Full catalogue

On the banks of the Mississippi, Tom Sawyer, a mischievous boy brought up by his Aunt Polly, prefers adventure to school. As a punishment, he has to whitewash a long fence, and he manages to get his friends to hand over their treasures for the right to paint it for him. One night, with his friend Huckleberry Finn, he secretly witnesses a murder in the graveyard. Running away to an island, a treasure hunt, a cave where you get lost: this is the great novel of a free childhood, funny and a little frightening, and you never forget it. Full of humour and lively dialogue, it is easy to read in the language you are learning.

Alice, a curious little girl, follows a white rabbit in a great hurry and falls down a rabbit hole that leads her to a strange land. There she grows, shrinks, and meets the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter and a queen who wants to cut off everyone's head. Between dream and nonsense, this tale plays endlessly with words and logic, and is just as enjoyable at any age. Its simple sentences and lively dialogue make it an ideal first classic to read in the language you are learning.

Carried off by a tornado with her little dog Toto, Dorothy, a girl from Kansas, lands in a marvellous country. To get home, she must go and see the great Wizard of Oz, and she travels with a scarecrow who would like a brain, a Tin Woodman who would like a heart and a lion who would like some courage. This tale full of fantasy is about friendship, courage and self-confidence. Simply written, in short sentences, it is an ideal first classic to read in the language you are learning.

On Prince Edward Island, a brother and sister were expecting a boy from the orphanage to help them on the farm. Instead, a little red-haired girl arrives: Anne, talkative, dreamy and full of imagination. She shakes up the quiet life of Green Gables, and slowly wins everyone's heart. A radiant novel full of humour about childhood, friendship and the need to be loved, which has enchanted generations of readers. Its lively dialogue makes it an enjoyable read in the language you are learning.

After her parents die in India, Mary, a lonely and spoilt little girl, is sent to live with an uncle in a large, isolated manor house in Yorkshire. There she hears of a garden that has been locked for ten years, and at last she finds its door, hidden under the ivy. At night, crying echoes through the corridors of the house. A radiant story, in which a garden coming back to life in spring helps children heal from loneliness. Tender and absorbing, the story is a pleasure to read in the language you are learning.

Black Beauty, a handsome black horse, tells his own life story: his peaceful early days in a meadow, then his years of work for very different masters. Some care for him with affection, others treat him harshly, and each new home brings him a different life. This moving novel, which changed the way a whole era saw animals, is about kindness, respect and dignity. Written in simple words, it is an ideal classic to read in the language you are learning.

In this collection of twelve stories, Rudyard Kipling explains to a child he calls “Best Beloved” how the whale got his throat, the camel his hump, the leopard his spots and the elephant his trunk. We also learn how the first letter and the alphabet were invented. Full of sound games, refrains and made-up words, these funny, mischievous tales are made to be read aloud, to children and grown-ups alike. Short and rhythmic, these stories can be read one by one in the language you are learning.

In Budapest, a gang of schoolboys defends its playground, a patch of waste ground squeezed between a timber yard and blocks of flats. The Red Shirts, a rival gang, want to take it over, and war is organised, with ranks, a flag and battle plans. Little Nemecsek, the only one in the gang with no rank at all, will show more courage than all the officers. A great novel about friendship, loyalty and courage, which you can read at any age and never forget. Simply written, it is easy to read in the language you are learning.

One evening, two gentlemen come to see Father, who leaves with them and does not come back. His three children, Roberta, Peter and Phyllis, leave London with their mother for a little house in the country, near a railway line. Every morning they wave at the passing train, and an old gentleman at the window ends up waving back. The mystery of the missing father hangs over this tender story full of adventures, in which the children even stop a train by waving red petticoats. Simply written, with plenty of dialogue, the novel is easy to read in the language you are learning.

A man-cub, lost in the Indian jungle, is adopted by a family of wolves who call him Mowgli. Baloo, the old bear, teaches him the Law of the Jungle, and Bagheera, the black panther, watches over him. But the tiger Shere Khan claims the child, and he is biding his time. The book also includes other famous stories, such as that of Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, the little mongoose who fights two cobras to protect a family. Kipling gives each animal its own character, voice and wisdom. Full of action, these stories can be read one by one in the language you are learning.

On Christmas Eve, Ebenezer Scrooge, an old miser who hates the festive season, is visited by the ghost of his former partner, chained for all eternity. Then three spirits come for him, one after another, to show him his past, his present and his future. Dickens turns a ghost story into a warm fable about generosity and the possibility of change. This tale did a great deal to shape the spirit of Christmas as we still celebrate it today. Full of life and humour, this short tale is easy to read in the language you are learning, and ideal for a winter's evening.

In Cranford, a small country town, almost every house is kept by ladies, often poor, who never talk about money. The narrator, Mary Smith, spends long stays there with Miss Matty, the shy and very kind daughter of the late rector. Along the way we meet a cow dressed in flannel, a love turned down long ago and a fear of burglars that spreads through the whole town. Elizabeth Gaskell tells of these small lives with gentle humour. A funny, touching book about quiet kindness and helping one another. Made up of short scenes, like so many visits, it is easy to read in the language you are learning.

