Chapter 1 of The Happy Castaway is here in full — 505 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Happy Castaway is here in full — 505 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough. But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much. Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions. Jonathan Fawkes opened his eyes. He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
Chapter 1 of The Happy Castaway is here in full — 505 sentences across 101 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/101 · 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.
movement that causes the formation of a curve
From this reading “He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.”
English conspirator who was executed for his role in a plot to blow up James I and the Houses of Parliament (1570-1606)
From this reading “Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.”
plural of “horror” — intense and profound fear
From this reading “But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.”
red late-ripening apple; primarily eaten raw
From this reading “Jonathan Fawkes opened his eyes.”
cut off or left behind
From this reading “Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.”
(astronomy) any of the nine large celestial bodies in the solar system that revolve around the sun and shine by reflected light
From this reading “But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.”
a situation from which extrication is difficult especially an unpleasant or trying one
From this reading “Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.”
not given to gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading “Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.”
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 “Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.”
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 But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
in or to or toward a former location
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
the -ing form of “be”
From this reading Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.
movement that causes the formation of a curve
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
plural of “companion” — a friend who is frequently in the company of another
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
an adequate quantity; a quantity that is large enough to achieve a purpose
From this reading Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.
opinion or judgment
From this reading Jonathan Fawkes opened his eyes.
the front of the human head from the forehead to the chin and ear to ear
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
English conspirator who was executed for his role in a plot to blow up James I and the Houses of Parliament (1570-1606)
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
having a surface without slope, tilt in which no part is higher or lower than another
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
a young female
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
plural of “girl” — a young female
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
the male already mentioned, as the object of a verb or preposition
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
belonging to a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned
From this reading Jonathan Fawkes opened his eyes.
plural of “horror” — intense and profound fear
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
the form of “be” used with he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.
red late-ripening apple; primarily eaten raw
From this reading Jonathan Fawkes opened his eyes.
cut off or left behind
From this reading Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.
to a great degree or extent
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
used of mouth or eyes
From this reading Jonathan Fawkes opened his eyes.
above and across; more than
From this reading He was flat on his back, and a girl was bending over him.
(astronomy) any of the nine large celestial bodies in the solar system that revolve around the sun and shine by reflected light
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
a full supply
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
a situation from which extrication is difficult especially an unpleasant or trying one
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
the cardinal number that is the sum of six and one
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.
of the kind already mentioned
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
causing fear or dread or terror
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
used for a person or thing that is near, or that has just been mentioned
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
not given to gentleness or sentimentality
From this reading Being space-wrecked and marooned is tough enough.
the cardinal number that is the sum of nineteen and one
From this reading Imagine Fawkes' terrible predicament; plenty of food--and twenty seven beautiful girls for companions.
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading But to face the horrors of such a planet as this was too much.
Chapter 1 of The Happy Castaway by Robert Emmett McDowell holds 505 sentences, grouped into 101 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 505 sentences of The Happy Castaway, unabridged, divided into 101 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Happy Castaway by Robert Emmett McDowell exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 505 sentences, grouped into 101 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 101 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 101 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 The Happy Castaway by Robert Emmett McDowell on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 505 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63401 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63401, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 42 minutes of reading across 101 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Happy Castaway section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The Happy Castaway 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 Happy Castaway, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
