Balade en France Audio Book

Balade en France, from the publisher of Champs-Élysées audiomagazine, is a collection of 18 French travel articles in audio book format. Read my review of this combination travel guide, cultural study, history book, and French language course.

Balade en France is a collection of French travel articles in an audio book format, very similar to the Champs-Élysées audiomagazine. It includes two components:

1. Two 70-minute audio CDs filled with interviews and discussions about different regions of France.
    
2. Full-color book with a complete transcript of the audio and a glossary: the difficult vocabulary and expressions are highlighted in bold in the transcript, then translated and usually elaborated upon in the glossary. As with Champs-Elysées, the Balade en France glossary is a key element - it takes up more than half of the book, and many of the entries are mini-features in themselves.

Balade en France includes an interesting assortment of 18 travel articles on various French regions and sites:

• Carcassonne
• Carnac
• Chambord et Chaumont
• La Corrèze et Brive-la-Gaillarde
• La Corse
• Domrémy-la-Pucelle et Jeanne d'Arc
• La grotte de Lascaux
• Lyon
• Le marais de Grande-Brière
• Le Mont-Saint-Michel
• Le Nord-Pas-de-Calais
• Quimper
• La Route Napoléon
• Saint-Émilion
• Saint-Paul-de-Vence
• Les son et lumière
• Villedieu-les-Poêles
• Les Vosges

Each travel article includes information ranging from dialects to history to gastronomy. For example, the feature about Mont-Saint-Michel - an interview with the tourist office manager - includes a detailed description of the shrine, historical and cultural information about the regions which come up during the interview, a recipe for the famous Mont-Saint-Michel omelette, and helpful contact information for anyone interested in learning more about this oft-visited jewel of France.

A combination travel guide, cultural study, history book, and French language course, Balade en France is an interesting and useful tool for learning about France while improving your listening skills, grammar, and vocabulary.

If you purchase Balade en France in conjunction with a subscription or resubscription to Champs-Elysées (or the equivalent audiomagazine in Spanish, Italian, or German), you'll receive a substantial discount. Find out more by visiting the Balade en France website.