Read the text and answer the questions that follow.
IFAKE AUTOBIOGRAPHIES
In March 2008, a book called Love and Consequences was published. It was written by Margaret B. Jones, who claimed
that she was half white and half Native American and that at the age of eight, she was sent to live with a foster family.
She described how she sold drugs for a local gang and how she carried illegal guns. The book achieved widespread success,
yet the entire story turned out to be fake. The woman posing as “Margaret Jones” was in reality Margaret Selzer, who is white
and grew up in a prosperous neighbourhood with her biological family.
II This isn’t the first autobiography to be exposed as a fake. Yet what causes people to invent these fictitious life stories?
Many believe that people simply do it for the money. Personal stories written by people about their troubled childhoods
have become increasingly popular in recent years, so some writers may well want to take advantage of this booming trend.
III Furthermore, since many publishing houses are going out of business due to a decrease in the number of readers, it has
become extremely difficult for fiction writers to succeed. It’s possible that some writers choose to invent a convincing
autobiography in the hope that the current obsession with reading true stories will help their book become successful.
IV Publishers have been widely criticised for allowing books to be published without questioning their accuracy. Book publishers,
unlike their colleagues in the newspaper industry, appear to do almost nothing to check the accuracy of what
they print. They tend to rely solely on the author’s honesty and don’t make any effort to discredit these “real” stories.
VPerhaps it’s the obsession with reading true stories about people’s lives that’s causing writers to invent them. However,
as long as a story is entertaining, does it really matter whether it’s fictional or real?
1Decide if the following sentences are true (T) or false
(F). Find evidence in the text to justify your answers.
……1.Love and Consequences wasn’t popular.
……2.People are reading less these days.
……3.According to the writer, publishers are to blame for
the increase of fake autobiographies.
2Choose the correct answer.
1. Newspaper publishers … .
a. try to verify the information they print
b. are no different to book publishers
c. publish articles without questioning their accuracy
2. The writer believes that … .
a. fiction is superior to non-fiction
b. a story doesn’t have to be real in order to be
interesting
c. true stories are more entertaining than fictional ones
3Answer the questions according to the information
in the text.
1. In what ways is Margaret Selzer different from the
woman she pretended to be?
2. Why do writers choose to write fake autobiographies?
4Find words or expressions in the text that mean:
1. not true (paragraph I) ………………………
2. growing (paragraph II) ………………………
3. believable (paragraph III) ………………………
4. depend (paragraph IV) ………………………
5. amusing (paragraph V) ………………………
5Write a composition of about 100-150 words. Choose
one option.
1. In your opinion, why do people enjoy reading true
stories?
2. Describe a book that you read and give your opinion of
it.