Novels in French
May 27th, 2009, 04:08 AM
#41
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Hi Nikki - I thought of you last Sat ! We took visitors for dinner to the King's Wark, which I think may have actually taken its cooking up a notch.
'L'Etranger' is also an old favourite of mine. I first read it as part of my French A level course; but found some years afterwards that it was the only book in French I still felt confident of being able to read, partly because I know it reasonably well but also it's more or less written in words of one syllable
So although you are obviously more advanced than that, I'd recommend it to anyone else looking for something simple (and short) for a first attempt.
'L'Etranger' is also an old favourite of mine. I first read it as part of my French A level course; but found some years afterwards that it was the only book in French I still felt confident of being able to read, partly because I know it reasonably well but also it's more or less written in words of one syllable
So although you are obviously more advanced than that, I'd recommend it to anyone else looking for something simple (and short) for a first attempt.
May 27th, 2009, 05:53 PM
#42
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Hi Nikki,
I don't know whether I'm too late for your order or not, but I thought I'd add my 2 cents worth, since I've been trying to do the same thing, and read as much as possible in French.
I think the previous posters have been looking at my bookshelf! I really like Anna Gavalda, even though kerouac says she's too wordy.
I've enjoyed some of Amelie Nothomb's books: Acide Sulfurique, Journal d'Hirondelle, Stupeur et Tremblements. She's Belgian, not French, not that it matters.
I'm currently reading L'Elegance du Herisson, and I concur with the others; it's wonderful. I have to keep my dictionary handy.
Same with La Premiere Gorgee de Biere- really excellent for vocabulary. Also, A Garonne, a memoir of his childhood (not as good, IMO).
Not a new one, but excellent, is Suite Francaise, by Irene Nemirovsky.
I loved Les Ames Grises by Philippe Claudel, but it is terribly depressing- set during WWI.
I also read C'est fou ce qu'on voit de choses dans la vie by Nicole de Buron, but didn't really love it.
Even though they're children's books, I've enjoyed Le Petit Nicolas. The books are adorable, and full of good household vocabulary.
Lately I've been enjoying watching French films and TV shows to work on my French. I try to find films with subtitles in French (pour sourds et malentendants). I try to watch without them, but sometimes they are helpful.
I'm totally hooked on Plus Belle la Vie- a French TV series that has been very popular, and is available on DVD ( no subtitles, though, so it's not easy) You can buy the DVDs on Amazon.fr
I hope this helps. I'd love to hear about any that you discover that you enjoy.
Bonne lecture!
I don't know whether I'm too late for your order or not, but I thought I'd add my 2 cents worth, since I've been trying to do the same thing, and read as much as possible in French.
I think the previous posters have been looking at my bookshelf! I really like Anna Gavalda, even though kerouac says she's too wordy.
I've enjoyed some of Amelie Nothomb's books: Acide Sulfurique, Journal d'Hirondelle, Stupeur et Tremblements. She's Belgian, not French, not that it matters.
I'm currently reading L'Elegance du Herisson, and I concur with the others; it's wonderful. I have to keep my dictionary handy.
Same with La Premiere Gorgee de Biere- really excellent for vocabulary. Also, A Garonne, a memoir of his childhood (not as good, IMO).
Not a new one, but excellent, is Suite Francaise, by Irene Nemirovsky.
I loved Les Ames Grises by Philippe Claudel, but it is terribly depressing- set during WWI.
I also read C'est fou ce qu'on voit de choses dans la vie by Nicole de Buron, but didn't really love it.
Even though they're children's books, I've enjoyed Le Petit Nicolas. The books are adorable, and full of good household vocabulary.
Lately I've been enjoying watching French films and TV shows to work on my French. I try to find films with subtitles in French (pour sourds et malentendants). I try to watch without them, but sometimes they are helpful.
I'm totally hooked on Plus Belle la Vie- a French TV series that has been very popular, and is available on DVD ( no subtitles, though, so it's not easy) You can buy the DVDs on Amazon.fr
I hope this helps. I'd love to hear about any that you discover that you enjoy.
Bonne lecture!
