Guerre Civile

1938, an unusual French language text book centred around the Spanish Civil War

Author

J L Bede, and R J F Cook

Publisher

Macmillan, London, 1938

Printing Details

First edition. Hardback, bound in green cloth with printed titling to spine and upper board. 18 × 12cm, 132pp + ads.

An unusual school language book centred in the Spanish Civil War. Both authors were masters at Marlborough College. The preface states "The story deals with an imaginary incident in the civil war now taking place in Spain; this has enabled us not only to pack the story with adventure, but also to introduce into the text words and phrases which are in constant use in the France of to-day". The first part of the book is a story, in French, about a boy Jean / John who is worried about his Father, a journalist who has been sent to Spain to report on the Civil War... Each chapter has questions in French to test understanding. The second part is a series of paragraphs in English describing the story which are to be translated into French, and finally there is a glossary of French words, including those the authors' think will be in more constant use in France in the late 1930s... (corps / body; une grenade / hand-grenade; percer / to force a way through; un petard / a stick of dynamite).

Condition

Good readable condition. The green cloth is rubbed and bumped to the corners, and with mottled fading about the spine. The book is stamped from the Montessori Training College, and also as a specimen from the publishers. The contents are in very good condition, with clean pages and secure binding.