Best Books About France to Read Before A Trip – For Children and Adults

This beautifully illustrated children's book is part of Anholt's famous artists book series for kids. It recounts a wonderful adventure experienced by Paul, a little boy who is named after his father, Paul Cézanne. The elder Cézanne had been away from home for so long that the boy has difficulty recognizing his father when he joins him on a painting expedition in the mountains of southern France. They quickly become friends, and the artist takes great pleasure in painting a portrait of his apple-cheeked son.

Although the people who live nearby often laugh at the artist's pictures, young Paul admires his father's work, and he is not alone. A picture dealer from Paris happens to be in the region, and when he sees Cézanne's paintings, he thinks they are wonderful. Before long, Cézanne becomes famous and wealthy.

With its endearing, courageous heroine, cheerful humor, and wonderful, whimsical drawings of Paris, the Madeline stories are true classics that continue to charm readers, even after 75 years!

This beautiful book gives a fold-out tour of Monet's home and gardens includes liftable flaps, screens that unfold, pull-out buildings, and a figure of Monet at an easel, in a collection that is reminiscent of the artist's original works.

Dodsworth and and his (crazy) friend the duck have just arrived in Paris. It is their first time in the City of Lights, and they are ready for some adventures! Right away they see mimes, painters, and people wearing berets.

They climb the Eiffel Tower, and the duck even finds some bent-over guy who rings bells for a living. It looks like it is going to turn out to be a great vacation in Paris, but trouble is never far from a misbehaving duck!

Here's the thing of it: Paris has just been discovered by Eloise the little girl from the Plaza. Here is what Eloise does in Paris: everything. If you come to Paris with Eloise you will always be glad you did.

Anatole is a most honorable mouse. When he realizes that humans are upset by mice eating their leftovers, he is shocked!

He must provide for his family, but he is determined to find a way to earn his supper. And so he heads for the tasting room at the Duvall Cheese Factory.

On each cheese, he leaves a note: "good," "not so good," "needs orange peel"--and signs his name.

When workers at the Duvall factory find his notes, they are perplexed, but they realize that this mysterious Anatole has an exceptional palate and take his advice.

Soon Duvall is making the best cheese in all of Paris! They would like to give Anatole a reward, if only they could find him!

From its achievements in architecture (Chartres Cathedral), science (Louis Pasteur), and literature (Marcel Proust), the country of France has had a profound impact on the world. E is for Eiffel Tower: A France Alphabet explores its venerable history and cultural heritage.

Flat Stanley transports kids to Paris with his latest adventure. Not only will kids love going on a fun adventure with Stanley, this book has fun, fascinating facts about Paris in the back of the book, and is perfect for kids who love learning about other cultures.

Armand, an old Parisian living on the streets of Paris, loved his solitary life. He begged and did odd jobs for money to keep himself warm and fed, and he liked his carefree life.

One day just before Christmas, a struggling mother and her three children come into his life. He tried to ignore their troubles, but Armand soon finds himself caring for the family and sharing his unusual home under the bridge with them.

It did not take Armand very long to realize that he had gotten himself ready-made family; one that he loved with all his heart, and one for whom he would have to find a better home than the bridge.

Kiki loves Coco, her cloth doll. Coco loves Kiki, her girl. The two are never apart. It's as if they were made for each other. Together they travel to Paris and delight in the city of lights.

But then Coco is separated from Kiki. Will she ever see her girl again? This sweet story about a doll and her girl, inspired by the lovely photography of Stephanie Rausser and a real hand-made doll created by doll maker Jess Brown, will charm readers of all ages.

In the Mystery of the Mona Lisa, Jack is sent to the Louvre Museum in Paris to track down the theft of the world's most beloved painting.

He must match wits with a seemingly invisible mastermind in order to stop Leonardo's masterpiece from slipping into the criminal underground forever.

Can Jack's Hypo-Disk overpower a glove that shoots laser beams from its fingertips? Jack's adventures in the city of light demonstrate once again that when it comes to outsmarting the baddies, Jack is the go-to agent with endless tricks up his sleeve.

Here's a book about Paris that's seriously streetwise! Marco and Amelia, the Lonely Planet explorers, take you off the tourist trail and guide you on a journey through Paris you'll never forget.

This book is perfect for anyone who is planning a trip to Paris or is just interested in finding out more about this amazing city! Discover Paris's best-kept secrets, amazing stories and loads of other cool stuff from the comfort of your own home, or while out and about in the city.

