Customer Reviews

Memorable Quotations: French Writers of the Past

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

 

 

This book is a unique anthology, a remarkable compilation of quotations from a marvelous collection of writers. I will enjoy reading it again and again for years to come.

French Writers of the past is a fantastic collection of quotations! For anyone who likes to browse through quotation books, this is a great book to pick up!

As an educator, I feel that this is an important book for students and teachers who do NOT speak French, but who should be aware of the richness and diversity of French literature.

The translations are adequate, but who likely to purchase this book would be satisfied without the original French? For quotations, many of which are epigrammatic, this is essential because the translations are never going to capture or reproduce their Gallic concision and lucidity. The English is there just to get you in the door, but without the French to savor, what's the point? And if you don't know any French at all, you just read the rectos. And another thing. The single entry Ms. Dingle offers from Descartes is "I think, etc." Most useful. Overall, a much better choice is A Book of French Quotations With English Translations, compiled by Norbert Guterman. It's out of print, but still available very reasonably from used book dealers. It does lack a subject index, which I've always found annoying.