The Bonjour Effect : The Secret Codes of French Conversation Revealed Paperback / softback
by Julie Barlow, Jean-Benoit Nadeau
Paperback / softback
Description
Most of what we know about the French comes from what the French say about themselves.
Yet how are we supposed to understand a people who say non when they mean yes, who never say "I don't know," even when they really don't, and who argue at the drop of a hat?
Jean-Benoit Nadeau and Julie Barlow spent a decade traveling to and also living in Paris.
In The Bonjour Effect, they chronicle the lessons they learned after returning to France to live, for a year, with their twin daughters.
In a book as fizzy as a bottle of French champagne, they reveal the most important lesson of all: the French don't communicate, they converse.
To understand and speak French well, one must understand that French conversation runs on a set of rules that go to the heart of French culture.
Why do the French like talking about "the decline of France"?
Why does broaching a subject like money end discussions?
Through encounters with school principals, city hall civil servants, gas company employees, old friends and business acquaintances, Julie and Jean-Benoit explain why, culturally and historically, conversation with the French is not about communicating or being nice.
It's about being interesting. After reading The Bonjour Effect, even readers with a modicum of French language ability will be able to hold their own the next time they step into a crowded bus, a beloved boulangerie, or a bistro on the Left Bank.
Information
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Out of Stock - We are unable to provide an estimated availability date for this product
- Format:Paperback / softback
- Pages:320 pages
- Publisher:St Martin's Press
- Publication Date:09/05/2017
- Category:
- ISBN:9781250130273
Other Formats
- Paperback / softback from £10.99
- Hardback from £16.15
Information
-
Out of Stock - We are unable to provide an estimated availability date for this product
- Format:Paperback / softback
- Pages:320 pages
- Publisher:St Martin's Press
- Publication Date:09/05/2017
- Category:
- ISBN:9781250130273