Easy French Reader, Premium Fourth Edition

By R. de Roussy de Sales

Start Reading in French Immediately and Build Your Language Skills in No Time!

Whether you’re a brand-new beginner or an advanced-beginning learner, the Easy Reader series enables you to dive into the language with engaging readings that progress in difficulty to match your growing reading skills. This process will allow you to rapidly build comprehension and confidence as you enjoy the stories and complete the post-reading exercises.

EASY FRENCH READER is divided into three parts:

Part I describes the adventures of two friends, an American and a Parisian, as they learn about their respective cultures. As you read about their experiences, you’ll discover the nuances of language and culture right along with the students.

Part II describes episodes in the colorful history of France, from ancient Gaul to the present, offering biographical sketches of famous personalities, including Joan of Arc, Louis XIV, and Charles de Gaulle.

Part III is comprised of four abridged short stories by famous French authors that allow you to practice your grammar and vocabulary skills on authentic works of French literature.

The bonus app that accompanies this book provides:

FLASHCARDS to aid memorization of all vocabulary terms

AUDIO recordings of numerous reading passages

RECORD-YOURSELF feature to improve your pronunciation

AUTO-FILL GLOSSARY for quick reference

• Language: English
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education
• Release date: Nov 24, 2020
• ISBN: 9781260463637

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McGraw Hill Language Lab App

Audio recordings, flashcards, and a digital glossary are all available to support your study of this book. Go to www.mhlanguagelab.com to access the online version of this application, or to locate links to the mobile app for iOS and Android devices. More details about the features of the app are available on the inside front and back covers.

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Introduction

Easy French Reader is a book that beginners in French can actually read—almost from the very first day of study. It uses elementary vocabulary and keeps verb tenses to a minimum. The book contains three sections, Marc et Julie , Les grandes figures de l’histoire , and Histoires célèbres . The readings in each section are followed by comprehension questions. When a word appears that you may not know, it is glossed in the margins. A Révision , also with comprehension questions, appears after each group of four to seven chapters in Sections 1 and 2. In addition, crossword puzzles accompany the Section 1 Révisions .

Section 1 tells the story of Julie, an American girl of high school age who is living in Paris, and Marc, her French friend. We follow Julie’s adventures in learning French both in school and out of school. Julie and Marc discuss the differences between French and English and discover some interesting cultural differences. Marc accompanies Julie as she explores the Louvre and learns about parts of daily life in Paris such as le métro and la poste.

Section 2 presents an overview of the history of France. This is an account of French history which deals with the leaders of France from the time of Gaul up to the present, offering biographical sketches of famous personalities such as Joan of Arc, Napoleon, and De Gaulle.

In Section 3, we present four short stories by famous French authors. These stories provide exposure and practice in reading literature in French. A young boy in Alsace learns a lesson when the language of his school is suddenly changed in La dernière classe, by Alphonse Daudet. A boy puts into practice his republican values during a school rebellion in Le grand Michu, by Émile Zola. Two small events completely change the lives of the characters in Les pêches, by André Theuriet, and La parure, by Guy de Maupassant. These stories are great for building confidence about your reading ability and serve as an introduction to the great French literary tradition.

This multilevel French reader provides an introduction to French culture, history, and literature, as well as extensive reading practice in French. We hope that you enjoy the readings at the same time as you build your knowledge of the language.

Table des matières

Première partie

Marc et Julie

1  Marc et Julie

2  Marc, Julie et le chien

3  La famille de Marc

4  La famille de Julie

Révision 1

5  À l’école de Julie

6  Où est la mouche?

7  Au revoir!

8  Julie a froid

9  Une leçon de français

10  Une autre leçon

Révision 2

11  La leçon d’anglais

12  Le féminin des mots

13  Les découvertes scientifiques

14  La poésie

15  Le coup de téléphone

Révision 3

16  La réconciliation

17  Chez le pharmacien

18  Le métro

19  Au musée du Louvre

20  Au bureau de poste

Révision 4

Deuxième partie

Les grandes figures de l’historie

1  Vercingétorix

2  Clovis, le premier roi des Francs

3  Charlemagne et son empire

4  Guillaume le Conquérant

5  Le roi saint Louis

6  Jeanne d’Arc

7  Louis XI unifie le royaume

Révision 1

8  François Ier et la Renaissance

9  Henri IV et les guerres de Religion

10  Louis XIII et Richelieu

11  Louis XIV, le Roi-Soleil

12  La Révolution française

Révision 2

13  Napoléon Bonaparte

14  Les derniers rois de France

15  Napoléon III

16  La Première Guerre mondiale

17  La Seconde Guerre mondiale

Révision 3

18  Le général de Gaulle

19  Georges Pompidou

20  Valéry Giscard d’Estaing

21  François Mitterrand

22  Jacques Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy, François Hollande et Emmanuel Macron

Révision 4

Troisième partie

Histories célébres

La Dernière Classe

1

2

3

Le grand Michu

1

2

Les Pêches

1

2

3

La Parure

1

2

3

4

Answer Key

Vocabulaire

Première partie

Marc et Julie

1 Marc et Julie

À l’école de Julie, il y a des filles et des garçons aussi. Il y a des élèves américains. L’école de Julie est petite.

Le père° de Marc s’appelle° Raoul Dupont. Les parents de Julie s’appellent Franklin.

Après la lecture

---

A Indicate whether each statement is true or false. Correct the false statements.

1.  Marc Dupont est français.

2.  Marc et Julie sont amis.

3.  À l’école de Marc, il y a des garçons et des filles américains.

4.  L’école de Julie est très grande.

5.  Le père de Marc s’appelle Marc aussi.

6.  Julie est française.

B Complete each sentence with an appropriate word.

1.  Marc n’est pas américain. Il est ______.

2.  L’école de Marc n’est pas petite. Elle est ______.

3.  Julie n’est pas un garçon. Elle est une ______.

4.  Les parents de Julie ne s’appellent pas Dupont. Ils s’appellent ______.

2 Marc, Julie et le chien

Après la lecture

---

A Indicate whether each statement is true or false. Correct the false statements.

1.  Marc parle français très bien parce qu’il étudie le français à l’école.

2.  En France, tout le monde parle anglais.

3.  Julie apprend le français à l’école.

4.  Julie aide Marc à apprendre l’anglais.

5.  Le chien de Marc s’appelle Chouchou.

6.  Chouchou écoute et comprend le français.

B A common expression in French is tout le monde, meaning everyone, or literally all the world. Tout is also used with other words. Can you find an expression in the reading that means all the dogs? Remember that tout will change to tous because dogs is plural.

3 La famille de Marc

L’appartement de Monsieur et Madame Dupont est confortable, mais il n’a pas l’air conditionné.

Dans la chambre de Marc il y a un lit, deux lampes, quatre chaises, une télé et une guitare.

Le père de Marc est pilote. Il est un des pilotes d’Air France. La mère de Marc est chef de cuisine dans un restaurant chic.

Après la lecture

---

A Indicate whether each statement is true