A
Growing up in an Italian-American household was for me, pretty special. My mother, Gina, an immigrant from Calabria, held on to so many of her family's traditions that at times, regardless of the fact that I was living in the United States, our home felt like part of Italy.
To this day, my mother only speaks to me in Italian, and our conversations are, for the most part, in her mother tongue. And most of those conversations are about food. For us, food — Italian food — is an important part of our lives.
My mom Gina grew up on a farm where the fruits of their labor directly turned into the food on the table, and wasting any of it was unacceptable. Every day was “Thanksgiving” because times were tough, so food — and how it found its way onto the table ——was a holy matter. One of the greatest lessons my mother taught me in the kitchen is to cook what you have on hand, and to never let anything go to waste.
So, when I take a perfect little arancini(意大利饭团)out of the hot oil. I am immediately transported back to my childhood: I am a little girl getting off the bus and running through the back door to the smell of the food. This small snack symbolizes so many important tenements(经济公寓)in my life about my heritage(传承)through food.
Heritage food is Sunday dinner with the family. When we preserve and recreate dishes like that we feel a sense of pride and also a sense of continuity. Heritage food is the love we receive from our parents and grandparents, and it's the love we in turn give to our children and grandchildren. Heritage food is food that makes you feel safe and protected wherever and whenever you eat it.
Eating arancini, and all the other recipes my mother continues to make here in the U.S. after leaving Italy, allow her to teach me who I am, where I come from, and why I should be proud of it all.
1. What can we know about the author's mom?
A. She is very strict with her children.
B. She refuses to learn to speak English.
C. She thinks her life in the U.S. special.
D. She values her family's traditions a lot.
2. What does the author imply by mentioning “Thanksgiving” in paragraph 3?
A. She enjoyed the food her mother cooked.
B. This holiday was very important for her mother.
C. Her family treasured the food that didn't come easily.
D. The food was delivered to her family on Thanksgiving.
3. What does the author think of heritage food?
A. It is becoming popular among American families.
B. It passes on family love from generation to generation.
C. It offers a sense of safety when one lives in America.
D. It reminds parents to take good care of their children.
【答案】1. D 2. C 3. B
【解析】
本文是一篇夹叙夹议文，讲述了作者的母亲是一个意大利移民，尽管在美国生活，但她仍坚持着很多意大利人的家庭传统，其中最让作者难忘的是小时候母亲做的意大利饭团，作者由此认识到家庭传统食物能够让爱延续。
【1题详解】
细节理解题。根据第一段中的“My mother, Gina, an immigrant from Calabria, held on to so many of her family's traditions that at times, regardless of the fact that I was living in the United States, our home felt like part of Italy.”（我的母亲吉娜是来自卡拉布里亚的移民，她坚持着很多家庭传统，以至于有时候，尽管住在美国，但我感觉我们家就像一个意大利家庭）可知，作者的母亲非常重视家庭传统，故D项正确。
【2题详解】
推理判断题。根据第三段中的“Every day was “Thanksgiving” because times were tough, so food — and how it found its way onto the table ——was a holy matter. One of the greatest lessons my mother taught me in the kitchen is to cook what you have on hand, and to never let anything go to waste.”可知，每一天都是感恩节，因为日子不好过，所以餐桌上的食物是非常神圣的东西，母亲在厨房里教给我的最重要的一课就是充分利用手里的每一样食材，不要浪费食物，由此可知，作者提到感恩节是为了表明她的家人珍惜来之不易的食物，故C项正确。
【3题详解】
细节理解题。根据倒数第二段中的“Heritage food is the love we receive from our parents and grandparents, and it's the love we in turn give to our children and grandchildren.”可知，家庭传统食物是我们从父母和祖父母那里得到的爱，也是我们继而给我们的子孙后代的爱，由此可知，作者认为家庭传统食物让家庭的爱代代相传，故B项正确。
