Complete classic literature • Five-line readings • Clear US narration
VELMORA ACADEMY
Academy of Archival Languages & Memory Studies
Menu Close
Rootabaga Pigeons
Rootabaga Pigeons

Chapter II

Chapter 2 of Rootabaga Pigeons is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Cover illustration for Rootabaga Pigeons
Context Illustration Reading 1/83 · 5 lines
English subtitles · tap any word to listen 1 / 5
“The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.
“‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.
‘It was me, it was me ran out and held up the sky when the sky began to fall.’
“‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?
It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’
0:00 / 0:00
Speed 0.75x
AI-generated narration by OpenAI · Slow US English
LEARNER DICTIONARY
Archivist
/ˈɑːrkɪvɪst/
Editorial verification pending

A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.

Rootabaga Pigeons

Chapter II

Chapter 2 of Rootabaga Pigeons is here in full — 416 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.

Reading 1/83 · 5 reading units · Lines 1–5

Line 1
“The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.
/ðə læst deɪ ˈboʊzoʊ ˈevər keɪm tuː ðə ˈvɪlədʒ ʌv kriːm pʌfs hiː stʊd ɑːn ðə ˈpʌblɪk skwer ənd hiː wɑːz ɔːl ˈkʌvərd wɪð ˈbʌtənz mɔːr ˈbʌtənz ðæn ˈevər bɪˈfɔːr ənd ɔːl ðə ˈbʌtənz ˈfɪtɪŋ taɪt ənd faɪv sɪks ˈbʌtənz ˈbʌstɪŋ luːs ənd ˈflaɪɪŋ ˈɪntuː ðə er weˈnevər hiː tʊk hɪz lʌŋz fʊl ʌv waɪnd tuː ɡoʊ ɑːn ˈspiːkɪŋ/
Line 2
“‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.
/wen ðə skaɪ bɪˈɡæn tuː fɔːl huː wɑːz ɪt ræn aʊt ənd held ʌp ðə skaɪ hiː sæŋ aʊt/
Line 3
‘It was me, it was me ran out and held up the sky when the sky began to fall.’
/ɪt wɑːz miː ɪt wɑːz miː ræn aʊt ənd held ʌp ðə skaɪ wen ðə skaɪ bɪˈɡæn tuː fɔːl/
Line 4
“‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?
/wen ðə bluː keɪm ɔːf ðə skaɪ wer dɪd ðeɪ ɡet ðə bluː tuː pʊt ɑːn ðə skaɪ tuː meɪk ɪt bluː əˈɡen/
Line 5
It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’
/ɪt wɑːz miː ɪt wɑːz miː pɪkt ðə ˈbluːbɜːrdz ənd ðə bluː ˈpɪdʒənz tuː ɡet ðə bluː tuː fɪks ðə skaɪ/

Learner Dictionary

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.

bluebirds noun US /ˈbluːbɜːrdz/

plural of “bluebird” — fruit-eating mostly brilliant blue songbird of the East Indies

From this reading “It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’”

Bozo noun US /ˈboʊzoʊ/

a man who is a stupid incompetent fool

From this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

busting verb US /ˈbʌstɪŋ/

-ing form of “bust” — ruin completely

From this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

buttons noun US /ˈbʌtənz/

plural of “button” — a round fastener sewn to shirts and coats etc to fit through buttonholes

From this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

Cream noun US /kriːm/

the best people or things in a group

From this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

lungs noun US /lʌŋz/

plural of “lung” — either of two saclike respiratory organs in the chest of vertebrates; serves to remove carbon dioxide and provide oxygen to the blood

From this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

pigeons noun US /ˈpɪdʒənz/

plural of “pigeon” — wild and domesticated birds having a heavy body and short legs

From this reading “It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’”

Puffs noun US /pʌfs/

plural of “puff” — a short light gust of air

From this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

Word partnerships in these lines

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.

into the air preposition + article + noun counted as “into … air”

In this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

go on verb + particle

continue a certain state, condition, or activity

In this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

ran out verb + adjective counted as “run out”

become used up; be exhausted

In this reading ““‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.”

put on verb + particle

put clothing on one's body

In this reading ““‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?”

stood on verb + particle

In this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

last day adjective + noun

(New Testament) day at the end of time following Armageddon when God will decree the fates of all individual humans according to the good and evil of their earthly lives

In this reading ““The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.”

