The Register of Arrivals
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Every pilgrim who comes in at the Heralds' Gate gives his name, and some account of his road. Twenty chapters. Free, as bread is free.
- 01Chapter One · ♪ audioThe Hall of MirrorsI am a watchman upon the wall of the City of the Word, and it is my office to keep the Register of Arrivals. Every pilgrim who comes in at the Heralds’ Gate gives…18 min
- 02Chapter Two · ♪ audioThe Kneeling StairFor three Days, Inquirer and Pliable-Gloss walked north across the flat country outside Mine-Own-Meaning. The pilgrims tell me it’s a dull stretch, low hedges and grey grass and not much else, and the worst…17 min
- 03Chapter Three · ♪ audioThe Lighthouse of the IlluminatorThe north side of the mountain ran down through high meadows full of small white flowers to a long green headland pushing out into a grey sea. Inquirer had never seen the sea. Mine-Own-Meaning…18 min
- 04Chapter Four · ♪ audioThe House of the CopyistsFrom the Lighthouse the road ran inland through sheep country cut up by low stone walls, and for two days Inquirer met nobody. He walked with the Charter in one hand and the old…17 min
- 05Chapter Five · ♪ audioThe Ferry of TonguesInquirer heard the river Babel a good while before he saw it.16 min
- 06Chapter Six · ♪ audioThe Diggings of ThenEast of the Babel the green country dried out as it went. The grass went brown and thin, low hills of yellow earth rose up on both sides with gullies scored down them, and…16 min
- 07Chapter Seven · ♪ audioThe Clocktower of AnachronThe dark hills east of the Diggings weren’t high, but they were steep and bare, and the road went up through them by a narrow pass. As Inquirer climbed he started to hear a…16 min
- 08Chapter Eight · ♪ audioThe Shattered MosaicThey walked all night and came down out of the hills at sunrise onto a wide flat plain. Inquirer took it for a paved road at first. Then he saw it was paved with…16 min
- 09Chapter Nine · ♪ audioThe Province of FormsEast of the Shattered Mosaic the road came to a border, marked by a low stone wall with a gate in it and a small gatehouse. On the other side the land changed so…20 min
- 10Chapter Ten · ♪ audioThe Exchange of NoveltiesThis is the stretch of his road Inquirer found hardest to tell. On the fourth night, when we got to it, he sat on the wall a long time without a word, turning the…19 min
- 11Chapter Eleven · ♪ audioThe Architect’s QuarryFor some days after the Exchange the three of them walked through quiet stone country, high and bare and beautiful, all grey and white rock cut through by deep ravines. And in the ravines…16 min
- 12Chapter Twelve · ♪ audioThe Forest of SyntaxIt was an old forest, older than anything Inquirer had come across on the road yet. The trees were enormous, with trunks wider than houses and roots running over the ground in great humps…15 min
- 13Chapter Thirteen · ♪ audioThe Museum of EtymonThe great dark building stood by itself on the open plain, and the road ran straight past its front steps. There was no getting round it. On both sides of the road the plain…16 min
- 14Chapter Fourteen · ♪ audioThe Watchtower of the AuthorThe blue mountains were further off than they looked, and higher, and it took the three of them four days to reach the foot of them. Analogy’s leg slowed them down, and the road…16 min
- 15Chapter Fifteen · ♪ audioThe Covenant HighwayThe road down from the blue mountains was steep at first and then easy, and it brought them out at last into a long valley running away east as far as they could see.…19 min
- 16Chapter Sixteen · ♪ audioThe Concordance Country and the Mirage of ParallelsPast the Cross the road ran down into a country that made Analogy laugh out loud.17 min
- 17Chapter Seventeen · ♪ audioThe Citadel of DoctrineThe Knights of Fallacy didn’t charge. Inquirer had expected them to. But as the three pilgrims came up the long slope toward the Citadel the knights stayed where they were, sitting their horses in…19 min
- 18Chapter Eighteen · ♪ audioThe Hall of the FathersThe valley below the Citadel was full of voices.18 min
- 19Chapter Nineteen · ♪ audioThe Bridge of Then-and-NowThe river was called the Distance.17 min
- 20Chapter Twenty · ♪ audioThe Heralds’ Gate and the Road HomeI come now to the part of the account I know best, because I was there. I’ve kept the wall of the City of the Word longer than I can easily reckon, and I…15 min