8．Kitty is a little black-and-brown Australian dog．It's not a particularly bright dog．While Dad can make my sister and me afraid just by the tone of his voice，I have never heard him raise his voice at Kitty．In fact，one look from Kitty at the biscuit tin is enough to send my dad flying to get him a snack．Whenever we protest（抗議） about the unfair treatment，Dad has a sorry smile on his face．It's become a long-standing family joke that Kitty is the closest thing to a son Dad will ever have．
Then，five years ago，our lives were turned upside down when Dad suffered two major strokes（中風(fēng)）within a month．For four long months，mentally he was non-responsive．We had to take turns standing by his bedside to protect him．We were exhausted after every"shift"but grateful that he was still alive．As the months went by，I couldn't help but talk about Kitty constantly，often hoping that Dad could show some awareness of what I said．
Then one day，without even realizing it，I blurted out（脫口而出），"Is Kitty a tiger？"Dad began to smile．It was the first sign in four months that Dad had showed any awareness of what I said．Seeing this，the whole family felt a huge weight lift from our shoulders．
Over the next nine months，Dad had to learn all the basic things we take for granted．Dad，who was an independent man with a successful career before all this happened，found it increasingly frustrating（令人沮喪的）．The only thing that ever brought a smile to his face was talk of Kitty．
When we massaged（按摩）Dad's arms and legs to prevent his muscles from weakening，I would always say："Now all you need is Kitty to give you a‘lick-lick'foot massage!"No matter how many times I repeated this comment，the whole family would laugh．
39．It can be inferred from the first paragraph that DadB．
A．liked sons more than daughters B．liked Kitty very much
C．was strict with his daughtersD．felt sorry about raising Kitty
40．How did the author feel after seeing Dad's smiling to her talk of Kitty？C
A．Doubtful．B．Angry．C．Happy．D．Regretful．
41．During the next nine months，DadA．
A．felt discouraged while learning the basic things
B．enjoyed being massaged by three women
C．often needed the stories of Kitty
D．would like Kitty to accompany him
42．What would be the best title for the passage？D
A．A dog rescues its owner from danger．
B．A dog helps a family get together．
C．A dog becomes a topic of the family's talk．
D．A dog makes my seriously sick dad smile．
