Chapter 4 of The Briary Bush: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter IV
Chapter 4 of The Briary Bush: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
“I know you feel unhappy. But don’t you ever feel anything else? Don’t you ever have a good time? Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?” “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
Chapter 4 of The Briary Bush: A Novel is here in full — 418 sentences across 84 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/83 · 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.
characterized by often poignant difference or incongruity between what is expected and what actually is
From this reading ““Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.”
Englishman and romantic poet (1795-1821)
From this reading ““Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.”
English writer who created Frankenstein's monster and married Percy Bysshe Shelley (1797-1851)
From this reading ““Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.”
experiencing or marked by or causing sadness or sorrow or discontent
From this reading ““I know you feel unhappy.”
an indefinite quantity of something having a specified value
From this reading “Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?””
produce a literary work
From this reading ““Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.”
the act of creating written works
From this reading “Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?””
a young person (especially a young man or boy)
From this reading ““Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.”
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.
In this reading “Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?””
write about a particular topic
In this reading ““Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.”
a highly pleasurable or exciting experience
In this reading “Don’t you ever have a good 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.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading Don’t you ever have a good time?
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?”
the form of “a” used before a word that begins with a vowel sound
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
any thing at all
From this reading But don’t you ever feel anything else?
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?”
past form of “ask” — make a request or demand for something to somebody
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But don’t you ever feel anything else?
the past form of “do”, used in questions and negatives
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But don’t you ever feel anything else?
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading But don’t you ever feel anything else?
at any time
From this reading But don’t you ever feel anything else?
undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind
From this reading “I know you feel unhappy.
having desirable or positive qualities especially those suitable for a thing specified
From this reading Don’t you ever have a good time?
used with a past participle to form the perfect tenses
From this reading Don’t you ever have a good time?
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading “I know you feel unhappy.
characterized by often poignant difference or incongruity between what is expected and what actually is
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
Englishman and romantic poet (1795-1821)
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
be cognizant or aware of a fact or a specific piece of information; possess knowledge or information about
From this reading “I know you feel unhappy.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?”
English writer who created Frankenstein's monster and married Percy Bysshe Shelley (1797-1851)
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
judge or regard; look upon; judge
From this reading Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?”
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Don’t you ever have a good time?
a more or less definite period of time now or previously present
From this reading Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?”
experiencing or marked by or causing sadness or sorrow or discontent
From this reading “I know you feel unhappy.
an indefinite quantity of something having a specified value
From this reading Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?”
produce a literary work
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
the act of creating written works
From this reading Or don’t you think good times are worth writing about?”
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading “I know you feel unhappy.
a young person (especially a young man or boy)
From this reading “Did Keats and Shelley write about their good times?” asked an ironical youth.
Chapter 4 of The Briary Bush: A Novel by Floyd Dell holds 418 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.
Chapter 4 holds 418 sentences of The Briary Bush: A Novel, unabridged, divided into 84 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 4 of The Briary Bush: A Novel by Floyd Dell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 418 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.
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.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 4 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 The Briary Bush: A Novel by Floyd Dell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 9096 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #58622 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #58622, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 1820 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Briary Bush: A Novel section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 22 chapters of The Briary Bush: A Novel 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 The Briary Bush: A Novel, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
