Minis
Mini Copy Book

Each post in this section is a short précis (summary) of a passage in The Copy Book. All of them are in modern English. They are intended for students of English as a Foreign Language at Elementary Level.

Discovery and Invention

India’s First Railway

The opening of the Bombay to Thane line was the real beginning of British India.

Length: 53 words

Indian History

Britain’s Best Gift to India

Samuel Smiles reminds us that until we brought the railways to India, we had little to boast about as an imperial power.

Length: 53 words

Bible Stories Retold

The History of Susannah

A young Jewish woman in ancient Babylon falls victim to a heartless conspiracy.

Length: 102 words

American Revolutionary War

The Battle of Flamborough Head

When captain Richard Pearson of the Royal Navy surrendered to American revolutionary John Paul Jones, Jones naturally assumed that meant he had won.

Length: 59 words

Liberty and Prosperity

Life’s Infantry

However obscure a man may apparently be, his example to others inevitably shapes the future of his country.

Length: 60 words

Extracts from Literature

Persian Treasures

‘Be careful what you wish for’, they say, and there could be no more endearing example.

Length: 106 words