"Nicholls, David - Starter for Ten" - читать интересную книгу автора (Nicholls David)

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To Ann and Alan Nicholls.
And Hannah, of course.
Round One


She knew this type very well - the vague aspirations,
the mental disorder, the familiarity with the outside of
books...

E.M. Forster, Howards End
QUESTION: Stepson to Robert Dudley and onetime
favourite of Elizabeth I, which nobleman led a poorly
planned and unsuccessful revolt against the Queen,
and was subsequently executed in 1601?

ANSWER: Essex.


All young people worry about things, it's a natural and
inevitable part of growing up, and at the age of sixteen
my greatest anxiety in life was that I'd never again achieve
anything as good, or pure, or noble, or true, as my O-level
results.
I didn't make a big deal about them at the time of course; I
didn't frame the certificates or anything weird like that, and I
won't go into the actual grades here, because then it just gets competitive, but I definitely liked having them; Qualifications.
Sixteen years old, and the first time I'd ever felt qualified for
anything.
Of course, all that was a long, long time ago. I'm eighteen
now, and I like to think I'm a lot wiser and cooler about these
things. So my A-levels are, comparatively, no big deal. Besides,
the notion that you can somehow quantify intelligence by
some ridiculous, antiquated system of written examinations
is obviously specious. Having said that, they were Langley
Street Comprehensive School's best A-level results of 1985,
the best for fifteen years in fact, three As and a B, that's
19 points - there, I've said it now - but I really, honestly
don't believe that's particularly relevant, I just mention them
DAVID NICHOLLS