Merlin sends Jack and Annie on a mysterious mission to Paris, France, over a 100 years ago. There they must find four magicians and give them an urgent message from Merlin himself.

When Jack and Annie travel to Paris, they make their way to the 1889 World’s Fair. When they visit the Eiffel Tower, built especially for the fair, there are thousands of exhibits from all over the world.

But how will Jack and Annie find the magicians in the crowds of people? And who are the magicians anyway? Jack and Annie are about to find out in another adventure filled with history, magic, and amazing surprises!

Winner of the Caldecott Medal, this stunningly illustrated book depicts Louis Bleriot's historic first cross-Channel flight.

Taking the kids to Versailles? If so, this book is a must read before any visit as it tells the story of Marie Antoinette in a way children will understand. 

From the palaces of Austria to the mirrored halls of Versailles, Marie Antoinette led a charmed life. She was born into royalty in 1755 and married the future king of France at age 15.

By 21 she ascended to the throne and enjoyed a lavish lifestyle of masquerade balls, sky-high wigs, and extravagant food. But her taste for excess ruffled many feathers. The poor people of France blamed Marie Antoinette for their poverty. Her spending helped incite the French Revolution.

And after much public outcry, in 1793 she quite literally lost her head because of it. Whether she was blameless or guilty is debatable, but Marie Antoinette remains woven into the fabric of history and popular culture.

Few stories are as widely read and as universally cherished by children and adults alike as The Little Prince. Richard Howard's translation of the beloved classic beautifully reflects Saint-Exupéry's unique and gifted style.

Geronimo Stilton's Geronimo's adventurous sister Thea narrates this fabulous adventure that's packed with action, mystery, and friendship!

In this book, the Thea Sisters travel to Paris to visit Colette's fashion-designer friend Julie. But when Julie's designs are suddenly stolen, the girls must search the city of Paris to catch the thief and save the fashion show. Readers will love following the clues to help the Thea Sisters solve the mystery!

Mission Paris takes young travelers through the famous sights of Paris, engaging them in an exciting scavenger hunt as you explore the city landmarks together.

This classic translation of the famous French novel by Dumas will have your kids dreaming about being one of the king's guardsmen in no time.

This historical novel is set in medieval Paris. It is the haunting tale of Quasimodo, the hunchback; Esmeralda, the gypsy dancer; and Claude Frollo, a priest tortured by his own damnation.

Eleanor of Aquitaine, wife to two kings, mother to two others, has been waiting in Heaven a long time -- eight centuries, more or less -- to be reunited with her second husband, Henry II of England.

Finally, the day has come when Henry will be judged for admission. While Eleanor, never a patient woman in life or afterlife, waits, three people, each of whom was close to Eleanor during a time of her life, join her.

Their reminiscences do far more than help distract Eleanor -- they also paint a rich portrait of an extraordinary woman who was front and center in a remarkable period in history and whose accomplishments have had an important influence on society through the ages.

To forge an incredibly powerful political alliance, thirteen-year-old Marie Antoinette of Austria is betrothed to Dauphin Louis Auguste, who will one day be the king of France.

To prepare her for this awesome responsibility, she must be trained to write, read, speak French, dress, act . . . even breathe. Things become more difficult for her when she is separated from her family and sent to the court of Versailles to meet her future husband.

Opinionated and headstrong Marie Antoinette must find a way to fit in at the royal court, and get along with her fiancé. The future of Austria and France falls upon her shoulders.

But as she lives a luxurious life inside the palace gates, out on the streets the people of France face hunger and poverty. Through the pages of her diary, Marie captures the isolation, the lavish parties and gowns, her struggle to find her place, and the years leading up her ascendance to the throne . . . and a revolution.

A historical novel presents the thoughts of a young soldier during war while capturing the feelings of being in battle through the sights, sounds, and struggles he experiences at the battle of Normandy during World War II.

Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity.

But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy.

A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.

A heart-wrenching, gripping novel about two sisters in Belle Époque Paris and the young woman forever immortalized as muse for Edgar Degas’ Little Dancer Aged Fourteen.

Marie-Laure lives with her father in Paris near the Museum of Natural History, where he works as the locksmith. When she is six, Marie-Laure goes blind and her father constructs the perfect miniature of their neighborhood so she can memorize it by touch and navigate her way home.