All words in this reading · 67

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.

againadverbUS /əˈɡen/

anew

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

airnounUS /er/

a mixture of gases (especially oxygen) required for breathing; the stuff that the wind consists of

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

alladjectiveUS /ɔːl/

(quantifier) used with either mass or count nouns to indicate the whole number or amount of or every one of a class

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

andconjunctionUS /ənd/

used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

beforeprepositionUS /bɪˈfɔːr/

earlier than; in front of

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

beganverbUS /bɪˈɡæn/

inflected form of “begin” — take the first step or steps in carrying out an action

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

blueadjectiveUS /bluː/

of the color intermediate between green and violet; having a color similar to that of a clear unclouded sky

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

bluebirdsnounUS /ˈbluːbɜːrdz/

plural of “bluebird” — fruit-eating mostly brilliant blue songbird of the East Indies

From this reading It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’

BozonounUS /ˈboʊzoʊ/

a man who is a stupid incompetent fool

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

bustingverbUS /ˈbʌstɪŋ/

-ing form of “bust” — ruin completely

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

buttonsnounUS /ˈbʌtənz/

plural of “button” — a round fastener sewn to shirts and coats etc to fit through buttonholes

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

cameverbUS /keɪm/

inflected form of “come” — move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

coveredadjectiveUS /ˈkʌvərd/

overlaid or spread or topped with or enclosed within something; sometimes used as a combining form

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

CreamnounUS /kriːm/

the best people or things in a group

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

daynounUS /deɪ/

time for Earth to make a complete rotation on its axis

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

didauxiliary verbUS /dɪd/

the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

everadverbUS /ˈevər/

at any time

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

fallverbUS /fɔːl/

descend in free fall under the influence of gravity

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

fittingadjectiveUS /ˈfɪtɪŋ/

in harmony with the spirit of particular persons or occasion

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

fivenounUS /faɪv/

the cardinal number that is the sum of four and one

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

fixverbUS /fɪks/

restore by replacing a part or putting together what is torn or broken

From this reading It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’

flyingadjectiveUS /ˈflaɪɪŋ/

moving swiftly

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

fulladjectiveUS /fʊl/

containing as much or as many as is possible or normal

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

getverbUS /ɡet/

come into the possession of something concrete or abstract

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

goverbUS /ɡoʊ/

change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

hepronounUS /hiː/

a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

heldadjectiveUS /held/

occupied or in the control of; often used in combination

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

hisdeterminerUS /hɪz/

belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

intoprepositionUS /ˈɪntuː/

moving to the inside of something

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

itpronounUS /ɪt/

a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

lastadjectiveUS /læst/

immediately past

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

looseadjectiveUS /luːs/

not compact or dense in structure or arrangement

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

lungsnounUS /lʌŋz/

plural of “lung” — either of two saclike respiratory organs in the chest of vertebrates; serves to remove carbon dioxide and provide oxygen to the blood

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

makeverbUS /meɪk/

engage in

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

mepronounUS /miː/

the person speaking, as the object of a verb or preposition

From this reading ‘It was me, it was me ran out and held up the sky when the sky began to fall.’

moreadjectiveUS /mɔːr/

(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

ofprepositionUS /ʌv/

belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

offadverbUS /ɔːf/

from a particular thing or place or position (“forth” is obsolete)

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

onprepositionUS /ɑːn/

touching and supported by a surface

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

outadjectiveUS /aʊt/

not allowed to continue to bat or run

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

pickedverbUS /pɪkt/

past form of “pick” — select carefully from a group

From this reading It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’

pigeonsnounUS /ˈpɪdʒənz/

plural of “pigeon” — wild and domesticated birds having a heavy body and short legs

