Literature
Reading is a very popular pastime in France
French children also like reading cartoon strips. Astérix & Obelix is one of their favourites asterix
Do you know any French writers? Here are a few and the names of their most well-known works:
Voltaire wrote Candide
Victor Hugo wrote Les Misérables - you have probably heard of the musical!
And he was also a poet. This is one of his poems : La bise (North wind)
La bise
La bise fait le bruit d’un géant qui soupire ;
La fenêtre palpite et la porte respire ;
Le vent d’hiver glapit sous les tuiles des toits ;
Le feu fait à mon âtre une pâle dorure ;
Le trou de ma serrure
Me souffle sur les doigts.
Victor Hugo
Alexandre Dumas wrote Les Trois Mousquetaires (The Three Musketeers)
Théophile Gautier wrote for example the poem : Les papillons (Butterflies)
Les papillons
Les papillons couleur de neige
Volent par essaims sur la mer.
Beaux papillons blancs, quand pourrais-je
Prendre le chemin de l’air ?
Théophile Gautier
Le Petit ??? drawn by St Exupery.
Antoine de Saint Exupéry is another well-known French author. He was also a pilot! Do you know his most famous book?
Here are a few clues to help you...
It’s a story about a little boy who comes from Asteroid B612. After a long journey visiting different planets, he finds himself in the Sahara Desert with a pilot who has landed there because of engine failure. The little boy explains that he has fled from his planet - no bigger than a house. "Please...draw me a sheep!" is the first thing he says to the pilot. Look at the picture to help you.