A
Kieron Graham always knew he had an older brother. His adoption papers, signed and sealed when he was three months old, listed a sibling named Vincent but no last name. Though Kieron spent years thinking about Vincent, he could never track him down.
That changed in December 2017, when Kieron’s adoptive parents gave their four adopted children AncestryDNA tests as Christmas gifts. Kieron, now 21, sent his saliva sample in for analysis. When his results came back, he was stunned to find he had a slew of DNA matches for relatives who had also taken the test. Most were distant connections, but one match was so strong that it was labeled “close family”. His name was Vincent Ghant. Kieron looked for him on Facebook and soon made a possible connection. “This is going to sound so wild … but I think you’re my brother,” Kieron wrote on Facebook’s Messenger app.
“I was given up for adoption in 1997 and it says on my paperwork that my mother has a son with your name and your birth date
Her name is Shawn.”
“OMG do you know your real name?” wrote Vincent, now 30.
“I think it was Tyler.”
“OMG YES!!! You are my brother.”
“Wow,” wrote Kieron.
“This is crazy,” said Vincent.
The craziness was just beginning. As they talked, the brothers realized they lived about 20 minutes from each other, outside of Atlanta. More mind-blowing, they attended the same university and majored and minored in the same subjects: political science and legal studies.
“We were like, what are the odds we’re separated our entire lives and then end up at the same school with the same interests?” says Kieron.
Vincent was nine when Kieron was born and remembers caring for his baby brother. But times were tough, and Shawn, who worked 15-plus hours a day as a nurse, decided that placing Kieron for adoption would give him the best chance to succeed.
Now the brothers had the chance to make up for lost time. They decided to meet at a local tea shop that week. “I was really nervous,” says Kieron. “I was wondering what I should say, what I should do.” As he waited outside the shop, he heard someone call his name, and he suddenly found himself in a hug with the brother he’d thought about his entire life.
The men went inside and talked. “We connected,” says Vincent, “like we already knew each other.”
21. The underlined word “mind-blowing” is closest in meaning to “_______”.
A. desperate B. grateful C. ridiculous D. surprising
22. Which of the following statement is true about the two brothers?
A. Kieron was given up for adoption as soon as he was born.
B. They grew in different environment but had a similar educational background.
C. Kieron had met Vincent before as they lived quite close to each other.
D. It was rather difficult for Kieron to track down his own brother after the AncestryDNA test.
23. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Adopted children usually show deeper affection for their birth family.
B. Vincent lives with his mother all the time.
C. Kieron’s mother was unwilling to give him up but she had no choice.
D. The four adopted children have found their birth family after the AncestryDNA tests.
【答案】21. D 22. B 23. C
【解析】
这是一篇记叙文。主要讲述了被领养的Kieron Graham一直知道自己有个哥哥，且后来通过做DNA检测知道了他叫Vincent Ghant，Kieron在Facebook上找到了他，交谈中他们惊讶地发现他们居然在同一所大学学习，主修和辅修同样的科目。最后两人见面，母亲解释当年为什么会将Kieron送走的原因。
【21题详解】
词义猜测题。根据后文they attended the same university and majored and minored the same subjects :political science and legal studies.可知他们在同一所大学学习，主修和辅修同样的科目：政治学和法律研究。两个失散的兄弟居然在同一所大学学习，主修和辅修同样的科目，但是他们之前都不知道，这是很令人惊讶的，由此可知，划线单词意思为“令人惊讶的”。A. desperate令人绝望的；B. grateful感谢的；C. ridiculous可笑的；D. surprising令人惊讶的。故选D。
【22题详解】
细节理解题。根据倒数第五段中…they attended the same university and majored and minored the same subjects :political science and legal studies. 可知……他们在同一所大学学习，主修和辅修同样的科目：政治学和法律研究。由此可知，两人教育背景相同，故B选项“他们生长在不同的环境，但有相似的教育背景”正确。故选B。
【23题详解】
推理判断题。根据倒数第三段中But times were tough, and Shawn, who worked 15-plus hours a day as a nurse, decided that placing Kieron for adoption would give him the best chance to succeed.可知但日子很艰难，Shawn作为一名护士每天工作15个多小时，决定把Kieron送给别人收养给他成功的最好机会。由此可推知，Kieron的母亲不愿意放弃他，但她别无选择。故选C。
