Pardon My French: Unleash Your Inner Gaul [Paperback]

Charles Timoney (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2, 2009

From getting the best value from the boulangerie to ordering a steak without getting sneered at, an A-to-Z guide to fitting in en Français

Englishman Charles Timoney was thrown into French life headfirst twenty-five years ago when he and his wife moved to her native France. He had studied French in school, but his memory of vocabulary lists and conjugation drills proved no match for day-to-day living. As he blundered his way toward fluency, he kept a list of words and phrases that wonderfully (sometimes wickedly) epitomized aspects of the French culture-and were used only by native speakers.

Pardon My French tackles the delightful absurdities of French life and language and steers readers past the potential embarrassments of speaking French in France. It is a book no student, traveler, or language maven should be without.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Coming to France? Forget the rest, read the best. This book will save you from being the butt of the Frenchman''s humour."
-French News

"A Francophile''s humorous guide to the French language. A kind of Eats, Shoots and Leaves meets A Year in the Merde."
-Bookseller

About the Author

When Charles Timoney and his French wife were both made redundant in the same week they decided to try living in France for a year or so. It proved much harder than expected. Charles' O level in French was little help when everyone around him consistently used a wide variety of impenetrable slang and persisted in the annoying habit of talking about things he had never heard of. But they stayed. Two decades and two thoroughly French children later, he decided to write the guide to French that would have saved him from so many blunders and misunderstandings along the way. This is it. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Gotham; Bilingual edition (June 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592404626
• ISBN-13: 978-1592404629
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #452,512 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pardon my French, June 24, 2008

By 

T. Murphy (Cincinnati) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pardon My French: Unleash Your Inner Gaul (Hardcover)

This is a fun and interesting read if you are curious about the uniqueness of the French and their culture. The entries are organized by subjects such a food, getting about, education, and many others. It is not meant to be a deep analysis of the origins of these behaviors but it does at times appear to be a bit superficial. I have spent a lot of time in France and, overall, I found the vignettes and topics to be pretty accurate. The writer's style is straight forward, humorous, and presented in good context. Anyone planning to be in France for some extended time should find the book enjoyable and helpful.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book of its Kind, October 10, 2010

By 

BetsyB - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pardon My French: Unleash Your Inner Gaul (Hardcover)

I read this book before spending a year in France. After spending several years learning about French culture and language, as well as a few tours in France, I found this book very informative. It was entertaining, affirmed some of my previous knowledge, and provided me with a plethora of new information. During my year in Paris, France, I found the information provided by Charles Timoney to be dead-on accurate. My French boyfriend even decided to read it and found it true and funny. Of all of the books on French culture, this is by far the most informative, accurate, and entertaining.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended for informal french language and culture, January 11, 2009

By 

CJ (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Pardon My French: Unleash Your Inner Gaul (Hardcover)

This is a highly entertaining book about the various nuances of French language and culture, written by an Englishman who has spent a long time in France. Worth it if you have an interest in French language and culture. Pretty informal study, but very funny.