Chapter 1 of Checkers: A Hard-luck Story is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of Checkers: A Hard-luck Story is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
HENRY M. BLOSSOM Jr. HERBERT S. STONE & CO. ELLIS WAINWRIGHT. I had never before attended the races. "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
Chapter 1 of Checkers: A Hard-luck Story is here in full — 423 sentences across 85 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/84 · 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.
produce or yield flowers
From this reading “HENRY M. BLOSSOM Jr.”
largest city in Illinois; a bustling Great Lakes port that extends 26 miles along the southwestern shoreline of Lake Michigan
From this reading “"The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.”
a felt hat that is round and hard with a narrow brim
From this reading “"The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.”
plural of “elli” — (Norse mythology) goddess of old age who defeated Thor in a wrestling match
From this reading “ELLIS WAINWRIGHT.”
United States musician and composer and conductor noted for his comic operas (1859-1924)
From this reading “HERBERT S. STONE & CO.”
plural of “race” — any competition
From this reading “I had never before attended the races.”
an active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition
From this reading “"The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.”
a wagon maker
From this reading “ELLIS WAINWRIGHT.”
English keeps certain words together, and knowing the pair is worth more than knowing each word alone. Every partnership below was counted across our whole published library, and earns its place by appearing far more often than two unrelated words of the same frequency would.
Shown as this reading writes them, with the form the library counts, what kind of pairing it is, and how often it occurs.
be shown or be found to be
In this reading “"The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.”
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.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
playing or singing with instrumental or vocal accompaniment
From this reading I had never before attended the races.
earlier than; in front of
From this reading I had never before attended the races.
produce or yield flowers
From this reading HENRY M. BLOSSOM Jr.
state capital and largest city of Massachusetts; a major center for banking and financial services
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
largest city in Illinois; a bustling Great Lakes port that extends 26 miles along the southwestern shoreline of Lake Michigan
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon
From this reading HERBERT S. STONE & CO.
time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
a felt hat that is round and hard with a narrow brim
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
plural of “elli” — (Norse mythology) goddess of old age who defeated Thor in a wrestling match
From this reading ELLIS WAINWRIGHT.
all the members of a group, with none left out
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
referring to the first of two things or persons mentioned (or the earlier one or ones of several)
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading I had never before attended the races.
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
From this reading HENRY M. BLOSSOM Jr.
United States musician and composer and conductor noted for his comic operas (1859-1924)
From this reading HERBERT S. STONE & CO.
in or at this place; where the speaker or writer is
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
where you live at a particular time
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading I had never before attended the races.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
a son who has the same first name as his father
From this reading HENRY M. BLOSSOM Jr.
plural of “king” — a male sovereign; ruler of a kingdom
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
the basic unit of length adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites (approximately 1.094 yards)
From this reading HENRY M. BLOSSOM Jr.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
not ever; at no time in the past or future
From this reading I had never before attended the races.
not any; not one
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
used to make a word, phrase, or sentence negative
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
used to mean any person in general, including the speaker
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
regarded with great favor, approval, or affection especially by the general public
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
plural of “race” — any competition
From this reading I had never before attended the races.
1/60 of a minute; the basic unit of time adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
From this reading HERBERT S. STONE & CO.
an active diversion requiring physical exertion and competition
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading HERBERT S. STONE & CO.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading I had never before attended the races.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
plural of “turn” — a circular segment of a curve
From this reading "The sport of kings" is not popular in Boston, my former home, but here in Chicago every one turns out on Derby Day, if at no other time.
a wagon maker
From this reading ELLIS WAINWRIGHT.
Chapter 1 of Checkers: A Hard-luck Story by Henry Blossom holds 423 sentences, grouped into 85 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, 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 1 holds 423 sentences of Checkers: A Hard-luck Story, unabridged, divided into 85 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of Checkers: A Hard-luck Story by Henry Blossom exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 423 sentences, grouped into 85 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 85 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 85 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 1 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 Checkers: A Hard-luck Story by Henry Blossom on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 2501 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #31813 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #31813, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 208 minutes of reading across 501 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through Checkers: A Hard-luck Story section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 6 chapters of Checkers: A Hard-luck Story 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 Checkers: A Hard-luck Story, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