When she is 12, the Nazis occupy Paris. The father and daughter flee to the walled citadel of Saint-Malo, where Marie-Laure’s great-uncle lives in a tall house by the sea. With them they carry what might be the museum’s most valuable and dangerous jewel.

In a mining town in Germany, the orphan Werner grows up with his younger sister. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing radios, a talent that wins him a place in the Hitler Youth, and from there a special assignment to track the resistance. More and more aware of the human cost of his intelligence, Werner travels through the heart of the war and, finally, into Saint-Malo, where his story and Marie-Laure’s converge.

In February 1887, Caitriona Wallace and Émile Nouguier meet in a hot air balloon, floating high above Paris, France--a moment of pure possibility. But back on firm ground, their vastly different social strata become clear.

Cait is a widow who because of her precarious financial situation is forced to chaperone two wealthy Scottish charges. Émile is expected to take on the bourgeois stability of his family's business and choose a suitable wife.

As the Eiffel Tower rises, a marvel of steel and air and light, the subject of extreme controversy and a symbol of the future, Cait and Émile must decide what their love is worth.

The Nightingale tells the stories of two sisters, separated by years and experience, by ideals, passion and circumstance, each embarking on her own dangerous path toward survival, love, and freedom in German-occupied, war-torn France―a heartbreakingly beautiful novel that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit and the durability of women. It is a novel for everyone, a novel for a lifetime.

In tiny Lansquenet, where nothing much has changed in a hundred years, beautiful newcomer Vianne Rocher and her exquisite chocolate shop arrive and instantly begin to play havoc with Lenten vows.

Each box of luscious bonbons comes with a free gift: Vianne's uncanny perception of its buyer's private discontents and a clever, caring cure for them. Is she a witch?

Soon the parish no longer cares, as it abandons itself to temptation, happiness, and a dramatic face-off between Easter solemnity and the pagan gaiety of a chocolate festival. Chocolat's every page offers a description of chocolate to melt in the mouths of chocoholics, francophiles, armchair gourmets, cookbook readers, and lovers of passion everywhere.

Introducing one of the most famous characters in literature, Jean Valjean—the noble peasant imprisoned for stealing a loaf of bread—Les Misérables ranks among the greatest novels of all time.

In it, Victor Hugo takes readers deep into the Parisian underworld, immerses them in a battle between good and evil, and carries them to the barricades during the uprising of 1832 with a breathtaking realism that is unsurpassed in modern prose.

Set in the lush countryside of Provence, Deborah Lawrenson’s The Lantern is an atmospheric modern gothic tale of love, suspicion, and murder, in the tradition of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca. 

Drawn to a wealthy older man, Eve embarks on a whirlwind romance that soon offers a new life and a new home—Les Genévriers, a charming hamlet amid the fragrant lavender fields of Provence. But Eve finds it impossible to ignore the mysteries that haunt both her lover and the run-down old house.

The more reluctant Dom is to tell her about his past, the more she is drawn to it—and to the mysterious disappearance of his beautiful ex-wife. An evocative tale of romantic and psychological suspense, The Lantern masterfully melds past and present, secrets and lies, appearances and disappearances—along with our age-old fear of the dark.

In this witty and warm-hearted account, Peter Mayle tells what it is like to realize a long-cherished dream and actually move into a 200-year-old stone farmhouse in the remote country of the Lubéron with his wife and two large dogs. He endures January's frosty mistral as it comes howling down the Rhône Valley, discovers the secrets of goat racing through the middle of town, and delights in the glorious regional cuisine. 

A Year in Provence is a novel about France that transports us into all the earthy pleasures of Provençal life and lets us live vicariously at a tempo governed by seasons, not by days.

Chicago, 1920: Hadley Richardson is a quiet twenty-eight-year-old who has all but given up on love and happiness—until she meets Ernest Hemingway. Following a whirlwind courtship and wedding, the pair set sail for Paris, where they become the golden couple in a lively and volatile group—the fabled “Lost Generation”—that includes Gertrude Stein, Ezra Pound, and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Though deeply in love, the Hemingways are ill prepared for the hard-drinking, fast-living, and free-loving life of Jazz Age Paris. As Ernest struggles to find the voice that will earn him a place in history and pours himself into the novel that will become The Sun Also Rises, Hadley strives to hold on to her sense of self as her roles as wife, friend, and muse become more challenging. Eventually they find themselves facing the ultimate crisis of their marriage—a deception that will lead to the unraveling of everything they’ve fought so hard for.

