French short stories for learners, A1 to B2

Which level of French stories should I choose?

Word counts are a quick first guide. These are the lengths of the free chapters 1 and 2 at each level:

Then read the opening paragraph at the level you have in mind. If every line needs two or three taps, step down a level; the story should carry you, not the dictionary. If you get through a whole chapter without needing a single word, step up.

How does French narration change from A1 to B2?

Beginner chapters stay in the present tense. From B1, the stories move into the past, and that means meeting tenses most courses leave until late. Here is the same moment, Camille arriving at the building with her suitcase, as the A1 and B1 versions of L'Immeuble du 14 tell it, followed by a line from another B1 series:

Many B1 and B2 series are narrated in the passé simple, as French novels are. You never need to use it when you speak, only to recognise it, and most forms are easy to decode: arriva, regarda and demanda come from arriver, regarder and demander. A few are irregular and worth learning by sight, among them prit (prendre), vint (venir), devint (devenir) and eut (avoir).

Where are the French stories set?

All over France. In Paris there is a lost suitcase in a building with a café downstairs, a missing cat on the rue Mouffetard and twin sisters swapping lives in Montmartre. Lyon has a canal-side bookshop, a corner brasserie whose clock answers questions eleven minutes early and a neighbourhood watch that knows too much. Further out, two charcuterie stalls fight over a trophy in Strasbourg, a Burgundy family plans a surprise eightieth birthday, a radio in a Provençal farmhouse broadcasts tomorrow's news and a lighthouse relights at the Pointe du Raz in Brittany.

Each series is one story in short chapters, usually six; the flagship has eight at every level. Every chapter ends on a cliffhanger. The first two chapters of each series are free, and a new series arrives every week for Contos Premium readers.

New to French? Start with the A1 French stories for beginners, or read Engaged by Mistake, a romantic comedy set in Lyon, with its key words and questions.