Anni's Diary of France  •  Anni Axworthy TRAVEL NARRATIVE •  2000 •  PAPER  • 32 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) Taking the form of an illustrated diary, this book is a lively record of a family trip to France, featuring food, art and history. Illustrations, photographs and informative text crowd the scrapbook-style pages. Written for young readers ages 8-10. (FRN46, $6.95)
Cathedral, The Story of its Construction  •  David MacAulay ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1973 •  HARD COVER  • 77 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) In this illuminating book for young readers, master draughtsman MacAulay presents text and innovative drawings that detail the planning and construction of a 13th-century Gothic cathedral. It's a masterpiece. (EUR24, $18.00)
Eyewitness: Impressionism  •  Jude Welton ART & ARCHITECTURE •  2000 •  HARD COVER  • 64 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) A visual survey of Impressionism for kids ages 9-12, including hundreds of images and ingeniously arranged facts. (GEN194, $15.99)
The Family Under the Bridge  •  Natalie Savage Carlson  •  Garth Williams LITERATURE •  1989 •  PAPER  • 123 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) Armand was a hobo back in the days when hoboes threw Christmas parties -- and were Parisian! This charming, wonderfully human story recounts the Parisian adventures of Armand and the three homeless children who made him shed his grumpy ways. It won a Newbery Medal. With illustrations by Garth Williams, of "Little House" book fame. Ages 9-12. (FRN313, $5.99)
Fodor's Around Paris With Kids, 68 Great Things to Do Together  •  Fodor's Guides GUIDEBOOK •  2003 •  PAPER A compact colorful guide to Paris for families, featuring a handpicked selection of attractions that kids will find especially interesting. With games, activities, color photographs, maps and diagrams. (FRN658, $11.00)
The Invention of Hugo Cabret  •  Brian Selznick LITERATURE •  2007 •  HARD COVER  • 5007 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) Told through full-page charcoal sketches, text and storyboards, this imaginative novel brings to life the adventures of a young orphan on the streets of Paris in the 1903s. Unfolding like a silent movie with pages of illustrations alternating with text, the dramatic tale, full of suspense and mood, was inspired by the life of George Melies, the French director of A Trip to the Moon (1902). Geared for ages 9-12. (FRN731, $22.99)
The King in the Window  •  Adam Gopnik LITERATURE •  2006 •  PAPER  • 410 PAGES • YOUNG ADULTS Gopnik (Paris to the Moon) tries his hand at writing for a younger crowd with this adventure through Parisian streets and history. Oliver, a 12-year-old American living with his expat parents in Paris, gets himself caught up with the ghostly Window Wraiths, and unwittingly is pushed into the role of leading a battle against evil. Classic Parisian settings are thrown into an otherworldly light as his adventures unfold, with many historical figures making appearances throughout. Fun, and absorbing. (FRN540, $9.99)
Lily B. on the Brink of Paris  •  Elizabeth Cody Kimmel LITERATURE •  2006 •  HARD COVER  • 192 PAGES • YOUNG ADULTS This imaginative story of a teenager separated from her class on a field trip to Paris and the adventures that befall her will appeal to any teen or pre-teen on vacation in the City of Light. (FRN615, $16.99)
Linnea in Monet's Garden  •  Christina Bjork  •  Lena Anderson  •  Joan Sandin ART & ARCHITECTURE •  1987 •  HARD COVER  • 52 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8) A very floral introduction to the art of Monet and his Impressionist circle for children ages 5 to 8. Linnea and her neighbor frolic in Monet's garden at Giverny and look at Impressionist paintings in Paris. It's a great primer for kids on their way to Giverny and a gentle first lesson in art history. Nicely illustrated, too. (FRN312, $16.00)
