D
"The Shu Road is difficult, even more difficult than climbing up to the blue sky," Chinese poet Li Bai once said. The Shu Road system, or *shudao*, was an ancient road to the Shu Kingdom, which was separated from the Central Plains of China by many steep mountains.
The Shu Road has been an important link(联系) between the Yangtze River and Yellow River civilizations for over 2,000 years.
For American scholar Hope Justman, the Shu Road is more than a path. It is a living history book. In 2001, when she first walked on its ancient flagstones(石板), Justman could picture people from the past. She believes the old stones on the road can tell stories of long - ago times. Every part of this road, Justman thinks, has a piece of history. It's like a book that comes alive. Since then, she has visited the "greatest road in China" many times.
In 2007, Justman published *Guide to Hiking China's Old Road to Shu* in the US and created a website about the Shu Road system. In the book, she praises China for protecting the natural environment of the Shu Road system. At the same time, she describes her experiences of enjoying traditional buildings, cultural sites and local customs along the road. For Justman, the biggest challenge of writing her book was locating the ancient Shu Road itself. With the help of the locals, she finally found a part of the road.
Justman believed that her book would introduce western readers to the existence(存在) of many original flagstone parts of this ancient road system and help them in finding and hiking them. "I hope my book will encourage more people to hike the ancient Shu Road and experience Chinese culture firsthand," she said.
According to Justman, it is cheerful to see the great efforts made to protect the road system. For example, damaged flagstones have been repaired, and benches have been added in places of interest, making the old road system much easier to reach and fun for hikers.
()37. Why does the writer mention Li Bai's poem in Paragraph 1?
A. To prove the exact location of the Shu Road.
B. To explain Li Bai's deep love for the Shu Road.
C. To introduce Chinese poet Li Bai to foreigners.
D. To show the difficulty of climbing the Shu Road.
()38. Paragraph 3 mainly talks about .
A. the importance of the Shu Road
B. Justman's idea about the Shu Road
C. the long history of the Shu Road
D. Justman's first trip to the Shu Road
()39. What does the underlined word "firsthand" probably mean?
A. For themselves.
B. To themselves.
C. With themselves.
D. About themselves.
()40. What can we know about Justman's book *Guide to Hiking China's Old Road to Shu*?
A. It focuses on the history of the Shu Kingdom.
B. It describes local customs along the Shu Road.
C. It teaches readers how to repair damaged flagstones.
D. It discusses how Justman found the whole Shu Road.

37. D 解析:细节理解题。根据第一段中“‘The Shu Road is difficult, even more difficult than climbing up to the blue sky,’ Chinese poet Li Bai once said.”可知,第一段引用李白诗句“蜀道之难,难于上青天”,紧接着介绍蜀道被群山阻隔,目的是表明攀登蜀道的艰难。故选D。
38. B 解析:主旨大意题。通读第三段内容可知,该段围绕Justman对蜀道的看法展开,说她认为蜀道是有生命的历史书等,选项B“Justman对蜀道的看法”符合题意。故选B。
39. A 解析:词义猜测题。根据画线词所在句“I hope my book will encourage more people to hike the ancient Shu Road...”可知,此处说的是希望能鼓励更多人徒步古老的蜀道,亲身体验中国文化,由此可知firsthand意为“亲自,亲身”,与选项A同义。故选A。
40. B 解析:细节理解题。根据第四段中“At the same time, she describes her experiences of enjoying traditional buildings, cultural sites and local customs along the road.”可知,该书描述了蜀道沿途的当地风俗。故选B。