Customer Reviews

Beginner's French Reader

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I picked this book up in a used book store, and quickly found it to be a gem! One of the hardest things when learning a new language is keeping it fun and interesting, and not to lose interest. This book makes learning French fun! The pictures add interest and whimsy while the very simple format that builds a few new words each page helps you to follow along without getting lost. Every new word in the text can be found in the glossary in the back, and the situations detailed are days in the life of a family. Words learned are very useful and even a complete beginner will quickly pick up the structure of French sentences. I'd recommend this book either to a complete beginner or someone who has recently started to learn French. Note this book is for reading French, and does not have a guide on pronouncing the language. I started this small book after a month of learning pronunciation with another guide, and was able to read the sentences out loud without much difficulty. Enjoy!

Of the two readers I ordered, I enjoy this one much more. I've read it many times in just the few short weeks since I received it and now my mother is reading and enjoying it. The stories are very short, simple, beautifully illustrated, and every single word in the text is in the glossary at the end. This gave me confidence immediately since I've never studied French. In fact, the illustrations are so good that they teach the words on the page without effort. I only wish there were more stories. I want to find out more about the family in the book!

This is an enjoyable beginner's French language reader. It's short and un-intimidating. The vocabulary develops naturally, incrementally with the story lines, in a way that builds confidence. 'Children's book' is an apt description of the characters and situations, but it doesn't cloy for an adult learning the language. The illustrations are a pleasure and useful because they support the text. Unfortunately this is a very pricey introduction to French at just less than sixty pages. It's as if the publishers tossed it into a very crowded market without much forethought. Better to have planned a series of these booklets to develop a following or as an incentive to adopt a packet of them in an educational setting.

If you took French back in high school, and that's more years ago than you'd care to remember, this is a great little refresher book to get you reading and thinking in French again.

Anyone who knows basic, even very basic, French will tromp happily through "Beginner's French Reader." The book demands nothing more than very basic verbs (only present tense, not a speck of passé composé, imperfect or future) and general beginner's vocabulary. But if any words look unfamiliar, just flip to the back. They're all there, alongside fully conjugated verbs. That's right, when "Il porte" appears in the main text, just saunter on back to the index under "p" and find "porte" with "Il" in front, fully conjugated. No need to extrapolate from the infinitive, "porter." So arguably even simple verb conjugation isn't required to master this pamphlet. The only thing easier would be representatives from the publisher visiting your home and translating the text for you. Things really couldn't get much simpler. Anyone interested in reading French should begin here. The satisfaction of reading an entire book, though only a very diminutive one of some 60 pages, in French will boost confidence, build vocabulary and inspire further study. Plus, many of the short vignettes are actually entertaining as the travails of the Picon family unfurl. Though, as anyone will notice right from page 1, this book likely dates from the 1960s (yes, those pictures were hand drawn). So potentially some anachronistic phrases or lingo may pepper the text, but that shouldn't cause much alarm for such a basic text. Plus, each short story concludes with questions, exercises and an occasional French tongue twister. Really, start here. Of course, as always, there's bad news. This tiny book both begins and apparently ends this great series. So where's the next volume? Sadly, it doesn't seem to exist. Maybe it did at one time? If so, can we bring it back? The thirst for more goes frustratingly unsated. So where does a graduate of "Beginner's French Reader" go? One possibility is "Easy French Reader w/CD-ROM: A Three-Part Text for Beginning Students (Easy Reader Series)," which progresses from beginner to intermediate, but requires far more knowledge of French to complete. It all has to get learned eventually, so perhaps this serves as the best next step. Other possibilities likely exist. Regardless of which next steps one takes, this eeny weeny little book of French still looks like the beginner's best bet for a first read. And given its price, the risk remains nearly nil.

Sometimes you read a book for learning and feel that you are in the hands of a true teacher. This is one of those books. The 27 stories are short simple and engaging. I came away with a consolidated confidence of what I had learned in my beginners French class.

Aimed perhaps at teenagers, it still hit the spot for me; a middle aged man. The vocabulary is good and repeated in different contexts, the vocab glossary is complete, and the pictures are engaging and provide clues to the content. Simple optional exercises consolidate learning.

I would recommend this as a 'fun activity' for personal learning or for a class context. The author has put a considered effort in the development of this book. Well Done, I want more!

Excellent. I highly recommend it to beginners (I am a French teacher). The book is unfortunately very thin, it's a booklet, and expensive.

I bought this book to replace one at the Alliance Francaise. Very well written with pictures. A little too easy if you have been studying French.

I'm a beginner learner and the way they present the story in the book is very amusing and quite easy, with a vocabulary list on the back and questions after each two- page "story". I'm glad I got it.

I am a learning French with a one on one teacher but I like to do some self-directed learning myself and I picked out this little book. It is a gem amd very good for a person just starting out to learn French. There are several very short stories and a few questions for review. Simple illustrations help you understand the language. The answer key is very handy if you are studying alone and not in a classroom. I would definitely recommend this book to a beginning Fench student - it is not for anyone with advanced skills.