this story so much，I began to read more of his work.

　　The endings in O．Henry's stories always leave the readers surprised and his eye for detail is almost poetic and can make the readers feel as if they were part of the story.The Gift of the Magi is about a young married couple who sacrifice their only two worthy possessions to buy each other a Christmas present.This story is about true love and sacrifice.Now，many years later，I still remember this story.The Furnished Room is a horror story about the love and devotion from a young man，who is desperate to find his missing lover.The story is tragic.The Ransom of Red Chief is actually a humorous story about a kidnapping that has gone all wrong.A Retrieved Reformation tells the tale of a thief who decides to give up his criminal career and do good deeds，which is moving.These are just a few of the many，many stories that O．Henry wrote and that I've enjoyed over these years.

　　O．Henry was the pen name of the American writer William Sydney Porter.He was born on September 11,1862 and died of illness on June 5,1910.His first story was published under his pen name，O.Henry.He published hundreds of stories.In honor of O．Henry's contributions to American literature，the O．Henry Memorial Award was founded in 1918 to award the author of the best American short story.

　　语篇解读　本文作者在字里行间表达了对欧·亨利及其小说的喜爱。

　　1．Before reading The Gift of the Magi，the author________.

　　A．had little interest in English classes

　　B．doubted his English teacher's teaching method

　　C．disliked the reading materials picked by his teacher

　　D．liked to discuss the stories he had read with his teacher

　　解析：　细节理解题。根据文章首段的I hated reading stories and novels that my English teacher picked可知C项正确。

　　答案：　C

　　2．What's the main characteristic of O．Henry's stories according to the author?

　　A．They quote lots of poems.

　　B．They are hard to understand.

　　C．They make people think deeply.

　　D．They have surprising endings.

　　解析：　细节理解题。根据文章第二段的The endings in O．Henry's stories always leave the readers surprised可知D项正确。

答案：　D