Every year, when I’m in France, I try to read as much French as possible. That involves reading the weekly edition of the ‘Le Figaro’ newspaper with its various informative supplements. I also try to buy and read at least one book in French, and for that purpose, I go to the large Carrefour supermarket in the nearby town of Gueret which sports an extensive section with books of many different kinds. Not being very conversant with the French literary scene, this is something of a hit and miss excursion on my part, guided mainly by the front and back covers as well as the title of each book.

The one I chose last year looked promising, and its title, meaning ‘The School of the Fine Days’ sounded interesting. Now that I have read it, I can congratulate myself on having made another good choice (following ‘Le Barman du Ritz’ of the previous year). I enjoyed reading this novel describing the events surrounding the narrator’s time teaching at a village school somewhere in a mountainous region of France.

The tale he........

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