Mad about Madeline  •  Ludwig Bemelmans  •  Anna Quindlen LITERATURE •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 352 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8) This omnibus is a treat indeed: all six of Bemelmans's "Madeline" stories, collected in a single volume. That's 352 pages of Parisian schoolgirls, poor beset Miss Clavell and (could we ever forget him?) Pepito, the Spanish ambassador's irrepressible son. Ludwig Bemelmans wrote the Madeline books with very young readers in mind, yet here we are all full-grown adults -- and we still love Madeline! (FRN327, $35.00)
Marie Antoinette, Princess of Versailles (Austria-Hungary, 1769)  •  Kathryn Lasky LITERATURE •  2000 •  HARD COVER  • 238 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) The ill-fated future queen of France records life at the Habsburg palace in Austria in this novel-in-diary-format, written by the reliably excellent children's author Kathryn Lasky. The teenaged Marie is almost of marrying age, and the future is full of possibility. An entry in Scholastic's "Princess Diaries" series, for ages 9 to 12. The book is designed to feel like a real princess's diary, with gold-embossed pages and a sturdy binding. (FRN342, $10.95)
Ooh-La-La (Max in Love)  •  Maira Kalman CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2002 •  PAPER  • 40 PAGES • FAMILY In this chapter of the ongoing adventures of the poet dog, Max realizes his dream of traveling a paris, a colorful, crazy place full of art, people and sights. Intended for yound kids, this is a book for the whole family. Crepe Suzette, in case you were wondering, is a dalmatian. (FRN450, $6.99)
Picasso and Minou  •  P. I. Maltbie LITERATURE •  2008 •  PAPER  • 32 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8) In this nicely illustrated story, the artist's transition from his Blue to Rose period depends largely on the shenanigans of his Siamese cat. (FRN769, $7.95)
A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver  •  E.L. Konigsburg LITERATURE •  2001 •  PAPER  • 208 PAGES • YOUNG ADULTS A marvelous fictionalized portrait of Eleanor of Aquitaine who was queen of France and England successively, traveler to Constantinople, wife of a future saint, mother of Richard the Lionheart and for 15 years a prisoner of the English Crown. E.L. Konigsburg's irreverent, feminist, educational young-adult novel begins on a cloud in heaven, where Eleanor is awaiting the induction into heaven of her husband Henry II of England, who has spent the last 800 years in -- well -- not in heaven, at any rate. The rest of the book is a flashback. (GBR245, $5.99)
The Red Balloon  •  Albert LaMorisse LITERATURE •  1976 •  PAPER  • 44 PAGES • FAMILY The boy and the balloon traipse through Paris, until finally the balloon takes flight high, high above the rooftops. This abiding children's classic consists of still images (taken from the "Red Balloon" movie, shot in Paris) and no text. It's captivating visual storytelling, popularized in French-language classes throughout the world. Ah, Paris! Ah, mon ballon rouge! (FRN326, $12.95)
S.A.S.S. French Kissmas  •  Cathy Hapka LITERATURE •  2008 •  PAPER  • 224 PAGES • YOUNG ADULTS Part of the S.A.S.S. series and the sequel to Pardon My French (FRN617). Nicole is thrilled to spend the holidays back in Paris with Luc, her old flame. (FRN773, $7.99)
This is Paris  •  Miroslav Sasek CULTURAL PORTRAIT •  2004 •  HARD COVER  • 64 PAGES • YOUNG READERS (Age 4-8) A classic portrait of Paris for children. First published in 1958, this is a facsimile edition of Sasek's charming original. The Louvre, Eiffel Tower and other famed attractions are depicted with bright, stylized illustrations. Ages 4-8. (FRN466, $17.95)
Vero and Philippe  •  Caroline Hatton  •  Preston McDaniels LITERATURE •  2001 •  HARD COVER  • 120 PAGES • MIDDLE READERS (Age 9-12) An episodic, unassuming book about the exploits of Veronique Vo and her haughty older brother Philippe, Vietnamese-French children who have recently moved from Normandy to Paris. The big city is a new and daunting place, but the Vo children are irrepressible, and they soon make all of Paris their playground. This book -- geared for middle readers -- is published by the good people at Cricket Magazine. (FRN323, $14.95)