- Forum >
- Topic: French >
- Any French books?
Any French books?
Are there any French novels you would recommend (written in French)? Any genre is fine.
34 Comments
There are millions!
Try to read "Le chien jaune" de Georges Simenon, it's a French classic detective novel.
The writer coscien is one of my favourite French writers (script writer of the famous Asterix and Obelix!)
You mean René Goscinny ? Yes, he is great comic book writer, but there are so many other writers, so many...
Yes, I've heard of his character, Jules Maigret! I'll be sure to check those out. Thanks for the reminder!
Any genre is fine, but you should give us the titles of books in English that you love, that would help a lot. Otherwise, it goes from the 'Oui Oui' series (Enid Blyton's 'Noddy'), excellent for ultra beginners, to Marcel Proust's 'À la recherche du temps perdu', the longest novel ever written, in a style that is not even accessible to most native French speakers.
One of my favourite English authors is Dan Brown, but obviously if translated into French it'd be much too difficult for a beginner like me to read. I might look into Enid Blyton's stories translated though. Thanks for replying!
Yes, I guess the simplest children's books are a good start. Once you are totally at ease with them, you can try more complex books.
Before the time of mangas and all, most French children started with books from the Bibliothèque Rose collection (created in 1856 by Hachette and still very active), for age 6 to 12. Main writers: Countess of Ségur (French writer of Russian birth) and Enid Blyton (translated, of course). There is also the Bibliothèque Verte, for older children.
I would recommend starting with books by Enid Blyton, then the books of Countess of Ségur, which are classics for children.
This collection has been much modernised and they cover American and Japanese things, but they still have their classics: http://www.bibliothequerose.com/. You can find some short excerpts ('extraits') on their website. The excerpts alone may be a good training.
The books of Countess de Ségur are in the public domain. You can find them on Wikisource: https://fr.wikisource.org/wiki/Auteur:Comtesse_de_S%C3%A9gur. The most famous ones are 'Les Petites Filles modèles' and 'Les Malheurs de Sophie'. I also remember reading 'Les Deux Nigauds', 'Le Général Dourakine' and 'Un bon petit diable'. They are normally for girls, but boys read them too.
The versions in the Bibliothèque Rose were probably abridged and simplified, though. The versions on Wikisource may be too difficult for a beginner.
what about the books of my favourite French author Jules verne or Petit nicolas? These I enjoy much
I'll check out Petit Nicholas first, as that seems to be a series of children's novels? Jules Verne's stories also seem to intrigue me so I'll get to those too! Thanks for the rec
Beaudelaire ? Est-ce un auteur facile à lire pour un débutant ?
Pour la poésie, je conseillerais Paul Verlaine et Jacques Prévert.
De Verlaine : Paris
Paris n'a de beauté qu'en son histoire,
Mais cette histoire est belle tellement !
La Seine est encaissée absurdement,
Mais son vert clair à lui seul vaut la gloire.
Paris n'a de gaîté que son bagout,
Mais ce bagout, encor qu'assez immonde,
Il fait le tour des langages du monde,
Salant un peu ce trop fade ragoût.
Paris n'a de sagesse que le sombre
Flux de son peuple et de ses factions,
Alors qu'il fait des révolutions
Avec l'Ordre embusqué dans la pénombre.
Paris n'a que sa Fille de charmant
Laquelle n'est au prix de l'Exotique
Que torts gentils et vice peu pratique
Et ce quasi désintéressement.
Paris n'a de bonté que sa légère
Ivresse de désir et de plaisir,
Sans rien de trop que le vague désir
De voir son plaisir égayer son frère.
Paris n'a rien de triste et de cruel
Que le poëte annuel ou chronique,
Crevant d'ennui sous l'oeil d'une clinique
Non loin du vieil ouvrier fraternel.
Vive Paris quand même et son histoire
Et son bagout et sa Fille, naïf
Produit d'un art pervers et primitif,
Et meure son poëte expiatoire !
Et De Jacques Prévert :
LE CHAT ET L'OISEAU
Un village écoute désolé
Le chant d'un oiseau blessé
C'est le seul oiseau du village
Et c'est le seul chat du village
Qui l'a à moitié dévoré
Et l'oiseau cesse de chanter
Le chat cesse de ronronner
Et de se lécher le museau
Et le village fait à l'oiseau
De merveilleuses funérailles
Et le chat qui est invité
Marche derrière le petit cercueil de paille
Où l'oiseau mort est allongé
Porté par une petite fille
Qui n'arrête pas de pleurer
Si j'avais su que cela te fasse tant de peine
Lui dit le chat
Je l'aurais mangé tout entier
Et puis je t'aurais raconté
Que je l'avais vu s'envoler
S'envoler jusqu'au bout du monde
Là-bas où c'est tellement loin
Que jamais on en revient
Tu aurais eu moins de chagrin
Simplement de la tristesse et des regrets
Il ne faut jamais faire les choses à moitié.
No idea about novels, but I recommend the poems of Federico García Lorca (I loved them when I studied Spanish in high school). Novels require a very advanced level.
yes u are right novels require a very advance level but i will listen and also learn poems by this author
I read this recently and I liked it quite a bit. I think it is a good recomendación.
How good is your spanish? Because I would go for kids books, which I read a lot of when I was starting. Reading out loud is also a very good strategy to learn new languages, in my view.
I was going to say to go to your local library to see if they have any spanish books— I do that for learning arabic with my university library. But based on your profile, and I don't know if you will find an abundance of Spanish books; but who knows, I know little about islamabad. So are you looking to buy some? or.....One thing you could do is pick a spanish translation of a book you have already read. I started reading Harry potter in portuguese, and that helped; though I have stopped with the reading for some other reasons.
well i will not buy i will read in my cell phone and is there harry potter in spanish
Françoise Sagan "Bonjour tristesse". Detective novels of Sebastien Japrisot: Compartiment tueurs, Piège pour Cendrillon, La Dame dans l'auto avec des lunettes et un fusil. Books of Amelie Nothomb.
