When in French

love in a second language

243 pages

English language

Published Jan. 26, 2016

ISBN:
978-1-59420-644-3
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OCLC Number:
942707481

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3 stars (3 reviews)

"A language barrier is no match for love. Lauren Collins discovered this firsthand when, in her early thirties, she moved to London and fell for a Frenchman named Olivier--a surprising turn of events for someone who didn't have a passport until she was in college. But what does it mean to love someone in a second language? Collins wonders, as her relationship with Olivier continues to grow entirely in English. Are there things she doesn't understand about Olivier, having never spoken to him in his native tongue? Does "I love you" even mean the same thing as "je t'aime"? When the couple, newly married, relocates to Francophone Geneva, Collins--fearful of one day becoming "a Borat of a mother" who doesn't understand her own kids--decides to answer her questions for herself by learning French. When in Frenchis a laugh-out-loud funny and surprising memoir about the lengths we go to for love, …

1 edition

Review of 'When in French' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Meh, I really wanted to love this one. But then the personal anecdotes are nice, but not enough to really make it a worthwhile read for me. And at the same time it seems most of the linguistics recited here come straight out of Guy Deutscher's Through the Language Glass. Which I had read earlier this year (and loved).

tl;dr: too little new for me to have much fun. Worthwhile for people in bilingual relationships that haven't run into much linguistics before.

avatar for lmgenealogy

rated it

3 stars
avatar for meganelizabeth

rated it

4 stars

Subjects

  • Journalists
  • French language
  • English speakers
  • Travelers' writings, American
  • Languages
  • Study and teaching
  • Conversation and phrase books
  • English
  • Biography
  • Self-instruction

Places

  • United States
  • France