A heartbreaking portrayal of love and torn loyalty, The Paris Wife is all the more poignant because we know that, in the end, Hemingway wrote that he would rather have died than fallen in love with anyone but Hadley.

Beginning in Paris on the eve of the Nazi occupation in 1940. Suite Française tells the remarkable story of men and women thrown together in circumstances beyond their control.

As Parisians flee the city, human folly surfaces in every imaginable way: a wealthy mother searches for sweets in a town without food; a couple is terrified at the thought of losing their jobs, even as their world begins to fall apart.

Moving on to a provincial village now occupied by German soldiers, the locals must learn to coexist with the enemy—in their town, their homes, even in their hearts.

When Irène Némirovsky began working on Suite Française, she was already a highly successful writer living in Paris. But she was also a Jew, and in 1942 she was arrested and deported to Auschwitz, where she died. For sixty-four years, this novel remained hidden and unknown.

Moving back and forth in time, the story unfolds through intimate and thrilling tales of self-discovery, divided loyalty, and long-kept secrets.

As various characters come of age, seek their fortunes, and fall in and out of love, the novel follows nobles who claim descent from the hero of the celebrated poem The Song of Roland; a humble family that embodies the ideals of the French Revolution; a pair of brothers from the slums behind Montmartre, one of whom works on the Eiffel Tower as the other joins the underworld near the Moulin Rouge; and merchants who lose everything during the reign of Louis XV, rise again in the age of Napoleon, and help establish Paris as the great center of art and culture that it is today.

With Rutherfurd’s unrivaled blend of impeccable research and narrative verve, this bold novel brings the sights, scents, and tastes of the City of Light to brilliant life.

There is something very special about Agnès Morel. A quiet presence in the small French town of Chartres, she can usually be found cleaning the famed medieval cathedral or doing odd jobs for the townspeople.

No one knows where she came from or why. Not diffident Abbé Paul, nor lonely Professor Jones, nor even Alain Fleury, whose attention she catches with her tawny eyes. She has transformed all their lives in her own subtle way, yet no one suspects the dark secret Agnès is hiding.

Then an accidental encounter dredges up the specter of her past, and the nasty meddling of town gossips forces Agnès to confront her tragic history and the violent act that haunts it.

Champagne, 1940: Inès has just married Michel, the owner of storied champagne house Maison Chauveau, when the Germans invade. As the danger mounts, Michel turns his back on his marriage to begin hiding munitions for the Résistance. Inès fears they’ll be exposed, but for Céline, the French-Jewish wife of Chauveau’s chef de cave, the risk is even greater—rumors abound of Jews being shipped east to an unspeakable fate.

New York, 2019: Recently divorced, Liv Kent is at rock bottom when her feisty, eccentric French grandmother shows up unannounced, insisting on a trip to France. But the older woman has an ulterior motive—and a tragic, decades-old story to share. When past and present finally collide, Liv finds herself on a road to salvation that leads right to the caves of the Maison Chauveau.

Nearing her thirtieth birthday, Eleanor of Aquitaine has spent the past dozen frustrating years as wife to the pious King Louis VII of France. But when Henry of Anjou, the young and dynamic future king of England, arrives at the French court, he and the seductive Eleanor experience a mutual passion powerful enough to ignite the world.

Indeed, after the annulment of Eleanor’s marriage to Louis and her remarriage to Henry, the union of this royal couple creates a vast empire that stretches from the Scottish border to the Pyrenees—and marks the beginning of the celebrated Plantagenet dynasty. But Henry and Eleanor’s marriage, charged with physical heat, begins a fiery downward spiral marred by power struggles and bitter betrayals.

Amid the rivalries and infidelities, the couple’s rebellious sons grow impatient for power, and the scene is set for a vicious and tragic conflict that will threaten to engulf them all.

From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, Monsieur Perdu prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can't seem to heal through literature is himself. His true love left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.

When Perdu finally reads the letter, he closes up shop and heads to the south of France, hoping to make peace with his loss and discover the end of the story.

Although she would later singlehandedly create a new approach to American cuisine with her cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking and her television show The French Chef, Julia Child was not always a master chef. Indeed, when she first arrived in France in 1948 with her husband, Paul, who was to work for the USIS, she spoke no French and knew nothing about the country itself.

This is her tale of learning French culture and exploring her passion for cooking and teaching.