France books for kids

This fall we studied France, and our library had a plethora of France books for kids.  So many in fact that I hit my check-out limit.  This meant we had a fabulous homeschool geography lesson, and I was in seventh heaven as we read these glorious picture books for our France Unit.

Because there were so many, I will divide my France books list into different types (also all of these Amazon books are affiliate links).

PS: I’m adding this to my Ultimate list of booklists

France books for kids: art and artists

I was amazed at the sheer number of famous artists from France.  I eventually limited the number of artist books I checked out so my entire study of France wasn’t just artist studies.

•  Henri’s Scissors– I loved this story, partially because it shows overcoming adversity (check out this Henri Matisse unit)
• Matisse the King of Color– 
• Claude Monet: The Painter Who Stopped the Trains– I found Monet’s story fascinating
• Claude Monet: Sunshine and Waterlilies– another book that we used for the pictures
• The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau– again another great story about persistence, in Rousseau’s time he was not recognized as a great artist originally, check out the Henri Rousseau lesson
• Before There Was Mozart: The Story of Joseph Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-George (out of print, this is the kindle edition)- I’d never heard of this musician and composer prior to reading this book, we listened to some of his music and it’s lovely (oh, and listening to the Haitian Revolution podcast from Revolutions, I think his name came up)
• The Secret Cave: Discovering Lascaux– great story on how we discovered the caves in Lascaux (check out our Cave Paintings of Lascaux lesson)

France books for kids: historical figures and events

•  Joan of Arc: Heroine of France– I absolutely adore this adaptation of Joan of Arc’s life (see the follow on lesson: Joan of Arc)
• The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau– I learned so much reading this book, and it inspired some great projects
• Different Like Coco– Be different like Coco Chanel, who inspired a revolution in the fashion industry
• Moi and Marie Antoinette– a unique look at this famous French queen
• Lisette’s Angel– a great World War 2 picture book about a paratrooper and a young french girl
• Minette’s Feast– who wouldn’t love a chance to read about Julia Child?
• Stone Angel– The angels of Notre Dame look down on the young girl of this story, and it’s the amazing words of Jane Yolen, author of a few of my favorite books

France books for kids: fiction

•  Madeline’s Rescue– You can’t learn about France without reading at least one Madeline book
• Madame Martine– Take a tour of Paris as poor Madame Martine chases her dog
• Everybody Bonjours!– Such a cute book
• Henri’s Walk to Paris– This had a the feel of a folk tale from France, and I loved the simple illustrations
• Pastry School in Paris: An Adventure in Capacity– A fun math book to read
• Monsieur Albert Rides to Glory– I loved this take on the Tour de France
• The Miraculous Tale of the Two Maries– A great tale of friendship between two girls

France books for kids: sights to see and informational

• Eiffel Tower (Now That’s Big!)– I love the Now That’s Big series, and this book is no exception
• The Oldest and the Newest– a fun tour around Paris
• Let’s Visit France (Around the World)– a good general informational book about France