In London, one rainy February, two women who do not know each other read the same small advertisement: a little medieval castle is to let for the month of April, in Italy, by the sea, among the wisteria and the sunshine. To share the cost, they join forces with two strangers, a young aristocrat and an old lady. Far from London and their habits, each of them slowly changes in the Italian light. A radiant novel full of humour, which makes you want to travel. Written in a light, lively style, it is a pleasure to read in the language you are learning.

Two days before Christmas, Katherine arrives in Oakwood to spend the holidays with her friends at Carver House, the old mansion where their Guardian, Nyoda, lives. Lost on the way, she goes into an abandoned house and finds Sylvia, an eighteen-year-old girl who has not been able to walk since a fall, alone there with no fire and no food. At Carver House, a boarded-up window, footprints and a secret passage soon pose a puzzle. Taken from a series about the Camp Fire Girls, an American movement for girls, this children's novel is a warm-hearted story in which the mystery goes hand in hand with friendship and helping others. Simply written, it is easy to read in the language you are learning.

In the forest along the Paraná River, the animals talk, work and quarrel. In these eight tales, a giant turtle carries the man who had once nursed it all the way to the city, flamingos go to a ball in snakeskin stockings, and the crocodiles go to war against a ship. Horacio Quiroga wrote these stories for his children, in the forest where he lived. They are funny, sometimes cruel, and one of them explains why flamingos have red legs. Short and written in simple sentences, these tales can be read one by one in the language you are learning.

This collection brings together forty tales gathered by the Brothers Grimm: Snow White and the queen's magic mirror, Hansel and Gretel lost in the forest, Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, and lesser-known ones such as “The Blue Light”. Here we meet witches, talking animals and clever young heroes. These are the tales children have been told for two centuries, here in the text of the Grimms' last edition, from 1857, which is often darker than the versions we know. Short and simply written, they can be read one by one in the language you are learning.

In 1845, Henry David Thoreau builds a cabin with his own hands beside Walden Pond, in the woods of Massachusetts, and lives there alone for two years. He grows beans, watches the seasons and the animals, and reduces his needs to the bare essentials. A book that invites you to ask what you really need in order to live. It has become a touchstone for everyone seeking a simpler, freer life, closer to nature. With the translation always in front of you, you can read it chapter by chapter, at your own pace, in the language you are learning.

At twenty-nine, Valancy Stirling lives under the thumb of her mother and a family who make fun of her, in a small town in Ontario. She consoles herself by dreaming of a blue castle where she would at last be happy. The day a doctor tells her she has only a year to live, she decides to obey no one any more. At last she says what she thinks, leaves home and meets Barney Snaith, a mysterious man the whole town speaks ill of. A romantic comedy full of humour, about the courage to live for yourself at last. By the author of “Anne of Green Gables”, this radiant novel is a joy to read in the language you are learning.

In New England, while their father is away at the Civil War, four sisters grow up with their mother: Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy. The family has little money but plenty of imagination. Jo, the most independent, writes plays and dreams of becoming a writer. First balls, first loves, quarrels and reconciliations: this warm novel about family and the wish to choose one's own life has been loved for generations. Jo March remains one of the most endearing heroines in literature. Its lively dialogue and everyday scenes are easy to read in the language you are learning.

One summer around 1880, Friedl, a young royal gamekeeper, watches over the game in the mountains of Bavaria, near the little village of Fall, on the River Isar. He is tracking a poacher who kills chamois and roe deer, and who can be recognised by the nine nails in the soles of his shoes. Friedl loves Modei, who tends cows in a mountain hut and is the mother of a little boy. But the child's father, Blasi, also has nine nails in the soles of his shoes. A novel of love and hunting, full of the simple life of Bavarian villages and mountain pastures. Simply written, with vivid scenes, the novel is easy to read in the language you are learning.

The three Rover brothers, Dick, Tom and Sam, are spending the end of the summer at Valley Brook, the family farm in New York State. A trip into the mountains leads them to a cave where thieves hide their loot, while two swindlers steal their Uncle Randolph's bonds. Then come their last months at Putnam Hall, a military boarding school: rivalries between pupils, races in the snow and Christmas at the farm. A cheerful adventure about friendship and courage, from a series that thrilled generations of young readers. Its lively dialogue and light tone make it an enjoyable read in the language you are learning.

On Christmas Eve, little Marie finds a wooden nutcracker among the presents. When her brother Fritz breaks three of the poor toy's teeth, she takes it under her protection. Left alone in the drawing room, she sees the toys come to life and do battle with an army of mice, led by a seven-headed king. We also hear the story of Princess Pirlipat, in a fantasy stranger than you might think, where you never quite know whether Marie is dreaming. With the translation always in front of you, this short tale can be read in one sitting in the language you are learning.

Settled in an old windmill in Provence, Daudet writes to his Parisian readers with stories from the region. We meet Monsieur Seguin's goat, who dreams of freedom in the mountains, the priest of Cucugnan, who makes his parishioners tremble with a sermon about hell, and Father Gaucher, whose elixir makes his monastery's fortune. Part farce, part legend, part melancholy, these tales are known to generations of children, and you can feel the sun and the mistral on every page. Short and written in a simple, musical style, they can be read one by one in the language you are learning.