Chapter 22 of The Fire People is here in full — 143 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXII
Chapter 22 of The Fire People is here in full — 143 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
THE THEFT OF THE LIGHT-RAY. The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness. He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely. "Wake up, my friend Ollie. Time now to wake up."
Chapter 22 of The Fire People is here in full — 143 sentences across 29 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/28 · 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.
an alert cognitive state in which you are aware of yourself and your situation
From this reading “The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.”
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading “The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.”
in a grave and sober manner
From this reading “He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.”
a dealer in textiles (especially silks)
From this reading “The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.”
-ing form of “regard” — deem to be
From this reading “He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.”
the act of taking something from someone unlawfully
From this reading “THE THEFT OF THE LIGHT-RAY.”
make physical contact with, come in contact with
From this reading “The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.”
be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading “"Wake up, my friend Ollie.”
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.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
next to; at the side of
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
inflected form of “bring” — take something or somebody with oneself somewhere
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
an alert cognitive state in which you are aware of yourself and your situation
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
neither warm nor very cold; giving relief from heat
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
opinion or judgment
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
From this reading "Wake up, my friend Ollie.
in a grave and sober manner
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
(with “in”) guardianship over; in divorce cases it is the right to house and care for and discipline a child
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading THE THEFT OF THE LIGHT-RAY.
a dealer in textiles (especially silks)
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
belonging to the person speaking
From this reading "Wake up, my friend Ollie.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading Time now to wake up."
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading THE THEFT OF THE LIGHT-RAY.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Wake up, my friend Ollie.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
-ing form of “regard” — deem to be
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
(photography) the act of assuming a certain position (as for a photograph or portrait)
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
yielding readily to pressure or weight
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
happening without warning or in a short space of time
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading THE THEFT OF THE LIGHT-RAY.
the act of taking something from someone unlawfully
From this reading THE THEFT OF THE LIGHT-RAY.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Time now to wake up."
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
make physical contact with, come in contact with
From this reading The touch of soft, cool hands on his face brought Mercer back to sudden consciousness.
being or moving higher in position or greater in some value; being above a former position or level
From this reading "Wake up, my friend Ollie.
be awake, be alert, be there
From this reading "Wake up, my friend Ollie.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading He opened his eyes; Anina was sitting beside him, regarding him gravely.
Chapter 22 of The Fire People by Ray Cummings holds 143 sentences, grouped into 29 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 22 holds 143 sentences of The Fire People, unabridged, divided into 29 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 22 of The Fire People by Ray Cummings exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 143 sentences, grouped into 29 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 29 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 29 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 22 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 Fire People by Ray Cummings on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 4561 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #25780 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #25780, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 380 minutes of reading across 913 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Fire People section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of The Fire People 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 Fire People, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
