Chapter 2 of The Saracen: The Holy War is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter II
Chapter 2 of The Saracen: The Holy War is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam. Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence. "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing. You are right about that. Do as you will.
Chapter 2 of The Saracen: The Holy War is here in full — 404 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/80 · 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.
acceptance without protest
From this reading “Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.”
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading “"Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.”
plural of “crusader” — a disputant who advocates reform
From this reading “And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.”
a state in which all hope is lost or absent
From this reading “Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.”
the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France
From this reading “"Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.”
a gesture involving the shoulders
From this reading “Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.”
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading “Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.”
plural of “tartar” — a salt used especially in baking powder
From this reading “And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.”
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.
on the subject of; concerning
From this reading You are right about that.
acceptance without protest
From this reading Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
the form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading You are right about that.
at the same time that; because; in the way that
From this reading Do as you will.
definitely or positively (“sure” is sometimes used informally for “surely”)
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
move toward, travel toward something or somebody or approach something or somebody
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
plural of “crusader” — a disputant who advocates reform
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
a state in which all hope is lost or absent
From this reading Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.
used to form questions and negatives, and to give emphasis
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
the Romance language spoken in France and in countries colonized by France
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
a man, boy, or male animal already mentioned, as the subject
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
on condition that; in the event that
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
cause to continue in a certain state, position, or activity; e.g., “keep clean”
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
(comparative of “much” used with mass nouns) a quantifier meaning greater in size or amount or extent or degree
From this reading Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.
not one thing; not anything
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
not allowed to continue to bat or run
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
precisely, exactly
From this reading You are right about that.
a gesture involving the shoulders
From this reading Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.
support consisting of a radial member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim
From this reading Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.
plural of “tartar” — a salt used especially in baking powder
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
used to introduce the second part of a comparison
From this reading Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.
used to introduce what somebody said, thought, or felt
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
the content of cognition; the main thing you are thinking about
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading Ugolini's shrug spoke more of despair than of acquiescence.
the speaker together with one or more other people
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
used to talk about the future, or about willingness
From this reading "Certainly the French will come if we do nothing.
used for something imagined, polite, or habitual in the past
From this reading And that, he thought, would keep crusaders and Tartars out of the Dar al-Islam.
the person or people being spoken to
From this reading You are right about that.
Chapter 2 of The Saracen: The Holy War by Robert Shea holds 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 2 holds 404 sentences of The Saracen: The Holy War, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 2 of The Saracen: The Holy War by Robert Shea exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 404 sentences, grouped into 81 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 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 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 2 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 Saracen: The Holy War by Robert Shea on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 11789 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #28516 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #28516, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 600 minutes of reading across 2358 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The Saracen: The Holy War section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 29 chapters of The Saracen: The Holy War 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 Saracen: The Holy War, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
