Chapter 1 of The Moon and the Sun is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
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Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The Moon and the Sun is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space. Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster. Six minutes left. Sunlight danced on silver curves. Tick, tick, tick, tick.
Chapter 1 of The Moon and the Sun is here in full — 109 sentences across 22 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/21 · 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.
plural of “curve” — the trace of a point whose direction of motion changes
From this reading “Sunlight danced on silver curves.”
past form of “dance” — move in a graceful and rhythmical way
From this reading “Sunlight danced on silver curves.”
a flash of light (especially reflected light)
From this reading “By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.”
an imaginary creature usually having various human and animal parts
From this reading “Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.”
any vehicle self-propelled by a rocket engine
From this reading “By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.”
a metallic tapping sound
From this reading “Tick, tick, tick, tick.”
past form of “tick” — make a clicking or ticking sound
From this reading “Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.”
conduit consisting of a long hollow object (usually cylindrical) used to hold and conduct objects or liquids or gases
From this reading “By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.”
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 “Six minutes left.”
In this reading “Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.”
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 By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
in or near a particular place or position
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
showing who or what does the action
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
power to direct or determine
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
plural of “curve” — the trace of a point whose direction of motion changes
From this reading Sunlight danced on silver curves.
past form of “dance” — move in a graceful and rhythmical way
From this reading Sunlight danced on silver curves.
(plural) the deepest and most remote part
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
a flash of light (especially reflected light)
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
relatively large in size or number or extent; larger than others of its kind
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
belonging to the thing or animal already mentioned
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
a Stuart king of Scotland who married a daughter of Henry VII; when England and France went to war in 1513 he invaded England and died in defeat at Flodden (1473-1513)
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
a son who has the same first name as his father
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
location near or direction toward the left side; i.e. the side to the north when a person or object faces east
From this reading Six minutes left.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
a written account of what transpired at a meeting
From this reading Six minutes left.
an imaginary creature usually having various human and animal parts
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
the organ of smell and entrance to the respiratory tract; the prominent part of the face of man or other mammals
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
touching and supported by a surface
From this reading Sunlight danced on silver curves.
-ing form of “point” — indicate a place, direction, person, or thing; either spatially or figuratively
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
not tired; refreshed as by sleeping or relaxing
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
any vehicle self-propelled by a rocket engine
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
A dark area or shape produced by a body coming between rays of light and a surface.
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
From this reading Sunlight danced on silver curves.
the cardinal number that is the sum of five and one
From this reading Six minutes left.
the unlimited expanse in which everything is located
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
the rays of the sun
From this reading Sunlight danced on silver curves.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
a metallic tapping sound
From this reading Tick, tick, tick, tick.
past form of “tick” — make a clicking or ticking sound
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
an instance or single occasion for some event
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
a structure taller than its diameter; can stand alone or be attached to a larger building
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
conduit consisting of a long hollow object (usually cylindrical) used to hold and conduct objects or liquids or gases
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
past form of “wait” — stay in one place and anticipate or expect something
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
used to introduce a clause giving more about a thing just mentioned
From this reading Time ticked in the control tower which rested in the shadow of the great monster.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading By JAMES McKIMMEY, Jr. The rocket waited, a gleaming yellow-finned tube, pointing its nose at the depths of space.
Chapter 1 of The Moon and the Sun by James McKimmey holds 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 109 sentences of The Moon and the Sun, unabridged, divided into 22 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The Moon and the Sun by James McKimmey exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 109 sentences, grouped into 22 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 22 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 22 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 Moon and the Sun by James McKimmey on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 109 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #63758 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #63758, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 9 minutes of reading across 22 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Moon and the Sun section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 1 chapters of The Moon and the Sun 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 Moon and the Sun, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
