20．Loved and hated，but never boring．That is what people say of American writer Norman Mailer，who died late last year at the age of 84．He was the author of some of the greatest books of the 20th century．
But Mailer will be remembered as much for his personality as for his writing．He was rude and bad-tempered．He violently attacked other authors and even wounded one of his six wives．
However，this never stopped Mailer from being successful．People always wanted to read his books．His provocative （煽動性的） writing style and willingness to deal with difficult subjects made his books bestsellers．
"He was willing to take risks with just about everything，"says the author Gore Vidal．"He had a radical （激進(jìn)的） imagination，a way of approaching subjects that was never boring．"
In a career that lasted six decades，Mailer wrote about a wide variety of subjects from history and politics to sport and celebrities．But he was most famous for writing novels and he twice won the Pulitzer Prize．
His best book was The Naked and the Dead，a story about the tensions between American soldiers fighting Japan in World War II．Drawn on his own experiences as a soldier，it is a study of men at war examining their cruelty and bravery．
Mailer's brilliance as an author was his ability to capture human behavior．He did so through interesting characters，realistic dialogue and rich descriptions．The author William F．Buckley said，"He created the most beautiful metaphors （比喻） in the English．"
Mailer leaves behind more than 40books as his literary legacy （遺產(chǎn)）．However，he never achieved his life's goal．He wanted to write what he called the"big one"，the greatest novel ever written about America．Well，at least it wasn't for a lack of trying．
46．According to the passage，D．
A．Norman Mailer was loved by all people B．Norman Mailer wounded other authors
C．Norman Mailer wasn't successful D．Norman Mailer wrote many great books
47．By saying"Mailer will be remembered as much for his personality as for his writing"，the author means thatB．
A．People will remember Mailer because he has a great personality
B．Mailer's personality is as impressing as his writing
C．People like his writing better
D．Mailer included many personalities in his writing
48．Why did people always want to read his books？C．
A．Because he was loved and hated．
B．Because he often violently attacked other authors．
C．Because he had a provocative writing style and willing to handle difficult subjects．
D．Because the characters in his writings are the most beautiful．
49．About The Naked and The Dead，which of the following is true？C．
A．There are a lot of interesting characters in the book．
B．It's about American soldiers fighting Germany in World War II．
C．It shows the bravery and cruelty of men when facing war．
D．There are the most beautiful metaphors in the book．
50．What attitude does the author hold toward Norman Mailer in the passage？A．
A．objective B．disagreeable C．friendly D．Indifferent．
