My favorite book.

My favorite book is "The Old Man and the Sea" by Ernest Hemingway. This story is one of the well-known works of the writer. The author depicts the characters of the old man and the boy and their relations very vividly and skillfully. Santiago, the old man, was one of the writer's beloved characters. The old man was a born fisherman, but he was not a butcher and fished only for a living.

He was very lonely. He had a devoted friend - the boy, Manolin. The boy loved the old man for his kind heart, his devotion to the sea. Manolin was like a son to Santiago. He took care of the old man's food and his belongings.

The old man was glad to pass his experience to the boy. He looked forward to going to the sea together with the boy.

All Santiago's life had been in preparation for the battle with big fish. He knew that he had been born for this and it was time to prove it. A strong man at last had met a strong fish. The battle was a difficult one and full of danger.

Though the sharks had eaten the fish and nothing had left but the backbone, the old man had morally won the battle. Santiago's words "man can be destroyed but not defeated" are the main idea of this story.

"The Old Man and the Sea" is a masterpiece for its imaginative language and the description of nature.

My Favorite Newspapers.

Newspapers and magazines play a great and very important role in the life of a modern man.

The newspapers I read are the most readable and have a large readership or circulation. For example "Arguments and Facts" has a circulation of more than 5 million. Reading the newspaper I can get information about current events that have taken or are going to take place in this country and abroad. I can also read articles about historical events and public figures of the past. The pages of the newspaper carry articles on our economy, industry, agriculture and social life.

The newspaper contains and gives coverage of local, home and foreign affairs.

I like the way it presents different points of view, approaches to the problems, topical issues of the day.

My parents and I subscribe to some periodicals. There is no need to read all the articles. I can look through the newspapers and read the items I am interested in.

My Favorite Writer.

My favorite foreign writer is O.Henry. He was born in 1862. O.Henry is one of the most widely published American authors. His works have been translated into many languages. The best of his stories were published in books: ''Cabbages and Kings'', "The 4 million", "Heart of West" and others. His credo was-art should be true, democratic, it should address contemporary life and embrace all aspects of life. O.Henry was an outstanding humorist. He worked out and enriched all the types of the short story: the anecdote, the adventure story, tales and sketches. He was most famous for his stories of city life. O.Henry wrote about 150 stories with a New York background. He was a born writer of great talent. In childhood I was deeply impressed by his story "The Last Leaf". Since then I bear in my heart the image of a young girl suffering from serious illness and her friends doing everything they can do to give her hope and bring her back to life. The author penetrates deeply into a person's soul and reveals its best qualities. His love for humanity, for common people, for critical attitude towards injustice attracts readers to this day.

My Friend.

I'd like to tell you about my friend. She is my classmate. She is very diligent and kind-hearted. She is willing to help old people and animals. She is good at mathematics. She is interested in history. She is bright girl and does her lessons quickly and easily. She listens very attentively to all the explanations in class. She is extremely fond of reading. I have much in common with her and we never quarrel, because there is no reason for it. We have common ideas, opinions and we discuss different problems together. I think she is rather beautiful. She has a snub nose, curly hair. She is a pretty girl.

My school

I study at school №159. It is situated in the center of our district close to my house. It takes me only 10 minutes to get there. I go to school 5 times a week. We study different subjects: Russian, English, literature, history, geography, biology, physics, chemistry, math and computer science.

Languages and history are my favorite subjects. I make much progress in these subjects.

Our school is a 3-storeyed modern building. It has many classrooms, specialized rooms, laboratories and workshops.

Specialized rooms are used to study math, chemistry and other subjects. These rooms are equipped with corresponding teaching materials, facilities and devices.

On the ground floor there is a library, a cloakroom, a dining room, workshops, a gymnasium and a head master's office.

Our school is located in a picturesque place. The park where different trees, bushes and flowers grow surrounds it. There is a play ground and a stadium near  the building of the school.

The English Language.

Knowledge of the foreign language is becoming more important nowadays. There are many reasons why we study English. Now, in a period when we are reconstructing our economy, when there are many joint ventures with foreign companies operating in our country, we need a number of specialists who know foreign languages. If you know English, you can communicate (personally or in writing) with others who use this language.

If you wish to make a career in science, you must read scientific books and magazines in English. Knowing English you can read the works of foreign writers in original.

A more general aim is to broaden our intellectual and cultural horizons through contacts with people of other countries.

Knowledge of foreign languages helps people of different countries to develop mutual friendship and understanding.

At the Theatre.

There are many theatres in my town, but they are all very popular with the public. ............