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Post by mez on Jun 25, 2008 1:00:25 GMT -5
Hi everyone!
I am interested in buying some classic French books written especially for children and young adults. Can anyone help me out with some titles, and what bookstores in Paris would have these titles.
Thanks, Mez.
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Post by Anne on Jun 25, 2008 11:10:01 GMT -5
Mez, I am not sure whether I understand what you mean by "children and young adults" . What I would call THE classics of French youth litterature, i.e. books by Alexandre Dumas or Jules Verne would not be read by adults . Problem is, they are not read by kids anymore either . I used to love these books when I was 10-14, but my kids found them dead boring and so did their few friends who tried them, so beware . Jules Verne does especially look outdated to them . Kids now love Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, those kind of books, and there are no French classics in that range .
Anyway, Alexandre Dumas most famous books are Les Trois Mousquetaires .
Jules Verne : Vingt Mille Lieues sous les Mers, Le Tour du Monde en 80 Jours, Michel Strogoff, ...
You'll find these books (in French) and many others at any FNAC or Virgin . If you tell me which area you are going to stay in, I may find on the web a specialized bookstore for youth in your neighborhood . No idea where to find them in English .
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Post by Laura NY (aoi33) on Jun 25, 2008 23:07:02 GMT -5
The best children's bookstore in Paris (and, in fact the best I've seen anywhere) is Chantelivre, 13, Rue de Sevres in the 6th right down the street from Bon Marche. I cannot recommend it highly enough.
Mez, how old are the children so we can give better feedback?
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Post by annettecinca on Jun 26, 2008 1:24:23 GMT -5
While not dedicated entirely to children's books, I picked up a few inexpensive picture books of "Les Trois Petites Cochonnes", "Bonsoir Lune", etc. at a shop just north of Place des Vosges on Reu de Turenne. I'm sure you'll find them all over since you'll be watching for that sort of thing. I bought them for my youngest to practice with when she took French in high school (BTW, she just graduated and was awarded an academic award from the language department for 6 semesters of straight A's in French! I'll end the shameless bragging now  ). The nice thing is, I'll now have them to read to my grandson  Anne--here in the US, the section of the library appealing to teens is called "Young Adults". Since Mez uses that term, it must be that way in Aust. also. |
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Post by Becky (Berkeleytravelers) on Jun 27, 2008 12:00:00 GMT -5
You might also want to troll through the booksellers' stalls along the Seine, in case you come up with something that's out of print and/or intriguing. What a fun quest!
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Post by mez on Jun 28, 2008 5:49:18 GMT -5
Thanks for the input everyone.
The books are actually for me - lol. Apart from travel books are my thing, and in the last couple of years I have been buying books that I rememeber reading as a child to add to my library.
The other night I thought it would be a great idea to start a collection of French children's books written by French writers.
Yes, I did mean early teenage years when I wrote 'young adults'.
PS. Does anyone know if French translations of Jane Austen's books are readily available in Paris?
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Post by Anne on Jun 28, 2008 6:25:01 GMT -5
Oh yes, you'll find them very easily .
And yes, I had mistaken the term "young adults" .
If you are into historical epic novels, you will love Alexandre Dumas serie set mostly in Paris in the XVIIth century : Les trois mousquetaires, Vingt ans après and Le vicomte de Bragelonne (the three books are a serie) .
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Post by mez on Jun 29, 2008 6:55:42 GMT -5
Thanks Anne. I will add them to the list. I wish I wasn't such a book fiend...they are so heavy to carry around and expensive to post. |
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). The nice thing is, I'll now have them to read to my grandson 
hahahha