A NIGHT-LIGHT

This wrought-iron night-light, or veilleuse, in the form of a bat, dates to the 1930's and is on display in the Musée Le Secq des Tournelles, Rouen. According to information provided by the wrought-iron museum, the decorative form harkens back to olden days when superstitious ancestors would nail a bat on a barn to ward off bad luck.

Vocabulary
une chauve-souris:  a bat
une veilleuse:  a night-light


A new book on the shelf ... 
Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille
Young and the not so young will enjoy this new, illustrated tale, featuring Papa Lapin, the endearing protagonist from Le Lapin et la Lune. Both it and Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille, as well as their English versions, The Rabbit and the Moon, and The Rabbit and King Frog, are available on worldwide Amazon sites. Click on the titles to take a peek!

©2018 P. B. Lecron

FALL PROVISIONS

Faire son marché  

To go buy provisions

Squash or courges, at the public outdoor market in Versailles, to keep for winter, in a cool, dry place.

How about a fairy tale?

Learning French? Reading children's stories in a foreign language can jumpstart the acquisition of a second language. Illustrated and easy to understand, they are great resources for increasing vocabulary and becoming familiar with grammatical structures. These new and original fairy tales are for young and old alike: Le Lapin et la Lune and its English version, The Rabbit and the Moon; and Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille and its English version, The Rabbit and King Frog. All are available on worldwide Amazon sites. Click on the titles to take a peek!

©2018 P. B. Lecron

ANOTHER GRUMPY CAT

Famous French cat, Pompon, and mascot of this blog, does his best rendition of Grumpy Cat to illustrate a French slang term for junk food:  la malbouffe.  This term not only emcompasses certain fast foods, but can also include any processed foods that contain too many additives, sugar, fats, hollow calories, or artificial flavorings.


For young and old alike...
We would like to recommend an enchanting and captivating children's story, which is available in French, Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille, and in English, The Rabbit and King Frog. Both are sold worldwide on Amazon sites. Click on the titles to take a peek!

©2018 P. B. Lecron

A KING-SIZE KEY

Where else but Versailles would you expect to see a record holder for one of the biggest locks and keys in the world? And a remarkably decorative one at that? A Versailles locksmith, the late Bernard Bouguin (1932-2009), built and fashioned the elaborate locking mechanism and its key, which were listed in the Guinness Book of Records 1996. The lock and key à l'ancienne are on display in the family's locksmith business at 9 Place Saint Louis, Versailles.

Vocabulary
une serrure:  a lock
une serrurerie:  a locksmithery
un serrurier, une serrurière:  a locksmith
une clé, une clef: a key

Read in French!
A fun an easy way to speed up the acquisition of a second language is to read illustrated children's books in that language. Great learning resources, their images often make the text self-explanatory. We'd like to suggest the charming and captivating adventure, Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille. This original tale written by Marianne Lecron, and its English version, The Rabbit and King Frog, are available worldwide on Amazon sites. Both books have colorful watercolor illustrations and an enhanced vocabulary that will  keep up the interest of older children and incite the curiosity of younger. If you have Amazon prime, the delivery is free! Click on the titles to take a peek!

©2018 P. B. Lecron

HANDS ON FOR EARLY LITERACY

In an effort to set a good example for my very young grandsons, my franco-american daughter and I have taken a hands on approach to encourage creativity and early literacy--she has written and I have illustrated children's stories, all the while with the boys watching on and beginning to learn to read. At first the illustrated tales were just for them, but once printed and shown around, we realized that the stories have a healthy market! 

Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille, above, and it's English version, The Rabbit and King Frog, is our second endeavor. It's an adorably surprising tale about Papa Rabbit's youngest daughter, Gladys, who gets stuck on a lily pad. 

We're also really excited to learn that our first book, Le Lapin et la Lune, is being used by some French school teachers to teach children to develop their imagination and to understand the moral of a story! Its English version is The Rabbit and the Moon. 

All titles are available worldwide on Amazon. You can click on the titles to take a peek!

Vocabulary

acquérir:  to acquire, to get hands on

©2018 P. B. Lecron

SETTING THE SCENE

A neo-classical setting complete with a broken jardinière is an eye-catching detail in the intimist painter Henri Le Sidaner's suspended Italian garden at Gerberoy. If this arrangement were part of a theater set or a film production, you could call it une mise en scène--and one which creates the sensation of stopped time. For a virtual visit of the garden and village, click here.

For young and old alike...
From early literacy for kids to jump-starting the acquistion of a second language for adults, nothing compares to reading easy-to-understand illustrated children's books! We recommend a captivating and original tale, Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille, and its English version, The Rabbit and King Frog. Both are available worldwide on Amazon. Click on the titles to take a peek!

©2018 P. B. Lecron

GOLD!

The girolle or golden chanterelle is a choice and much sought-after culinary mushroom. Its season in France lasts from May through the end of November. These were on sale yesterday at the Versailles open market.

Reading matters!

If you or your child are learning French or English, then why not immerse yourselves in reading children's books? Illustrated and easy to understand, they are great learning sources and are a fun and effective way to jumpstart the acquisition of a second language--even for adults! 

We would like to recommend our collection of tales that not only delight, but also teach valuable moral lessons: our first and ever popular book,  Le Lapin et la Lune and its English version, The Rabbit and the Moon; as well as our newest and very colorful edition, Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille, and its English version, The Rabbit and King Frog. All are available worldwide on Amazon. Click on the titles to take a peek!

©2018 P. B. Lecron

YESTERYEAR CHARMS

Invitingly nostalgique 
Vintage wrought-iron, ice-cream parlor chairs harken back to idle summer days. These are at the salon de thé and restaurant, l'Atelier Gourmand de Sarah, located in the heart of one of France's most beautiful villages, Gerberoy, in Picardie.

Vocabulary

d'antan:  of yesteryear, of long ago

autrefois:  in the past; in the old days

Read in French!

Jumpstart yours or your children's French language learning by reading illustrated children's books in French! We'd like to suggest the charming and captivating adventure, Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille, écrit par Marianne Lecron, illustré par P. B. Lecron. It and its English version, The Rabbit and King Frog, are available worldwide on Amazon. Both have enhanced vocabulary that will keep up the interest of older children and incite the curiosity of younger. If you have Amazon prime, the delivery is free! Click on the titles to take a peek!

©2018 P. B. Lecron

WELCOME ON BOARD

Tranquility and tradition: les "Paudeau" sailboats

Good old-fashioned fun for children, traveling or not, at the bassin du Jardin du Luxembourg. The famous model sailboats, hand-crafted by the late Pierre Paudeau beginning in 1927, have become collectors' items. Parents rent the toy boats at a concession stand for their children to sail in the basin.

Vocabulary
un voilier:  a sailboat
Bienvenue à bord:  Welcome  on board
une maquette:  a model

For young and old alike...
We would like to recommend an enchanting, illustrated children's story, which is available in French, Le Lapin et le Roi Grenouille, or in English, The Rabbit and King Frog. Both are sold worldwide on Amazon. Click on the titles to take a peek!



©2018 P. B. Lecron