本书适合初级英语水平的学习者阅读。书中包含40篇文章，选文短小精悍，文字浅显易懂，内容贴近生活，配图生动活泼，每篇文章还配有针对专项阅读技能训练的适量阅读理解题。通过阅读每篇文章并完成习题，学习者可以了解如何获取文章主旨、主题和文章细节的技巧，熟悉如何运用比较、推理等方法和利用各种可视化材料获取信息，从而更准确地理解文章内容。

How Do I Use This Book?
1 A Day at the Movies
2 What Makes a Good Friend?
3 English Forum
4 Get Home Safe
5 Jane's Notebook
6 After-School Classes
7 Love and Divorce
8 My Greatest Fear
9 Assembly Instructions
10 She's Out of This World
11 Teatime for Class 3B
12 What Job Is Right for you?
13 Remembering Aunt Pat
14 What's a Berry?
15 Soccer Commentary
16 Magic Trick: Video Tutorial
17 AWriter's Best Friend
18 Short Story Competition
19 Black Gold
20 Bike Rentals
21 Cleaning Your Teeth:A History
22 Mothers in the Animal Kingdom
23 How to Tell If Someone Is Lying
24 Weather Forecast
25 SkinGlow Sheet Mask
26 Lost and Found Notice
27 Encyclopedia Britannica: The Most Useful Books Around
28 Ice Queen
29 The Khan Academy
30 Time to Disconnect
31 Mark Twain
32 Everwood Science Fair
33 What on Earth Is Fish Paste?
34 Blue Gold
35 Are Knock-Offs Really Worth It?
36 Job Application Email
37 Half Man,Half Bird
38 Buying a Book Online
39 The Trojan Horse
40 Bike Thief Notice