My grandmother Adele loved culture and was generous with its gifts. When I was a child, she took me to museums, restaurants, dances. She showered me with gifts from her travels around the world. But I can only remember her giving me one book—a book that, to this day, I have not read. She presented me with her own favorite childhood book: Hans Brinker. My grandmother was happy to share this book with me. She even decorated the title page with her proud writing.

I tried to read it. I adored reading, and would dive into a new pile of books from the library all at once. But something about Hans Brinker just wouldn’t let me in. The story was set in Holland, a long time ago. It felt dull and unfamiliar—even though I was a fan of classics of other times and places. I simply read the first pages over and over. I could not progress.

Standing on a bookshelf in our living room, the book was like something I avoided. It scolded me for not being interested, for not trying hard enough, for disappointing my grandmother.

The book started to fit in, almost forgotten, until Adele asked. Had I read it? Did I like it? Always determined, she wanted to know the answer. I would make some kind of excuse, feel bad, and open it again, hoping for a new reaction. The book weighed on me.

Years passed and finally Adele and I both accepted that I would never read Hans Brinker. Eventually I cleared the book from the shelf. The Hans Brinker experience led me to set a rule that I’ve lived by ever since: Do not ask about a book given as a gift. Don’t ask, despite your desire to discuss it to grow closer. The desire for such connection is what gives book-giving with special meaning—and increases the owner’s possibility to be a letdown.

Guilt is basically the same as for all gifts, though. If the giver doesn’t have the pleasure of seeing or hearing about the gift being enjoyed, and asks whether it is, then the owner—unless she can truthfully say “yes”—either has to admit to not liking the present, or else lie on the spot. Neither is pleasant. So, don’t ask.

1.When the author was a kid, his grandmother ________.

A. took him to travel around the world a lot

B. loved to take him to museums and stores

C. shared her childhood stories with him

D. gave him many gifts

2.What does the author think about the book his grandmother gave him?

A. Boring. B. Interesting.

C. Puzzling. D. Disappointing.

3.The underlined sentence “The book weighed on me” in Paragraph 4 probably means _______.

A. the book is too heavy for the author to carry

B. the author feels stressful facing the book

C. the book is full of powerful viewpoints

D. the author keeps reading the book

4.The author learns from the Hans Brinker’s experience that never________.

A. give others books as gifts

B. lie to people who give you gifts

C. get close to others through gifts

D. talk about the books given as gifts

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