Chapter 8 of Black Jack is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter VIII
Chapter 8 of Black Jack is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests. He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall. Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious. "What's wrong, Elizabeth?" Her voice was low, vibrating with fierceness.
Chapter 8 of Black Jack is here in full — 148 sentences across 30 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/29 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5
These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.
daughter of George VI who became the Queen of England and Northern Ireland in 1952 on the death of her father (1926-)
From this reading “"What's wrong, Elizabeth?"”
(of animals) fully developed
From this reading “Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.”
plural of “guest” — a visitor to whom hospitality is extended
From this reading “She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.”
a humming noise
From this reading “He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.”
lacking the thinking capacity characteristic of a conscious being
From this reading “She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.”
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading “Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.”
filled with shade
From this reading “He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.”
-ing form of “vibrate” — shake, quiver, or throb; move back and forth rapidly, usually in an uncontrolled manner
From this reading “Her voice was low, vibrating with fierceness.”
Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.
Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
a human limb; technically the part of the superior limb between the shoulder and the elbow but commonly used to refer to the whole superior limb
From this reading Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.
from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
a swinging or sliding barrier that will close the entrance to a room or building or vehicle
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
being or moving lower in position or less in some value
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
United States actor (born in Ireland); father of Georgiana Emma Barrymore (1827-1862)
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
daughter of George VI who became the Queen of England and Northern Ireland in 1952 on the death of her father (1926-)
From this reading "What's wrong, Elizabeth?"
the property of being wild or turbulent
From this reading Her voice was low, vibrating with fierceness.
(of animals) fully developed
From this reading Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.
plural of “guest” — a visitor to whom hospitality is extended
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
an interior passage or corridor onto which rooms open
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
belonging to a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
a humming noise
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
the experience of being alive; the course of human events and activities
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
less than normal in degree or intensity or amount
From this reading Her voice was low, vibrating with fierceness.
lacking the thinking capacity characteristic of a conscious being
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
the time that has elapsed
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
concerned with work or important matters rather than play or trivialities
From this reading Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.
filled with shade
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
a woman, girl, or female animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
successive (without a break)
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
subsequently or soon afterward (often used as sentence connectors)
From this reading Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
having come into contact
From this reading Then he touched her arm, suddenly grown serious.
up to a particular time
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
-ing form of “vibrate” — shake, quiver, or throb; move back and forth rapidly, usually in an uncontrolled manner
From this reading Her voice was low, vibrating with fierceness.
the distinctive quality or pitch or condition of a person's speech
From this reading Her voice was low, vibrating with fierceness.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He came humming until he was past the door and in the shadowy hall.
inflected form of “go” — change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically
From this reading She went straight down to the big living room and drew Vance away, mindless of her guests.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "What's wrong, Elizabeth?"
in the company of; together with
From this reading Her voice was low, vibrating with fierceness.
not correct; not in conformity with fact or truth
From this reading "What's wrong, Elizabeth?"
Chapter 8 of Black Jack by Max Brand holds 148 sentences, grouped into 30 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the public-domain source, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Chapter 8 holds 148 sentences of Black Jack, unabridged, divided into 30 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 8 of Black Jack by Max Brand exactly as it stands in the public-domain source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 148 sentences, grouped into 30 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.
Work through the 30 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 30 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 8 can be played aloud in United States English.
Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.
Common questions about reading Black Jack by Max Brand on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 6131 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #9925 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #9925, a public-domain edition. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 510 minutes of reading across 1227 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Black Jack section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 37 chapters of Black Jack to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in Black Jack, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
