ESL Reading Exercises 58

Mahalia Jackson

Mahalia Jackson was born into a preacher's family in 1911, and she grew up in a riverfront shanty in New Orleans. She was motherless at five, working as a maid and loudness in her mid-teens. As a little girl, she would whisper to herself before she went to sleep, "someday the sun is going to shine down on me in some faraway place." In pursuit of that dream, Mahalia migrated to Chicago when she was still a teenager. She never expected to support herself by singing, and by the time I joined her, the hands she used so expressively in her performances had scrubbed floors, laundered and helped her earn a living as a hotel maid, factory worker, beautician and florist. But her remarkable voice brought her more and more invitations to sing-at funerals, in churches, at concerts. And, through her warm friendly personality and a life based on sound spiritual values and hard work, she eventually found her place in the sun.

1. It is stated in the passage that Mahalia ----.

A) had no mother during her whole life
B) lived in a fashionable house in New Orleans
C) was orphaned when she wasn't even a teenager
D) become a servant at the age of five
E) grew up in a religious family

2. One can infer from the passage that Mahalia ----.

A) always dreams when she puts her head on the pillow
B) never wanted the sun to set
C) worked only as a maid during her middle age
D) left her own city when she was ten
E) never thought she was going to become a singer

3. Mahalia Jackson ----.

A) used to sing only at funerals
B) never fulfilled her dreams
C) always found a seat under the sunrays
D) had no spiritual values but she was hardworking
E) also earned a living by selling flowers

Score =
Correct answers:

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