I have recently discovered a lovely French book called Avec Quelques Briques at the French Institute Children's Library Quentin Blake. It is a pop up book, beautifully illustrated with strong colours and graphic images. It's no surprise that the French author Vincent Godeau is an artist and illustrator.
The story is simple and poetic yet deals with the complex concepts of sadness and love. A young boy eats bricks and becomes strong. But they surround his heart, creating a fortress around it. One day his feelings overflow in tears and he realises that he must open his heart and share, then he can experience love. In the end he uses all the bricks to build a home to share.
The book also has a complementary app which is free on iTunes. It's a brilliant interactive game that follows and reinforces the story.
This is one that is recommended for native French speakers, or children learning French with a fluent adult assisting them. It's so beautiful though that it merits mention. It is a beautiful and engaging resource to initiate a conversation with children about positive and negative emotions.
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