offer her paperboy a drink to have someone to talk with. Now she had friends. Her husband was gone, but life went on.

    I live in the city now, and my paperboy is a lady named Edna with three kids. She asks me how I'm doing. When I don't say "fine", she sticks around to hear my problems. She's lived in the city most of her life, but she knows about community. Community isn't so much a place as it is a state of mind. You find it whenever people ask how you're doing because they care, and not because they're getting paid to do so. Sometimes it's good to just smile, nod your head and listen.

    Jane Austen, a famous English writer, was born at Steventon, Hampshire, on December 16, 1775, and died on July 18, 1817. She began writing early in life, although the prejudices of her times forced her to have her books published anonymously (匿名).

    But Jane Austen is perhaps the best known and best loved of Bath's many famous local people and visitors. She paid two long visits here during the last five years of the eighteenth century and from 1801 to 1806, Bath was her home. Her deep knowledge of the city is fully seen in two of her novels, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, which are largely set in Bath. The city is still very much as Jane Austen knew it, keeping in its streets and public buildings the well-ordered world that she described so well in her novels. Now the pleasure of learning Jane Austen's Bath can be enhanced (增强)by visiting the Jane Austen Centre in Gay Street. Here, in a Georgian town house in the heart of the city, you can find out more about Bath in Jane Austen's time and the importance of Bath in her life and work.

    The Centre has been set up with the help and guidance of members of the Jane Austen Society. After your visit to the Centre, you can look round the attractive shop, which offers a huge collection of Jane Austen related books, cards and many specially designed gifts. Jane Austen quizzes are offered to keep the children busy.

    You can also have walking tours of Jane Austen's Bath, which is a great way to find out more about Jane Austen and discover the wonderful Georgian city of Bath. The tour lasts about one and a half hours. The experienced guides will take you to the places where Jane lived, walked and shopped.

    As the weekend approaches, perhaps you're looking forward to a meal out or sitting in front of the TV with a takeaway. But as you settle down to enjoy that comforting plate of beef or start spooning that fragrant lamb curry over the rice, will you be worrying about whether you are really eating what was written on the menu?

    Yesterday it was revealed by the Food Standards Agency that more than a fifth of the 665 meat samples tested last year contained DNA from animals not listed on the label. Of the 145 problem samples, 73 came from supermarkets, while 22 came from processing plants. The remaining 50 all came from restaurants.

    I have no doubt that over the next few years, the percentage of meal coming from dubious origins will continue to rise unless something drastic is done. Why? There are two main reasons. First, too many businesses are willing to boost their profits by adulterating their products in the meat industry. I believe there is a systemic problem within the meat industry that makes it particularly attractive to unscrupulous characters who are really nothing more than criminals，the second is the complexity and length of the meat supply chain. If you buy a chicken-based ready meal from a supermarket, as you might imagine, that chicken will pass through many hands before it ends up on your plate here. Worse still, the meat will often he partially processed somewhere along that chain—usually with salt and water added to boost flavour and volume—which is quite legal.

    Obviously, it is impossible for consumers to be detectives about every piece of meal they eat.

    However, what you can do is to avoid processed foods and never buy ready meals. Stay away from burgers made in factories. Don't go to chain restaurants. Instead, go to local, independent restaurants where it is more likely the chef and owner—often the same person—cares about where the meat comes from, and will be happy to tell you. So, try to buy your meat from a good local butcher.

    And no, what I am suggesting is not going to hurt your purse or wallet. The essence, then, is to buy meat that has had as small a journey from field to fork as possible, because that is the only way you can he sure of what you eat. It's that simple.

    Life is difficult.

    What do you think about life? Maybe most people say that life is difficult. But life is no longer difficult once we truly understand and accept it. Most people do not fully see this truth. Instead, they complain about their problems and difficulties as if life should be easy. It seems to them that their difficulties represent a special kind of suffering especially forced upon (强加于) them or their families, their class, or even their nation.

    What makes life difficult is that the process of facing and solving problems is a painful one. Problems, depending on their nature, cause us sadness or loneliness or regret or anger or fear. These are uncomfortable feelings, often as painful as any kind of physical pain. And since life causes an endless series of problems, life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy.

    Yet, it is in this whole process of solving problems that life has its meaning.

    Problems are the serious test that tells success from failure. When we desire to encourage the growth of the human spirit, we encourage the human ability to solve problems, just as in school we set problems for our children to solve. It is through the pain of meeting and working out problems that we learn. As Benjamin Franklin said, "Those things that hurt instruct." It is for this reason that wise people learn not to fear but to welcome the pain of problems.

    Mr. Lee was in bed and was trying to go to sleep when he heard the bell ring. He turned on the light and looked at his clock. It was twelve o'clock. "Who can it be at this time of night?" He thought. He decided to go and find out. So he got of bed, put on his dressing gown (浴袍) and went to the door. When he opened the door, there was nobody there. "That is very strange." Then he went back to his bedroom, took off his dressing gown, got back into bed ,turned off the light and tried to go to sleep.

    A few minutes later he heard the bell again. Mr. Lee jumped out of bed very quickly and rushed to the door. He opened it, but again he found no one there. He closed the door and tried not to feel angry. Then he saw a piece of paper on the floor. He picked it up. There were some words on it : "It is now after midnight(午夜), so it is April Fool's Day (愚人节). April fool to you!"

    "Oh, it was the English boy next door!" Mr. Lee exclaimed (惊叫) and almost smiled. He went back to bed and feel asleep at once. The bell did not ring again.