Chapter 29 of The Saracen: The Holy War is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter XXIX
Chapter 29 of The Saracen: The Holy War is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
"I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles. "A despicable man, but often useful." The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now. Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing. Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
Chapter 29 of The Saracen: The Holy War is here in full — 405 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 1/81 · 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.
long strip of cloth or paper used for decoration or advertising
From this reading “Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.”
a mound of stones piled up as a memorial or to mark a boundary or path
From this reading “Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.”
morally reprehensible
From this reading “"A despicable man, but often useful."”
plural of “edge” — the boundary of a surface
From this reading “Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.”
plural of “group” — any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading “Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.”
the display of a motion picture
From this reading “Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.”
plural of “stone” — a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading “Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.”
being of use or service
From this reading “"A despicable man, but often useful."”
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 "A despicable man, but often useful."
the form of “be” used with “I”
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
surrounding, or on every side of, something
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
long strip of cloth or paper used for decoration or advertising
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
the entire physical structure of an organism (an animal, plant, or human being)
From this reading The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now.
used to introduce something that contrasts with what came before
From this reading "A despicable man, but often useful."
a mound of stones piled up as a memorial or to mark a boundary or path
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
King of France from 1560 to 1574 whose reign was dominated by his mother Catherine de Medicis (1550-1574)
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
to a complete degree or to the full or entire extent (“whole” is often used informally for “wholly”)
From this reading The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now.
overlaid or spread or topped with or enclosed within something; sometimes used as a combining form
From this reading The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now.
morally reprehensible
From this reading "A despicable man, but often useful."
plural of “edge” — the boundary of a surface
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
plural of “group” — any number of entities (members) considered as a unit
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
pass into a condition gradually, take on a specific property or attribute; become
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
the past form of “have”, used to form the past perfect
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
the person speaking or writing, as the subject of the verb
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
inside something, or within a place, period, or state
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
fail to keep or to maintain; cease to have, either physically or in an abstract sense
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
an adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
From this reading "A despicable man, but often useful."
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now.
in the historical present; at this point in the narration of a series of past events
From this reading The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now.
belonging to, or connected with, somebody or something
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
many times at short intervals
From this reading "A despicable man, but often useful."
and nothing more
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
situated in a particular spot or position
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
plural of “rock” — a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now.
being the one previously mentioned or spoken of
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
the display of a motion picture
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
not in physical motion
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
plural of “stone” — a lump or mass of hard consolidated mineral matter
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
Maintained an upright posture.
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
used before a noun that is already known, already mentioned, or the only one of its kind
From this reading The rocks covered Manfred's body completely now.
belonging to the people or things already mentioned
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
the plural of “that”: the people or things further away, or already known
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading "I am sorry to lose Sordello," said Charles.
being of use or service
From this reading "A despicable man, but often useful."
look attentively
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
the past form of “be” used with you, we, they, or a plural noun
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
which person or people
From this reading Those who had placed their stones stood around in groups to watch the cairn grow.
of the color intermediate between green and orange in the color spectrum; of something resembling the color of an egg yolk
From this reading Only the edges of the yellow banner were still showing.
Chapter 29 of The Saracen: The Holy War by Robert Shea holds 405 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 29 holds 405 sentences of The Saracen: The Holy War, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 29 of The Saracen: The Holy War by Robert Shea exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 405 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 29 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.