May 27th, 2009, 06:31 PM
#43
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Oh, I meant to add-
An equivalent to urbandictionary.com more or less is le dictionnaire de l'argot et du français familier:
http://www.languefrancaise.net/bob/
And not just slang, but really helpful:
http://www.cnrtl.fr/lexicographie/ (both all in French)
And by the way, I apologize for being too lazy to put in all the accents on my last post- it's a bit of a pain on an English keyboard.
An equivalent to urbandictionary.com more or less is le dictionnaire de l'argot et du français familier:
http://www.languefrancaise.net/bob/
And not just slang, but really helpful:
http://www.cnrtl.fr/lexicographie/ (both all in French)
And by the way, I apologize for being too lazy to put in all the accents on my last post- it's a bit of a pain on an English keyboard.
May 27th, 2009, 07:04 PM
#44
Original Poster
Thanks everyone, I am incorporating ideas from all you helpful people into my shopping cart on Amazon. I am going to wait a few days before pulling the trigger, so keep those cards and letters coming.
Caroline, if I had the King's Wark on my doorstep as you do, I believe I'd be a regular there. I believe you can see more good places to eat out of your window than I can find within a half hour's drive.
Caroline, if I had the King's Wark on my doorstep as you do, I believe I'd be a regular there. I believe you can see more good places to eat out of your window than I can find within a half hour's drive.
May 28th, 2009, 03:36 AM
#45
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Hi Nikki - yes, it's bizarre, as of January this year we now have 3 x Michelin starred restaurants within a 5 minute walk ! Not that we can afford to go to them these days - KW still reasonably priced though. All the best, C.
May 28th, 2009, 06:33 AM
#46
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Le petit Nicholas by René Goscinny is one of my favourites - and very easy to read. I am far too modest to mention the two short novels that I wrote in French.
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/parce_que_je_taime_page.htm
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/amour_par_internet.htm
Oops...
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/parce_que_je_taime_page.htm
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/amour_par_internet.htm
Oops...
May 28th, 2009, 07:16 AM
#47
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My French is quite lousy but I managed to read and really enjoyed the stories of Le petit Nicolas, so my vote goes for them, too. A little boy telling about his life, parents, school, holidays, friends, everyday adventures from a little boy's point of view. Hilarious.
May 28th, 2009, 09:47 AM
#48
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Nikki, you might be interested in the book comments on http://ceciledequoide9.blogspot.com/
The last novels I read in French might not appeal:
Le village de l'Algérien by Boualem Sansal (heav<i>eee</i>: parallel "diaries" by two Paris-based sons of a German who had taken refuge in Algeria after WW2, and, at the opening of the book, has been murdered in the Islamist uprising of the early 1990s: you won't be surprised to find out why he didn't stay in Europe in the first place, and there are some eye-opening vignettes of life in the Parisian banlieue)
Une vie française, by Jean-Paul Dubois - a life-and-family story told in parallel with the period of office of the different Presidents of France in that time. Some hilarious moments, but in the end the narrator seems irritatingly passive and disconnected.
The last novels I read in French might not appeal:
Le village de l'Algérien by Boualem Sansal (heav<i>eee</i>: parallel "diaries" by two Paris-based sons of a German who had taken refuge in Algeria after WW2, and, at the opening of the book, has been murdered in the Islamist uprising of the early 1990s: you won't be surprised to find out why he didn't stay in Europe in the first place, and there are some eye-opening vignettes of life in the Parisian banlieue)
Une vie française, by Jean-Paul Dubois - a life-and-family story told in parallel with the period of office of the different Presidents of France in that time. Some hilarious moments, but in the end the narrator seems irritatingly passive and disconnected.
Jun 11th, 2009, 04:02 PM
#50
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I returned from Paris with the following novels: Gavalda's "JE VOUDRAIS QUE QUELQU'UN M'ATTENDE QUELQUE PART", Marc Levy's "VOUS REVOIR", and Guillaume Musso's "PARCE QUE JE T'AIME". All were purchased at the Papeterie de l'Ecole Militaire (41 Ave de la Motte-Picquet) just next to the Ecole Militaire metro station. The very nice young saleswoman helped me choose from among a host of possibilities. She said that these were the sort of novels that she herself was reading. We had a great trip and I'm looking forward to making my way through these novels in the coming months. EJ 
