French Books for Beginners

Looking to learn French or get back into it? These adult fiction and nonfiction books from the Libraries in Clackamas County are great for easing in at your own pace.

Updated October 21, 2025
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French stories = Contes français : with translations, critical introductions, notes, and vocabulary by the editor
Fowlie, Wallace
Paper Book
"The selections are good and the translations are excellent." ― Germaine Brée, New York University Drawn from two centuries of French literature, these superb selections by ten great writers span a wide variety of styles, philosophies, and literary creeds. The stories reflect not...
Short stories in French for intermediate learners : read for pleasure at your level and learn French the fun way!
Richards, Olly
Paper Book
An unmissable collection of eight unconventional and captivating short stories for young adult and adult intermediate learners of French. Olly's top-notch language-learning insights are right in line with the best of what we know from neuroscience and cognitive psychology about...
Les Portes Tordues: The Scariest Way in the World to Learn French!
Dior, Kathie S.
Paper Book
Bilingual French-English illustrated mystery book and grammar combined and accompanying audio CD for beginners to intermediates. Unique mystery-driven format makes learning French fun and exciting. Inventive integration of vocabulary, grammar and tests into the mystery. Precise line-by-line and...
Easy French reader : a three-part text for beginning students
De Roussy de Sales, R.
Paper Book
The fun and easy way to quickly enhance basic reading skills--now with CD-ROMs! Easy French Reader is based on the premise that the best way to learn a language is to start reading it, immediately. Suitable for the raw beginner to intermediate-level language learner, this...
Short stories in French for beginners : read for pleasure at your level and learn French the fun way
Richards, Olly
Paper Book
An unmissable collection of eight unconventional and captivating short stories for young and adult learners. "I love Olly's work - and you will too!" - Barbara Oakley, PhD, Author of New York Times bestseller A Mind for Numbers Short Stories in...
Une si longue lettre : roman
Bâ, Mariama.
Paper Book
The acclaimed francophone book on all AP French required reading lists.
Le petit prince
Saint-Exupéry, Antoine de
Paper Book
In 2000 Harcourt proudly reissued Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's masterpiece, The Little Prince, in a sparkling new format. Newly translated by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Richard Howard, this timeless classic was embraced by critics and readers across the country for its purity and beauty of expression...
Petit pays : roman
Faye, Gaël
Paper Book
Kiffe Kiffe Demain
Guene, Faiza
Paper Book
L' Homme Qui Plainait de Arbres
Giono
Paper Book
La grammaire est une chanson douce
Orsenna, Erik
Paper Book
La Cantatrice Chauve
Ionesco, Eugène
Paper Book
Short stories in French
Coward, Richard
Paper Book
This is an all new version of the popular PARALLEL TEXT series, containing eight pieces of contemporary fiction in the original French and in English translation. Including stories by Bolanger, Cotnoir, Le Clezio and Germain, this volume gives afascinating insight into French culture and literature...
Easy French reader : a three-part text for beginning students
De Roussy de Sales, R.
Paper Book
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...

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