'French Stories/Contes Fran�ais' by Wallace Fowlie

Book Review

'French Stories' is an impressive compilation of ten French short stories by authors as celebrated as Flaubert, Gide, Baudelaire and De Maupassant. A dual-language book, the original French is accompanied throughout by an up-to-date English translation. 

This collection of French stories has been well chosen. Without the need for any overarching unity, the stories have been selected as among the best examples of French literature, spanning a period of some two hundred years. 'Le joujou du Pauvre' (The poor boy's toy) is a fable, an attempt to illustrate profound moral truths. Another, 'L'H�te' (The Host/Guest) use irony in demonstrating the nuances of everyday French. 

The stories are presented using parallel texts. One half of each page is in French, the other half in the equivalent English. The writing is natural and flows well throughout.

The stories are each complimented with an introduction by editor, Professor Wallace Fowlie, and endnotes are also included. A 'questionnaire en fran�ais' also appears for each text, which is helpful for students wanting to check for comprehension. 

French Stories will be of great value to learners and students of French, especially those wanting a fun way to brush up on their classroom French. It is also a helpful companion for French speakers looking to study or improve their English.