10 Books for French learners: From Beginner to Advanced Levels
When it comes to improving French skills by reading French books, students are often recommended books by great classical authors that are often written in very difficult old fashioned and formal styles.
Reading can be a good way to progress in French. With French books you will deepen your vocabulary and improve your grammar.
In this week’s post we will be suggesting contemporary novels and comics for learners. Here are 10 books to read at a beginner level all the way up to advanced.
This selection of 10 books in easy French, adjusted to every level was put together by French tutors at French à la carte. Their recommendations are based on their experience of reading these books with their students.
1 - Tips to reinforce your French with books
Vocabulary - Don’t look up every word you don’t know in the dictionary. Because if the input is to bring much of the known material so that you can understand the story, it must also propose a small part of unknown words and structures to progress. If you are looking for a word in the dictionary, make a note in your vocabulary notebook in order to revise it later.
Grammar- Try to pay attention to the construction of the phrases as well as the tenses used. It will actively contribute to reinforcing your mastery of grammatical structures and will increase your understanding of the plot.
Read books according to your level - If your dream is to be able to read ‘Le Petit Prince’ but you don’t have the level yet to absorb a sophisticated literary style, you might find it frustrating and overwhelming. You should rather choose a book that corresponds to your level. In this article we offer a list of books according to your level.
2- Which genre of French book is the right one for you?
Depending on your learning ability, there will be a genre of book more appropriate for you.
If you are a visual learner, a comic in French could be a good option. If you pay great attention to the precision of vocabulary and syntax, bilingual books might suit you more.
Bilingual books
Since bilingual books provide sentences in both languages, French learners can see the similarities between words more easily and will be able to compare/learn sentence structure with their own language. There are many bilingual books options, usually with one page in French, one page in English.
Books for children
Children’s books are often short, easy, full of pictures and fun. If you are looking for an effective resource, you should choose books for young children that exclude sophisticated vocabulary that will get you lost.
Comics to learn French
Comics help French learners because they are visual. This is great for people who have a visual learning style. Comics mainly contain dialogues, and these dialogues are similar to spoken French. Combining short narratives, brief dialogues, and illustrated actions is a great way to learn French effortlessly and effectively. In paragraph 3 of this article, we have listed 3 comics to improve your linguistic skills in French.
Easy French novels
In paragraphs 4 and 5 we have chosen novels in French that don’t use language registers that are too sophisticated or formal, (which are usually too overwhelming for French learners.) They give greater attention to dialogues and offer a vocabulary level that doesn’t require you to open your dictionary at each line. The syntax will not get you lost. Remember that Victor Hugo could write phrases up to 10 lines!
3 - Comics or graphics novels to reinforce your French
1-Les Cahiers d'Esther :A2+/B1/B2 levels
Riad Sattouf - Allary Editions - Recommended by Claire at French à La Carte
Les Cahiers d' Esther is a series of French comic strips by Riad Sattouf. Inspired by the daughter of friends of the author, Riad Sattouf tells us the daily life of young Esther, aged 9 years old at the beginning of the first volume. Sattouf initially planned one album per year until the heroine turned 18. Les Cahiers d'Esther includes 7 volumes. Each story is self-contained, and the author uses spoken French expressions.
As the stories include authentic spoken dialogues, it will help you to learn conversational expressions.
From Claire the spoken French used by the young heroin Esther will be a great way to improve your spoken French and learn French slang at the same time.
2-Soledad : B1/B2
Soldedad Bravi - Rue de Sèvres - Recommended by Florence at French à La Carte
Published in Elle magazine since May 2012, these short stories with illustrations talk with derision and humor about the existential questions of a woman today. Soledad Bravi illustrates in her own way her daily life as a modern woman, which she portrays in the form of existential questions : “Why are we so often disappointed? "Why do I want to be a man?" “How does it happen when the children leave the nest” or “ Can we be Gisèle Bundchen?”
Each page is a new story. With Soledad Bravi you will widen your knowledge of French slang and learn cool expressions used by the natives. If you would like to benefit from the stories on a linguistic level , don’t forget to use your online dictionary.
3-Le Roman des Gosciny : B1 /B2
Catel and Anne Goscinny - Grasset Editions - Recommended from Hanne-Lys at French à La Carte
Le Roman des Gosciny is a graphic novel where everything is true. Catel, the illustrator tells the life of René Goscinny, the creator with Uderzo of the worldwide famous Asterix.
His birth, in Paris of the 1920s, in the heart of a Jewish family. His father, chemist, son of a rabbi. His mother, born in Ukraine, having fled the pogroms. His grandfather, a printer of Yiddish newspapers... And René's passions: drawing, laughter, then writing. Catel takes us on a family journey marked by history, between America and Europe.
