Civil Service Reading Comprehension Practice Test Results

Question 1
78% answer correctly

War Horse is a children`s novel by Michael Morpurgo. It was first published in Great Britain by Kaye & Ward in 1982. The story recounts the experiences of Joey, a horse purchased by the Army for service in World War I France and the attempts of young Albert, his previous owner, to bring him safely home. It formed the basis of both an award winning play (2007) and an acclaimed film (2011).


Which of the following is NOT true about this novel?

War Horse is a romance novel.
Albert is trying to bring Joey safely home.
Albert no longer owns Joey at the beginning of the novel.
This novel was first published in Great Britain.
Question 2
55% answer correctly

Volunteer hosts went to the airport, picked up assigned students, fed them dinner, took them to the opening lecture at the Clay Center, put them in spare bedrooms for the night, then fed them breakfast this morning and will deliver the outstanding teens to buses that convey them to the mountain retreat where they undergo a month of intensive science training and outdoor fun.

Luckily, this year, enough local families volunteered to host all the brilliant youths. In the past, the number of guest homes sometimes fell short, and some of the visitors slept on cots and sleeping bags at local churches. They`re adventurous teens and don`t mind this makeshift camp-in but it`s better if friendly hosts give them a more personal welcome for their stay.


Which of the following topics would the next paragraph in this passage most likely cover?

Instructions for how local families can enroll their children in a similar program
An overview of what the student`s science training will cover
The story of a time when one of the students stole from his host family
Instructions for how local families can volunteer to become hosts
Question 3
67% answer correctly

Six years ago, lawyer-banker-scholar Charles Morris wrote a prophetic book - `Two-Trillion-Dollar Meltdown: Easy Money, High-Rollers and the Great Credit Crunch` - that foresaw the 2008 Great Recession before it clobbered America and the world.

Now Morris has reversed course and sees good times ahead. His forthcoming book, `Comeback,` predicts that surging U.S. energy independence will bring a buoyant rise in American manufacturing and jobs.


The implication of this passage is that you should pay attention to Charles Morris because:

His new book is a best seller
The U.S. is becoming more energy independent
His first book was a best seller
His predictions have come true once already