The secret of success

Гипермаркет знаний>>Английский язык>>Английский язык 9 класс>>The secret of success



1 Emily, Misha, Rob and Mark want to help Jack. They remembered a story which should give him hope.

Listen to the story, read it and answer the questions.



1. Where does the woman come from?

2. What jobs did the woman do?

3. Try to guess what the woman is famous for now.







She was born in Chepstow (in South Wales) in 1965.

Her favourite subjects at school were English and foreign languages. She wrote her first book when she was five. It was about a rabbit and his friends. But nobody took her hobby seriously. When she grew up, she went to university to study French, and later became a secretary. It didn't take her long to understand that the job was not for her. During boring meetings the young secretary thought about interesting plots for her stories and wasn't able to concentrate on her work.

When she was 26, she left her job and moved to Portugal to teach English there. But she never forgot her hobby. Sometimes she worked in the evenings, so she had enough time to write her books during the day. In Portugal she met her future husband and they got married. In 1993 her daughter was born. Soon after that she and her Portuguese husband got divorced and she returned to the UK.

She and her daughter Jessica lived in a one-bedroom flat in Edinburgh. One of her friends lent her some money to help her, however, she was unemployed and money was still a big problem. At that time she was writing a book, looking after her daughter, taking care of their little flat and studying to be an English teacher. The flat where they lived was often cold because she couldn't pay for heating, so she used to take her daughter and go to different cafes in the city. It was warm there and she could write while her daughter was asleep next to her.

In 1997 she sold her first book to a publisher, who bought it for $4,000.



2 Say whether the statements are true, false or whether there's no information in the text.



1. She was born in England.

2. She has always been interested in the arts.

3. Her first story was about a little fox.

4. She was trained to be a writer.

5. She wasn't a very good secretary.

6. She taught French to Portuguese children.

7. Her marriage wasn't happy and she left her husband.

8. She had a very good time in Edinburgh.

9. She wrote her book in cafes and restaurants because she was keen on coffee and cakes.

10. Her name was Jessica.

11. She didn't become a very famous writer but she sold one of her books.



3 Look through the titles of the magazine articles about her and answer the questions.



1. What is her real name?

2. Did she become very successful?

3. What made her popular?

4. What is the name of her most famous character?

5. What are the titles of her books?







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4 Say whether the statements are true, false or whether there's no information in the newspaper headlines. Support your ideas with the facts from newspapers.



1. J. K. Rowling met the Queen of England.

2. J. K. Rowling became a millionaire.

3. J. K. has her own site on the Internet.

4. J. K. Rowling lives in a castle.

5. There are Hollywood films made from her books.

6. Rowling is the most successful writer in the world.

7. In someAmerican towns they burn Rowling's books because they are about wizards and witches.

8. The first book in the series is "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire".

9. Grown-ups like her books as much as children.

10. Any book by Rowling is sure to be successful.

11. Rowling herself likes one of her books more than the others.

12. Some children find Rowling's books boring.

13. Rowling told the world about the friend who had helped her with money.



Homework



A Here are some facts about Joanne Kathleen Rowling. Fill in the gaps with make or do. Use the negative form if necessary.



1. J. K. Rowling... a French course when she was young.

2. J. K. Rowling... a mistake when she became a secretary.

3. In Portugal Rowling... a lot of progress with her writing.

4. What did she... in Portugal? - She taught English.

5. In Portugal J. K. Rowling... sports.

6. In Edinburgh J. K. Rowling... all the housework herself.

7. When J. K. Rowling needed money, one of her friends... her a favour.

8. Rowling... a lot of money with her books.

9. Nowadays J. K. Rowling... a lot of writing.

10. J. K. Rowling... friends all over the world thanks to Harry Potter.