In this day and age when we have a tendency to toss toys that are even slightly worn, it is tough to believe that there is a “hospital” where dolls can be repaired and brought back to their original glory. What is even more amazing is that such a place has existed for a century and is still going strong. Welcome to Sydney’s “original Doll Hospital” that celebrated its l00th birthday, on February 22
nd, 2013.
In 1913, a general store owner in Sydney began importing dolls. However, the rubber bands(橡皮圈) that held them together would often break. Luckily for him, his brother Harold Chapman Sr., was a good handyman and set aside a little “hospital” area in the store to repair the delicate toys. But when customers found out about this, they began bringing in their raggedy dolls, stuffed animals and even leather goods and umbrellas—starting what would become a family business for many generations.
In l930, Chapman’s son also, named Harold, relocated the doll hospital and expanded the business even further, by agreeing to repair anything that could be fixed, no matter how big or small. While business was
robust, the real boom came in 1938 during World War Two. Faced with extreme restrictions, new dolls and toys became a rarity, and young girls and boys had no option, but to get their existing ones lovingly restored.
While it does not have as many employees today, the hospital that is run by his son Geoff Chapman now sits in a spiffy location with a beautiful store-front that features everything a little girl could possibly wish for, from new to lovingly restored, to even extremely rare and valuable dolls. Also in keeping with modern times and dolls, the doctors are now specialists—some focus on bringing back to life modern dolls, while others stick to antiques. And then there are also the soft toy experts and accessory repair experts.
Though it may not appear to be, the doctors say their jobs are very interesting given that no two dolls are the same or need the same repairs and that just like medical doctors they have no idea what obstacle they will have to face when they come to work each day. The one advantage? There are no emergency night calls to worry about!
小题1:We can learn from Paragraph 2 that __________.
A．people showed little interest in having their toys repaired at first
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B．most of the toys that had broken were thrown away by Harold
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C．stores in Sydney didn’t produce toys for kids at the beginning of 1900s
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D．the toy repairing business came into being rather accidently
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小题2: The underlined word “robust” in Paragraph 3 shows the family’s business __________.
A．was struggling hard
| B．was greatly stricken
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C．was developing very well
| D．was enjoying its best time
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小题3:What can we learn about people working in the toy repairing hospital?
A．They work in that hospital mainly because they love toys.
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B．Most of them focus on repairing modern dolls for little kids.
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C．They are not capable of repairing toys that are extremely rare.
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D．There are different experts who specialize in different types of toys.
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小题4:Which of the following words can describe the doctors’ work according to the last paragraph?
A．Simple.
| B．Boring.
| C．Worthless.
| D．Challenging.
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