Read the text. Then complete the tasks.

Jack London, one of America's major writers of adventure tales, was born in California in $1876.$ During his life, London worked at many jobs. His broad life experiences would become the background for his writing. London loved to read. As a teenager, he spent many hours educating himself at the Oakland, California, public library. He attended college at the University of California at Berkeley, but he stayed for only six months. He thought Berkeley was "not lively enough" and wanted to do something more exciting. London wrote stories about working people and the hard times they had making a living. He knew their problems first hand. He worked as a sailor, rancher, factory employee, railroad hobo, and gold prospector, to name just a few of his many jobs. London grew up near the waterfront in Oakland. He loved the water. When he was fifteen years old, he bought a small sailboat called a sloop. Later he sailed to Japan on a schooner, which is a much larger sailing boat. Like many people of the time, London caught the Klondike Gold Rush Fever. In $1897,$ he headed for Alaska. He didn't find gold, but he discovered something even more valuable. He discovered that people enjoyed listening to the stories he made up with his vivid imagination. London entertained the miners with story after story. Later, using his experiences during the Gold Rush, he created many more colorful stories.

$4$

ENGLISH, GRADE $7,$ SALALAH INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL, SEMESTER TWO

$2023/2024$

London resolved to live a full, exciting life. He once said, "I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet." Each day, he pushed himself. Once London determined that he was going to be a writer, nothing could stop him. His goal was to write at least one thousand words every day. He refused to stop even when he was sick. In eighteen years, the writer published fifty$-$one books and hundreds of articles. He was the best$-$selling and highest$-$paid author of his day. Many people also considered him to be the best writer. White Fang and The Call of the Wild are his most famous stories and are about surviving in the Alaskan wilderness. Readers can enjoy Jack London's energy and his talent for telling wonderful stories each time they open one of his novels.

Task one

For each question, write a short answer $($not more than FOUR WORDS$).$

$6.$ Why was Jack London able to write on many topics?

$7.$ Why did Jack London not complete college?

$8.$ What do a sloop and schooner have in common?

$9.$ When did Jack London discover he first had a talent for storytelling?

$10.$ Which word best describes Jack London?