La Mediatheque on the web: non members welcome

La Médiathèque is right up your street! Thanks to our new pages on the Institut Français, you can now enjoy a wide range of services whether you are a member or not:

• NEW bilingual website: select your language and explore our Franco-British collection.
• NEW online catalogue: refine your search and discover the perfect book, DVD or CD among up to 50,000 items in just a few seconds, thanks to new entry fields and filters.
• NEW personal account: back up your searches and selections, keep an eye on your loans and avoid overdue fees thanks to the return dates feature. You can also renew your items, reserve new ones that are already on loan and receive updates by email to inform you when they are available to collect.

 

26th April: Reading Group

Every month we will meet in the listed library of the Institut français to discuss a French modern classic. Amateur readers, passionate bookworms, Brits, French as well as other nationalities are invited to meet and discover, or rediscover, a great French chef-d'oeuvre in a lively and intimate setting. A glass of wine will be served before the session begins.

 

Mémoires d'Hadrien by Marguerite Yourcenar

Yourcenar's captivating work offers an intriguing pseudo-fictional account of the corespondence alleged to have taken place between Roman Emperor Hadrian and his successor Marcus Aurelius, which continues to elude historians today.

Chair: Mrs Erika Fulop, PhD in French, Aberdeen University

Thu 26 Apr | book online

 

7.00pm | in English and (easy) French

£5, £3 for members, including a complimentary glass of wine (Courtesy Aubert & Mascoli)

 

The books are available to borrow in English and French at the Médiathèque and on Culturethèque. And at the French Bookshop (10% discount): This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

 

Further dates for your diaries include:

 

31 May L'Arrache-coeur by Boris Vian

28 June La Vie devant soi by Romain Gary

 

29Th April: Jackie and the horrible Family

The famous adventures of little Jackie continue! Jackie is sad because her parents are arguing. She leaves for the land of the giants to ask for help from her friend 'Gentil,' the gentle giant. Along the way, she meets the family of the wicked giant: The Horrible family! The audience plays a major role in the how the story goes; influencing it, interacting with all the characters; and joining them on stage!

 

 

 

Sun 29 Apr 3.00pm |55mins |in easy French and English |Tickets: £10, children & conc. £8 | book online

Early reservations recommended

 

 

 

 

 

Literary Prizes

The winner of France's most prestigious literary prize: a first time novelist and a biology professor at the Université de Lyon
L'art français de la guerre (Gallimard)

Alexis Jenni won the Goncourt prize for his first printed work, L'Art français de la guerre (Gallimard). After a first round of votes, his novel won by 5 votes, against 3 for Carole Martinez (Du domaine des murmures, Gallimard).

As a 48 year old  biology professor, Alexis Jenni thought of himself as a "Sunday writer". He has nevertheless been writing for twenty years - "little things," or things that have not quite worked. "I found the debate around national identity really inspiring, but I had no advice to give, no opinions, I wanted to get people thinking" said the writer upon receiving his award, "I am extremely proud and happy to have gone from a first novel to this prestigious award. It recognises the five years of work that went into writing it," and added that he was "very happy."

He posted his 700 page manuscript - an adventure story about the consequences of colonialism - to just one editor, Gallimard, the year of their hundredth anniversary.

 

The Renaudot prize was awarded to Emmanuel Carrère for his novel Limonov, a portrait of the controversial character Edouard Limonov, venerated underground figure under Brejnev, a homeless man in New York, a trendy writer in Paris and the founder  of the ultranationalist party in Russia.

Carrère was clearly the jury's favourite: he was chosen in the second round of votes, with six votes, against four fo Sylvain Tesson, author of the epic, Dans les forêts de Sibérie (Gallimard).

Emmanuel Carrère began his career reviewing films for Positif and Teleram. Writer, screenwriter and director, his works have been translated into over twenty languages.

La Classe de neige was awarded the Prix Femina in 1995 (and Calude Miller's film adaptation won the Cannes Jury award in 1997). Carrèrewas also awarded the French Language prize last month. He wrote a number of successful books such as D'autres vies que les miennes, Un roman russe, L'adversaire, La moustache and Bravoure.

 

When in Moscow, Emmanuel Carrère met Limonov, or Edward Savenko as he was known before the war. Carrère's maternal grandparents fled Russia following the revolution. "He sees himself as a hero, we could see him an bastard. I'm reserving my judgement," explains Carrère, who wrote himself into the novel, and evenincluded scenes with his mother, Hélène Carrère d'Encausse, a historian and academic specialised in the study of Russia.

 

 

 

New DVDs

An Ordinary Execution, Marc Dugain, 2011

An encounter between the ailing Stalin and a young doctor who has healing powers

in her hands.

Little White Lies, Guillaume Canet, 2011

A box-office hit in France, with a stellar cast including Marion Cotillard

Paris, je t'aime, 2006 

Eighteen renowned filmmakers have created their own vignette based in

different areas of Paris.

