Releasing the gull
The veterinary nurse had said that the gull was ready, so I carried its box from the car to the quiet end of the beach at first light. For nearly a month, I had measured its food and changed its water twice a day. Inside the box, the bird beat its wings once and then became still. The clasp was secure, yet I checked it again. Opening it would end a routine that had shaped every morning and evening. I wanted the gull to rise immediately, as if one clean flight would prove that every decision I had made had been right. Then I felt uneasy for turning its recovery into a test of me. When the wind lifted the feathers around its neck, the gull stood alert, although my hands continued to tremble around the clasp.
In your own words, explain the writer's thoughts and feelings before releasing the gull.
232 exam-style questions on Edexcel A IGCSE English Language 1.2 Section A: Non-fiction Texts, covering 1.2.1 Focus of Section A, 1.2.2 Reading challenging non-fiction in preparation for the unseen text, 1.2.3 Reading substantial and extended texts, 1.2.4 Skills of interpretation and analysis, 1.2.5 Range of non-fiction forms, 1.2.6 Literary non-fiction text types, 1.2.7 Transient texts excluded from assessment, 1.2.8 The anthology as a supporting resource, and 1.2.9 Digital location of texts. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.