Some French Books I'm Looking Forward to Reading

It's been a long time since I've done a post highlighting French books I can't wait to read!  There are so many.  So I've decided to start a new monthly feature on the blog, with a couple of books en francais (some hopefully already translated into English for any non-French speakers!) that I can't wait to get my hands on.  These aren't necessarily new releases, there just books I've recently read about and really want.

1. Les yeux jaunes des crocodiles by Katherine Pancol.  This one was actually just recently released in English by Penguin, as The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles. 

Here's the description from Goodreads:
When her chronically unemployed husband runs off to start a crocodile farm in Kenya with his mistress, Joséphine Cortès is left in an unhappy state of affairs. The mother of two—confident, beautiful teenage Hortense and shy, babyish Zoé—is forced to maintain a stable family life while making ends meet on her meager salary as a medieval history scholar. Meanwhile, Joséphine’s charismatic sister Iris seems to have it all—a wealthy husband, gorgeous looks, and a très chic Paris address—but she dreams of bringing meaning back into her life. When Iris charms a famous publisher into offering her a lucrative deal for a twelfth-century romance, she offers her sister a deal of her own: Joséphine will write the novel and pocket all the proceeds, but the book will be published under Iris’s name. All is well—that is, until the book becomes the literary sensation of the season.

2. Le chapeau de Mitterrand by Antoine Laurain.  Translated as The President's Hat.  I feel like this one had a lot of hype in Europe.  I haven't heard anything about it in the States though.  I'd like to read the French one, but I'm not sure I can wait, so I might just end up reading the translation.

Here's the description from Goodreads:
Dining alone in an elegant Parisian brasserie, accountant Daniel Mercier can hardly believe his eyes when President François Mitterrand sits down to eat at the table next to him.

Daniel’s thrill at being in such close proximity to the most powerful man in the land persists even after the presidential party has gone, which is when he discovers that Mitterrand’s black felt hat has been left behind.

After a few moments’ soul-searching, Daniel decides to keep the hat as a souvenir of an extraordinary evening. It’s a perfect fit, and as he leaves the restaurant Daniel begins to feel somehow … different.


I'll be sharing more books with you next month!