Ithappenedtomerecently.IwastellingsomeonehowmuchIhadenjoyedreadingBarackObama’sDreamsFromMyFatherandhowithadchangedmyviewsofourPresident.AfriendIwastalkingtoagreedwithmethatitwas,inhiswords,“abrilliantly（精彩地）writtenbook”.However,hethenwentontotalkaboutMrObamainawaywhichsuggestedhehadnoideaofhisbackgroundatall.IsensedthatIwastalkingtoabookliar.
Anditseemsthatmyfriendisnottheonlyone.Approximatelytwothirdsofpeoplehaveliedaboutreadingabookwhichtheyhaven’t.IntheWorldBookDay’s“ReportonGuiltySecrets”,DreamsFromMyFatherisatnumber9.Thereportliststenbooks,andvariousauthors,whichpeoplehaveliedaboutreading,andasI’mnotonetolietoooften(I’dhatetobecaughtout),I’lladmithereandnowthatIhaven’treadtheentiretopten.ButIampleasedtosaythat,unlike42percentofpeople,Ihavereadthebookatnumberone,GeorgeOrwell’s1984.Ithinkit’sreallybrilliant.
TheWorldBookDayreportalsohassomeotherinterestinginformationinit.ItsaysthatmanypeoplelieabouthavingreadJaneAusten,CharlesDickens,FyodorDostoevsky(Ihaven’treadhim,buthaven’tliedaboutiteither)andHermanMelville.
Askedwhytheylied,themostcommonreasonwasto“impress”someonetheywerespeakingto.Thiscouldbetrickyiftheconversationbecamemorein–depth!
Butwhenaskedwhichauthorstheyactuallyenjoy,peoplenamedJ.k.Rowling,JohnGrisham,SophieKinsella(ah,thebigsellers,inotherwords).Forty-twopercentofpeopleaskedadmittedtheyturnedtothebackofthebooktoreadtheendbeforefinishingthestory(I’llcomeclean:Idothisandamastonishedthat58percentsaidtheyhadneverdoneso).
小题1:Howdidtheauthorfindhisfriendabookliar?