Chapter 1 of The Monster Maker is here in full — 654 sentences across 131 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Monster Maker is here in full — 654 sentences across 131 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"Get Gunther," the official orders read. It was to laugh! For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera. Suddenly, it was there. There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.
Chapter 1 of The Monster Maker is here in full — 654 sentences across 131 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/130 · 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.
any of numerous small celestial bodies composed of rock and metal that move around the sun (mainly between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter)
From this reading “For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.”
briefly shut the eyes
From this reading “There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.”
equipment for taking photographs (usually consisting of a lightproof box with a lens at one end and light-sensitive film at the other)
From this reading “For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.”
move or strike with a noise
From this reading “For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.”
cut off or left behind
From this reading “For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.”
possessive form of “pirate” — someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading “For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.”
made afraid
From this reading “There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.”
plural of “weapon” — any instrument or instrumentality used in fighting or hunting
From this reading “For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.”
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 “There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.”
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 For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
any of numerous small celestial bodies composed of rock and metal that move around the sun (mainly between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter)
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
briefly shut the eyes
From this reading There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.
equipment for taking photographs (usually consisting of a lightproof box with a lens at one end and light-sensitive film at the other)
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
move or strike with a noise
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
intended to be given to, or used by, somebody
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
come into the possession of something concrete or abstract
From this reading "Get Gunther," the official orders read.
a weapon that discharges a missile at high velocity (especially from a metal tube or barrel)
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "Get Gunther," the official orders read.
people of Ireland or of Irish extraction
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
a thing, animal, or idea already mentioned
From this reading It was to laugh!
the sound of laughing
From this reading It was to laugh!
cut off or left behind
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
having official authority or sanction
From this reading "Get Gunther," the official orders read.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
and nothing more
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
used to join alternatives or possibilities
From this reading There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.
plural of “order” — (often plural) a command given by a superior (e.g., a military or law enforcement officer) that must be obeyed
From this reading "Get Gunther," the official orders read.
possessive form of “pirate” — someone who uses another person's words or ideas as if they were his own
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
interpret something that is written or printed
From this reading "Get Gunther," the official orders read.
made afraid
From this reading There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.
being or characteristic of a single thing or person
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
express in speech
From this reading There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.
happening unexpectedly
From this reading Suddenly, it was there.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading "Get Gunther," the official orders read.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
in or at that place or location
From this reading Suddenly, it was there.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading It was to laugh!
the past form of “be” used with I, he, she, it, or a singular noun
From this reading It was to laugh!
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading There wasn't time to blink or speak or get scared.
plural of “weapon” — any instrument or instrumentality used in fighting or hunting
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading For Click and Irish were marooned on the pirate's asteroid--their only weapons a single gun and a news-reel camera.
Chapter 1 of The Monster Maker by Ray Bradbury holds 654 sentences, grouped into 131 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 654 sentences of The Monster Maker, unabridged, divided into 131 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Monster Maker by Ray Bradbury exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 654 sentences, grouped into 131 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 131 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 131 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 Monster Maker by Ray Bradbury on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 654 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #62569 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #62569, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 54 minutes of reading across 131 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Monster Maker section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The Monster Maker 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 Monster Maker, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
