popularity英语专业四级阅读理解

2021年1月21日发(作者：feik)
passage 1








Two years ago this month, Doubleday published a historical
thriller with
an announced
first
printing
of
85,000
and
high
hopes
that
a
little-known

writer
named
Dan
Brown
would
catch on with

the general public.





“
We surely
expected to have a huge success, but I don
’
t think anyone dreamed it would
become
a
historic
publication,
”
(1)

says
Stephen
Rubin,
president
and
publisher
of
the
Doubleday Broadway Publishing Group.





If the Harry Potter books stand as the essential popular read for young people, then The Da
Vinci Code has captured the crown for grown-ups. A word-of-mouth sensation from the moment it
came
out,
Brown
’
s
controversial
mix
of
storytelling
and
speculation(2)

remains
high
on
best-seller lists even as it begins its third year since publication.

Twenty-five
million
books,
in
44
languages,
are
in
print
worldwide
and
no
end
is
in
sight.
Booksellers
expect
The
Da
Vinci
Code
to
remain
a
best-seller
well
into
2005.
A
planned
film
version by Oscar-winning director Ron Howard should bring in even more readers. And at a time
when
consumers
are
supposedly
minding
their
budgets,
sales
for
the
$$24.95
hardcover
have
been so good that Doubleday still has set no date for a paperback.(3)





“
It
’
s been our No. 1 fiction book for two years in a row, and I can
’
t remember another time
that
happened,
”

said
Bob
Wietrak,
vice
president
of
merchandising
for
Barnes
&
Noble
Inc.
“
People come into our store all the time and ask for it or ask for books that are like it.
”






Thanks
to
The
Da
Vinci
Code,
about
the
only
books
that
seem
able
to
keep
up
are
Brown
’
s previous novels.(4)
Deception Point, first released in 2001, now has 3.7 million copies
in
print,
according
to
Simon
&
Schuster,
Brown
’
s
previous
publisher.
Angels
and
Demons,
published in 2000 and featuring
“Da Vinci” protagonist Robert Langdon, has more than 8 million
copies in print.

The unprecedented success of The Da Vinci Code has been helped by wide access, with the book
on sale everywhere from Wal-Mart to airports to supermarkets, often proving more popular than
the mass market paperbacks available at the same outlets.





The
Da
Vinci
Code
has
also
thrived(5)
during
a
time
when
both
literary
and
commercial
novels struggled, when a tight economy, competition from other media and election-year tensions
drove the public to nonfiction works or away from books altogether. Publishers and booksellers
say Brown
’
s novel has worked by combining narrative excitement and provocative
—
and disputed
—
historical detail.

1. When The Da Vinci Code was first published, Doubleday
A. hoped that it would become a historic publication.
B. only expected to sell no more than 85,000 copies.
C. had great confidence in the book and its author.
D. announced a conservative printing of the book.
2. The Da Vinci Code caused dispute most about
A.

its theme.








B. its writing style.

C. Dan Brown
’
s popularity.




D. the historical details in the book.
3. Doubleday only sells the hardcover The Da Vinci Code because