Music for all ears

Vanessa Paradis Une nuit à Versailles, Barclay-Universal, 2010 

Vanessa Paradis released an acoustic album, which was recorded at L'Opéra of the Palace of Versailles, during her Concert Acoustic Tour.

Catherine Ringer Ring n'roll, Winslow Corida, 2011

The first solo album from Catherine Ringer is a lyrical offering.

Mélanie Laurent, En t'attendant, 2011

The shining star of Quentin Tarantino's Inglorious Basterds shows us another side of herself

Anoraak, Wherever the Sun Sets, 2010

An hyped album which follows the lazy summer feel of his first single Above Your Head

A New Season of Literature at the Médiathèque

Our new titles this month are dominated by the themes of: family, memories, war and the affect of the aftermath on their authors. The list below is just a sample of what the librarians have put on the shelves recently

Retour à Killybegs / Sorj Chalando.- Grasset, 2011.- CHA

The author presents the indelible portrait of an Irish activist who was later uncovered

as an informant for the British forces.

Rien ne s'oppose à la nuit.- Delphine de Vigan.- JC Lattès, 2011.- VIG

In this novel we penetrate the intimacy of Vigan's own family.

Les souvenirs.- David Foenkinos.- Gallimard, 2011.- FOE

David Foenkinos meditates on the plight of the elderly, nursing homes and the difficulty of understanding our parents and children.

Tuer le père .- Amélie Nothomb.- Albin Michel, 2011.- NOT

With Tuer le père, Amélie Nothomb, assures the 20^th novel of her career. Magic shows and gambling are the main themes in this book with action oscillating between Las Vegas and Reno, a lost world in the Nevada State...

Join the Culturethèque Club

Culturethèque, the Institut français' digital platform, is nearly 1 year old! It gives you access to a wide range of French e-books, films, documentaries and talks online.

It's free to join so if you are not part of the club yet, now is a good time to register with us and find your France on Culturethèque: www.culturetheque.org.uk

French Classics Revisited

The Médiathèque invites you to enjoy classics and must-read novels from the French literary repertoire in their English translations. Revisit stories that will never go out of fashion and marvel at the French classic style as wonderfully adapted to an English audience by the great masters of translation.

Dumas Alexandre. Le comte de Monte-Cristo. Gallimard, 1998.

Dumas Alexandre.The count of Monte Cristo. Penguin Books, 1980.

(translated by Robin Buss)

Hugo Victor. Les misérables. Flammarion, 2000.

Hugo Victor. Les Misérables. Penguin Books, 1980.

(translated by Robin Buss)

Maupassant Guy de. Bel-Ami. Gallimard, 1999.
Maupassant Guy de. Bel-Ami. Penguin Books, 1978. (translated by Douglas Parmée)

Proust Marcel.Du côté de chez Swann. Gallimard, 1980.
Proust Marcel.The way by Swann's. Penguin Books, 1978.

(translated by Lydia Davis)

Zola Emile.-Thérèse Raquin. Flammarion, 2008.

Zola Emile.- Thérèze Raquin. Penguin Books, 1980. (translated by Robin Buss)

French made easy

The Mediatheque is pleased to present the ever-popular series of vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar titles published by Michel Thomas. Along with

these five new Cds, the latest version of the Bien-Dire magazines can be found on our shelves. They have been enriched with extra content such as vocabulary Cds and grammar tools. Three new DVDs will also enable you to improve your pronunciation.

And there's more so come along to the Mediatheque, where learning French is made easy...

Bien dire: French expressions. Entrefilet, 2010.
Bien-dire: Se présenter. Entrefilet, 2010.

Long Dennis. Vive les verbes français ! McGraw-Hill, 2009.

Thomas Michel.French introductory course. Hodder education, 2008.
Thomas Michel. French Language builder. Hodder education, 2001.
Thomas Michel. French Vocabulary Course. Hodder education, 2001.

Sewell Penny. French pronunciation, your key to success. Birbeck College, 2008.

French Thought

The Mediatheque has selected a number of new books dealing with topics of an academic nature, such as economics, philosophy, politics and law. Explained and presented in an attractive style and shape, they are accessible to a wide audience of individuals concerned with the big issues of our time.

Bousseyrol Marc.Vive la dette ! Editions Thierry Magnier, 2009.

Is national debt beneficial ? Who inherits this debt ? Are savings sound and profitable?

Journet Nicolas. Cinq siècles de pensée française. Editions Sciences humaines, 2010.

The complex history of French thought across the centuries in only 183 pages.

André Gorz, vers la société libérée : commentaire de Michel Contat. 1 CD audio. Textuel, 2010 (la voix au chapitre).

This book and CD will give you an insight into into André Gorz's political theory. A prominent left-wing figure in France, he advocated and encouraged social revolt.