The first pages are written in the imperfect tense. This is an opportunity to revise this tense! For Hanne-Lys the story is captivating. Even though her students didn’t understand each word but rather the gist, they were impatient to turn a new page.
4 - Easy novels in French to improve your linguistic skills : A2 / A2+/B1
Elementary level : A2
Each book of the LFF collection ( Lire en Français Facile) includes educational resources with comprehension activities, thematic sheets and integrated answers. The definition of difficult words and expressions are mentioned at the bottom of the page. An audio version is offered for each book.
4- Les Misérables de Victor Hugo – A2
The novel Les Misérables by Victor Hugo in simplified language accessible at an A2 level allows you to explore a great classic work made accessible thanks to the simplification of the language.
5- Nico et le village maudit – A2
Come on Zoé, just a bit more effort! We are almost there. - No, I'm fed up! We've been pedaling for five days and I'm tired! For the Easter holidays, Nico took Zoé, Rémi, Maïa and Thomas to discover the Vercors region by bike. He's starting to regret it...
6 - Plein gris – From A2+ Perfect for teenagers and adults – From A2+
Marion Brunet - PKJ - Recommended by Clémentine at French à La Carte
Who killed the band leader? On the sailboat caught in the storm, each character suspects the other... When Élise and Victor discover Clarence's body, drowned near the hull of their sailboat, Emma understands that their cruise has definitely turned into a nightmare.
Clémentine recommends this book for French learners with an A2+ ( higher elementary – pre intermediate level). From Clémentine: this novel uses simple language, the level of vocabulary is accessible even for pre-intermediate levels.
7 - Short stories in French – A2 / B1 / B2 - Olly Richards and Richard Simcott
Teach yourself also available on Kindle
An unmissable collection of eight unconventional and captivating short stories for young and adult learners. Short Stories in French for Beginners has been written especially for students from beginner to intermediate levels.
These eight captivating stories are a variety of exciting genres, ranging from science fiction and crime to history and thriller - making reading fun, while you learn a wide range of new vocabulary. Carefully curated to make learning a new language easy, these stories include key features that will support and consolidate your progress. The stories include the 1000 most frequent words, authentic spoken dialogues, accessible grammar, and list of bilingual words.
5 - French novels : From an intermediate B1 level to a more advanced level
Even though we are recommending novels for more advanced levels, we keep in mind that the novels should be enjoyable to read- not overwhelming or frustrating for a matter of comprehension of vocabulary/ syntax. Each novel mentioned has been selected for its simplicity. The register of language is quite contemporary, includes dialogues, and the level of vocabulary is mostly common and not too literary.
8- Tout le bleu du ciel - Mélissa Da Costa -Le livre de poche - Recommended by David at French à La Carte
Small ad: A 26-year-old young man, condemned to a life expectancy of two years due to an early Alzheimer's diagnosis, wants to experience one final travel. Looking for a friend to share this last journey with him, much to his surprise, Emile receives a response to this announcement. Three days later, in front of the secretly purchased motorhome, he finds Joanne, a young woman wearing a large black hat whose only luggage...
Regarding David, this book is easy to read and even accessible from an A2 level. The author writes simple descriptions which is beneficial for expanding your vocabulary. The novel is written is modern French which will be useful to reinforce spoken French.
9- L’invention de nos vies - Karin Tuil Grasset
Sam Tahar seems to have a very successful life. Power and fame at the New York bar, fortune and a successful marriage. But his success rests on a deception. To create another identity for himself in America, he borrowed the Jewish origins of his best friend Samuel, a failed writer who is slowly sinking in a French suburb under tension.
The story keeps us in suspense, you turn each page with bated breath. Besides keeping you on your toes the whole time, L’invention de nos vie is written using a simple style. Vocabulary is not too sophisticated, Karine Tuil’s writing style is quite accessible. It might come down to the fact that before being a writer, Karine Tuil was a lawyer.
10 - Une chanson douce - Leïla Slimani The perfect nanny ( translated in English) - Babelio - Recommended by Florence at French à La Carte
Leïla Slimani’s murderous nanny thriller gripped France, winning its top literary prize. With this book out in English, the author shares her thoughts on motherhood, #MeToo and being a Muslim in France.
When Myriam, a French-Moroccan lawyer, decides to return to work after having children, she and her husband look for the perfect nanny for their two young children. They never dreamed they would find Louise: a quiet, polite, devoted woman who sings to the children, cleans the family's chic apartment in Paris's upscale tenth arrondissement, stays late without complaint, and hosts enviable kiddie parties. But as the couple and the nanny become more dependent on one another, jealousy, resentment, and suspicions mount, shattering the idyllic tableau.
From Florence: you need to go beyond the four first pages which are a bit difficult in terms of vocabulary. Once you get past the first pages, the style becomes simpler, the vocabulary more common. Besides this, this novel is a thriller that will make you hold your breath until the very last page.
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