14 h 49 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 14 h 49 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
Passion, war, vanity, fate: how much of a life can a short story hold?
French Short Stories brings together nineteenth-century writers whose tales move between village life and Paris streets, Romantic adventure and the fantastic. Prosper Mérimée, Guy de Maupassant, Alphonse Daudet and Honoré de Balzac explore worlds where danger presses close and ordinary people face the pull of passion or their own vanity.
Alongside them stand Théophile Gautier, Alfred de Musset, François Coppée and the writing pair Erckmann-Chatrian. The collection moves through Romantic tales, stories of home and war, and Maupassant’s sharply observed fiction. Read these voices side by side to discover how differently a short story can capture people, places and the forces that shape a life.
What you’ll discover
- Romantic adventure and wonder Explore tales where passion and danger meet the strange possibilities of the fantastic.
- Mérimée beyond Paris Follow a cool storyteller into wild tales set far from the capital.
- Daudet close to home Discover the warmth of a writer drawn to Provence, its villages and its people.
- Lives under pressure Encounter ordinary people caught by war, invasion, fate or the traps of their own vanity.
- Distinct voices together Compare each writer’s approach as French storytelling moves toward a sharper, more concentrated form.
Who will love it
This book suits readers who love a good plot told fast: soldiers and duels, ghosts and fairy tales, comic villages and Christmas miracles. It also rewards anyone curious how France saw itself.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Courage can hide a private fear
- Unfinished revenge can imprison a man
- Ordinary details make dread grow
- Village life exposes competing human claims
- Fantasy gives comedy a kind heart
- Christmas brings guilt close to tenderness
- Romance asks what love costs
- An impulsive heart stakes its future
- The storyteller shapes what you believe
Who’s who
- SilvioA silent, expert pistol shot in a Russian garrison village who hides the reason he never answered an insult.
- Walter SchnaffsA fat, kind Prussian soldier who hates fighting and wants only to be taken prisoner and fed.
- TombouctouA huge African soldier at the blockade of Bézières who loves grapes, gold and his lieutenant.
- Mother SaveriniA poor widow in Bonifacio who swears to avenge her murdered son and trains her dog for it.
- ToineA giant, jolly Norman innkeeper who calls everyone his son-in-law and lies helpless in bed.
- KasperA young violinist in Heidelberg who finds himself tangled in a murder case through a stolen watch.
- Mahmoud-Ben-AhmedA dreamy poet of Cairo who longs to be loved by a peri or a princess.
- CroisillesA scatterbrained goldsmith's son who falls in love with a rich tax farmer's daughter and needs a fortune.
Formats and delivery
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- Paperback
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
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25 languages, side by side
French Short Stories in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
French Short Stories
A widow trains a starving dog on a straw dummy while a Corsican town forgets her murdered son.
Medium level5–10 hours to read2 languages
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In short
What would you do if your first battle began with a captain telling you that your lieutenant died yesterday and that you must take his place? That is how this collection opens, and it keeps surprising you.
French Short Stories at a glance
- Reading time
- About 8 h 40 min6 h 55 min fast, 10 h 20 min slow
- Length
- 124,300 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A first battle starts with fear and vanity
In The Capture of the Redoubt, a young officer remembers his first engagement. Mérimée shows that a beginner fears one thing even more than death, which is looking afraid in front of other men.
He joins his regiment near a Russian earthwork called the Cheverino redoubt. His captain, a tall veteran with a hoarse voice, greets him with the news that his lieutenant died yesterday. The newcomer hears a hidden insult and bites back a sharp reply. That night the moon rises huge and red behind the redoubt, and an old soldier says the place will cost the army dearly. The young officer cannot sleep.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Mérimée, Prosper, et al. French Short Stories. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/french-short-stories.
Mérimée, P., Maupassant, G. de, Daudet, A., Erckmann-Chatrian, Coppée, F., Gautier, T., Balzac, H. de, & Musset, A. de. (2026). French short stories. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/french-short-stories
Mérimée, Prosper, Guy de Maupassant, Alphonse Daudet, Erckmann-Chatrian, François Coppée, Théophile Gautier, Honoré de Balzac, and Alfred de Musset. French Short Stories. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/french-short-stories.
@book{merimee2026french,
author = {Mérimée, Prosper and Maupassant, Guy de and Daudet, Alphonse and Erckmann-Chatrian and Coppée, François and Gautier, Théophile and Balzac, Honoré de and Musset, Alfred de},
title = {French Short Stories},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/french-short-stories}
}
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What is French Short Stories about?
It gathers tales by French writers of the nineteenth century, with one Russian piece. They range over war, revenge, ghosts, village comedy, fairy tales and Christmas miracles, so each story brings a different mood and setting.
Which authors are in French Short Stories?
Mérimée, Maupassant, Daudet, Erckmann-Chatrian, Coppée, Gautier, Balzac and Musset appear, along with a duel story by Pushkin. Maupassant has the largest share, with tales such as The Hand and A Vendetta.
What is The Hand by Maupassant about?
A magistrate tells ladies of a case from Corsica. An Englishman keeps a dried, chained human hand on his wall, and a strange death follows. The magistrate himself says he cannot fully explain it.
The author
Prosper Mérimée
1803–1870 · French novelist and historian
Prosper Mérimée was a French writer, archaeologist and historian, born in Paris in 1803. He wrote plays, historical works and short stories, including Carmen, published in 1845. He served as inspector-general of historical monuments in France from 1834 to 1860. He died in Cannes in 1870.
More by Prosper Mérimée; Guy de Maupassant; Alphonse Daudet; Erckmann-Chatrian; François Coppée; Théophile Gautier; Honoré de Balzac; Alfred de Musset; Douglas Labaree Buffum (editor)
See all their booksMore like this
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