Labbé Xavier. Le droit commun du couple. Presses Universitaires du Septentrion, 2010.

This research on "couple's rights" aims to find a common law for all types of couples.

Labbé Xavier. Introduction générale au droit : pour une approche éthqiue. Presses universitaires du Septentrion, 2010.

An unmissable study combining law and ethics.

Romas in France: A Journey Through Discrimination

Romas and gypsies have been in the spotlight over the summer in France, with a number of camps evicted by the police by force. Following a decision by the government, the move has been criticised across the political spectrum for evoking some of French history's darkest hours.

The Mediatheque stocks a number of documents related to the Roma minority group. Originally from India, its culture and way of life remain fairly unknown, yet it has been discriminated against for most, if not all, of its history. Borrow our books, CDs and films and learn more about this subject.

Essays

Feature Films - DVDs

Music – CDs

Escoudé, Christian.
20 ans de Trio Gitan. Nocturne, 2007.

Lagrène, Biréli.
Move. Gipsy Project Dreyfus Jazz, 2004

Reinhardt, Django.
Nuages. Music Memoria, 1982

Saussois, Patrick.
Alma Sinti. DJAZ Distrib, 2006

Articles and websites

Les Roms, ces boucs émissaires. Télérama.
A l'égard des Roms, une hypocrisie sans frontière. Courrier International.
Roms et gens du voyage: l'histoire d'une persécution transnationale. Le Monde Diplomatique.
Casse-toi pauvre pauvre! Là-bas si j'y suis.

Found in Translation

If your French language skills do not match your love of the culture, look no further.

2010 has seen some of the most popular French books to be translated into English and the Mediatheque has acquired a number of these. From thrillers to philosophy via historic novels, there is something for everyone, so come and quench your thirst for French culture.

Below are some of the titles that can be found on our shelves:

Littell Jonathan.The kindly ones. Chatto and Windus, 2010.

Original title: Les bienveillantes (Prix Goncourt, 2008)

Badiou Alain. Logics. Continuum, 2009.

Original title: Logique des mondes

Vargas Fred. The Evangelists. Harvill, 2009

Original title: Les Evangélistes

Natacha Appanah. The last brother. Maclehose Press,2010.

Original title: Le dernier frère

Khadra Yasmina. What the day owes to the night. Heinemann, 2010.

New Easy French Comic Books

Our Easy French section has just been enriched with a range of graphic novels. This accessible material will allow Francophiles to brush up their language skills and to get to know French culture better.

Enjoy classics of French literature with an adaptation of Maupassant's stories; fashion with a book on Coco Chanel; French history with famous graphic novelist Tardi; and linguistic puns with Philippe Geluck's well-known cat character Le Chat.

Battaglia. Maupassant : contes et nouvelles de guerre. Mosquito, 2008
Geluck, Philippe. La vengeance du Chat. Librio, 2010
Matthews, Elizabeth. Exceptionnelle Coco Chanel. Grund, 2009
Tardi, Jacques. Le démon de la tour Eiffel. Librio, 2005.

For a utopian space

Amongst our latest acquisitions in politics, a number of publications question how social cohesion is gradually being eroded in today's society and suggest alternative models for us to live by.

Analysing the recent “Tarnac affair”, Claude Guillon reveals in La terrorisation démocratique how security issues, such as the fight against terrorism, can lead to the creation of a dystopian society in the name of democracy. Michel Lussault's De la lutte des classes à la lutte des places argues that in a world where few people can afford decent housing, the struggles should be fought in terms of space as well as class.

In L'Hypothèse communiste, France's favourite red thinker Alain Badiou calls for new practical solutions to be found. He strives to reinvent the communist project after the historical and local failures it has suffered, which he says have been wrongly used to present the capitalist model as the only viable one. While reminding us that the principles of equality and liberty can be misused and even lead to terror if in the wrong hands, Régis Debray suggests in Le moment fraternité that fraternity is the value that should unite us all above mere economics.

The recent crisis may have helped to revive such ideals that the powers-that-be would prefer to see buried, but as Armand Mattelart demonstrates in Histoire de l'utopie planétaire, people have always fought against oppression and sought for a better world that is to be constantly reinvented in a never-ending process of emancipation.

Come and borrow these books from your favourite utopian space - the Mediatheque!

DOOM OR BLOOM: Reinventing the library in the digital age

Click here to listen to the conference on-line!
Digital libraries, e-books and emerging technologies are transforming the way culture, knowledge and information are created and disseminated. They have a fundamental impact on the self-conception and perception of libraries. How are libraries taking action in order to bloom and secure their future? This one day seminar was a unique opportunity to hear about experiments carried out by various libraries in Europe. The points of view of the entire book chain was considered, from the librarian, the publisher, the author, the supplier, to the reader.

This international  seminar was organised by EUROLIS and took place on Thursday 29th October at the French Institute.