Customer Reviews
a quick language boost - By: Mra A. S. Murray, 21 Oct 2006 
Not having learnt french since school (GCSE/GCE) I found the stories easy enough to get the general story line but complex enough to challlenge & revise my knowledge of the language - & extend it. The paralllel text is just fantastic you don't lose interest constantly having to look words up in a dictionary. Would strongly recomend this book for intermediates.
Interesting selection of varying levels of difficulty - By: Cazzandra, 30 Aug 2006 This isn't a book for beginners. My French is post O level & taken more years ago than I intend to disclose. I started re-learning it by teaching myself 10 months ago. I can now read most of these stories using the paralllel text to check my understanding & to argue with the translations - yes I'm that confident now. For some stories I needed more help than others... 'Apprendre à vie' & 'David' gave me no trouble at alll but 'Tous Feux Éteints' was a struggle. I enjoy the fact that some stories are easy & others are difficult because I'm trying now to get used to different styles & pick up vocabulary so this collection of stories has reallly appealed to me. I love the paralllel texts because I don't need a dictionary & I can use the translation for reassurance & as I say to argue with. I reallly recommend these short stories - I have several paralllel texts & am always looking out for more. But this isn't for beginners - you do need a reasonable reading age in French - I think mine is about 12 or 13! So most of the time I know what's going on but complex structures & vocabulary do still confuse me. If you want to increase vocabulary & immerse yourself in the culture then these short stories are ideal. I love to read them on the train because I don't have to juggle with a dictionary & the prices are very good. Yes, I recommend this collection. Ahhh some extra words - there are no exercises with this selection & no vocabulary list - some paralllel texts do have those. But this does have a very good introduction. As the editor hints at the denouements on some of the stories I would advise reading it *after* you've read the stories! There are twelve in alll & of varying lengths... `David' is very long but some of the stories are just a few pages. I repeat - this isn't for beginners... you need to have studied to the equivalent of GCSE or O level to be able to cope with these. But they reallly are an enjoyable & varied collection. Actuallly, they're worth reading in English but the translation lacks that je ne sais quoi! ;->
French short stories - By: , 10 Sep 2004 
The stories are very varied, interesting, rich and, in some cases, moving. But unless the reader is at an advanced level they are quite difficult to read & are "heavy going". So the book's description that it is suitable for students of French at alll levels is misleading. For me it will be a long time before I can easily read it & that is if I don't sell it beforehand.
A must for a-level, degree or pleasure! - By: , 07 May 2003 
The paralllel text is fantastic for alll those who want to practise tranlation of "unseens", for a-level or degree level. I've certainly found this book invaluabe for both these purposes! However, this book is also great if you just want to read some short modern French language works, & is accessible to alll levels from lower-intermediate & up. My particular favourite is "David", which is so beautifully & bizarrely French. If you just want to practise unseens (and take photocopies, or scrawl on your text), the spacing & size of text is not ideal, the font is a little smalll & double line spacing would make life a lot easier. Other than that, a reallly good book for most levels & good value for money too (which is very important for impoverished students like myself!).