From this reading It was me, it was me picked the bluebirds and the blue pigeons to get the blue to fix the sky.’

publicnounUS /ˈpʌblɪk/

people in general considered as a whole

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

PuffsnounUS /pʌfs/

plural of “puff” — a short light gust of air

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

putverbUS /pʊt/

put into a certain place or abstract location

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

ranverbUS /ræn/

inflected form of “run” — move fast by using one's feet, with one foot off the ground at any given time

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

sangnounUS /sæŋ/

North American woodland herb similar to and used as substitute for the Chinese ginseng

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

sixnounUS /sɪks/

the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

skynounUS /skaɪ/

the atmosphere and outer space as viewed from the earth

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

speakingnounUS /ˈspiːkɪŋ/

the utterance of intelligible speech

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

squareverbUS /skwer/

make square

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

stoodverbUS /stʊd/

Maintained an upright posture.

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

thanconjunctionUS /ðæn/

used to introduce the second part of a comparison

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

ThedeterminerUS /ðə/

used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

theypronounUS /ðeɪ/

the people, animals, or things already mentioned, as the subject

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

tightadjectiveUS /taɪt/

closely constrained or constricted or constricting

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

toparticleUS /tuː/

used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

tookverbUS /tʊk/

inflected form of “take” — carry out

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

upadjectiveUS /ʌp/

being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

VillagenounUS /ˈvɪlədʒ/

a community of people smaller than a town

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

wasauxiliary verbUS /wɑːz/

the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

WhenconjunctionUS /wen/

at the time that

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

wheneverconjunctionUS /weˈnevər/

at any time that; every time that

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

whereconjunctionUS /wer/

in or at the place that

From this reading “‘When the blue came off the sky, where did they get the blue to put on the sky to make it blue again?

whopronounUS /huː/

which person or people

From this reading “‘When the sky began to fall who was it ran out and held up the sky?’ he sang out.

windnounUS /waɪnd/

air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

withprepositionUS /wɪð/

in the company of; together with

From this reading “The last day Bozo ever came to the Village of Cream Puffs, he stood on the public square and he was all covered with buttons, more buttons than ever before, and all the buttons fitting tight, and five, six buttons busting loose and flying into the air whenever he took his lungs full of wind to go on speaking.

Chapter 2 of Rootabaga Pigeons by Carl Sandburg holds 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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.

What does chapter 2 of Rootabaga Pigeons contain?

Chapter 2 holds 416 sentences of Rootabaga Pigeons, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.

This page carries chapter 2 of Rootabaga Pigeons by Carl Sandburg exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 416 sentences, grouped into 84 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.

How do I study chapter 2 of Rootabaga Pigeons?

Work through the 84 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.

Each of the 84 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.

Can chapter 2 be read aloud to me?

Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 2 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.

Questions about reading Rootabaga Pigeons

Common questions about reading Rootabaga Pigeons by Carl Sandburg on this page, its source edition and its audio.

Is this the complete text of Rootabaga Pigeons?

Yes. All 1220 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #61553 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.

Which edition of Rootabaga Pigeons is used?

Project Gutenberg eBook #61553, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.

How long does Rootabaga Pigeons take to read?

About 101 minutes of reading across 244 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.

How to read Rootabaga Pigeons section by section

How to work through Rootabaga Pigeons section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.

  1. Open a chapter

    Choose one of the 3 chapters of Rootabaga Pigeons to begin.

  2. Read one section

    Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.

  3. Listen and tap

    Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.

Vocabulary met early in Rootabaga Pigeons

Words and structures a reader meets early in Rootabaga Pigeons, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.

Sandburg
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rootabaga Pigeons; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Author
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rootabaga Pigeons; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Rootabaga
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rootabaga Pigeons; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.
Stories
A word that appears in the opening chapter of Rootabaga Pigeons; the reader can tap it to hear it and see its dictionary entry.