Mon enfance lilloise racontée à ma fille: récits d’antan (1950 à 1955) by Denis Herbert, Complément éducatif ed. by Denis Herbert, Joanne Silver (review)

HERBERT, DENIS. Mon enfance lilloise racontée à ma fille: récits d’antan (1950 à 1955). Wayne, PA: Beach Lloyd, 2007. ISBN 978-0-9743158-9-8. Pp. 86. $18.95. HERBERT, DENIS, and JOANNE SILVER, ed. Complément éducatif. Wayne, PA: Beach Lloyd, 2010. ISBN 978-0-9819517-4-5.Pp. 50. $11.95. Having had the pleasure of reviewing Fernande K. Davis’s Girl in the Belgian Resistance: A Wakeful Eye in the Underground, an autobiographical narrative that deftly draws attention to the suffering and courage of the Belgian people during World War II, for the NECTFL Review, I was delighted to review Mon enfance lilloise and its Complément éducatif. My delight came from the fact that Beach Lloyd Publishers has established a reputation of offering materials for the French classroom that not only promote the study of the language but also that of learning about and becoming sensitive to the events of a crucial period in world history. Herbert’s Mon enfance lilloise was originally intended as a Christmas gift for his wife Marie-Dominique and daughter Aurore. While recovering in the hospital, he authored ten stories of his life as a boy in Lille. The stories tenderly highlight the struggles of people of Lille after the Liberation of France: Au lendemain de sa libération, le 3 septembre 1944, Lille panse ses plaies. Elles sont considérables. Beaucoup de résistants et déportés ne sont pas rentrés dans leur foyer. [...] Vingt mille évacués de 1940 ne sont pas revenus. Des 1 540 juifs de Lille déportés, seuls 130 sont rentrés. Quatre cent cinquante-quatre civils ont été tués au cours des bombardements de la ville. Mil six cent soixante-quinze immeubles et édifices publics ont été totalement détruits, 1 709 gravement endommag és et 2 208 plus ou moins touchés. [...] Les dix années qui suivent la Libération sont difficiles, marquées par une rénovation lente. La vie ouvrière, essentiellement dans l’industrie textile, est précaire. (Guide 1) Yet, Herbert’s focus brings to life the small joys in life and as such provides wonderful lessons: the art of giving and receiving at Christmastime; his Senegalese parrot Coco that drove his aunt crazy; his cat Minette; school life and how it was more important to have a good class ranking to avoid punishment and humiliation than to secure a good grade; being kind to elderly neighbors; how horses remained essential to the way of life in Lille. Particularly enjoyable is the lesson that Herbert offers on politeness. In the teacher’s guide, he broadens the lesson by providing fun details on table manners that could be playfully explored with students in the classroom. In several sections of the teacher’s guide, Herbert expresses his admiration for the people of Louisiana. However, he does stumble into some misconceptions . For example, he praises Louisiana for being the only bilingual state in the United States. While indeed Louisiana was the first and only officially bilingual state, its bilingual status ended with the Civil War. He also oversimplifies the definition of what it means to be an Acadian versus a Cajun by thinking that the American English word for “Acadien” is “Cajun.” Historically, Acadian stands for the colonists who inhabited Nova Scotia and for their descendants, including those who settled in Louisiana. The term Cajun represents the descendants of Acadian exiles and all the people with whom they intermarried in Southern Louisiana after the Civil War. Thus, the Cajuns are a people who originated from a mixture of several different peoples over whom the core Acadian culture exerted the strongest influence. Therefore, teachers should value Mon enfance lilloise for what it so beautifully offers on life in Lille after World War II and encourage Reviews 1221 students to discuss and analyze Herbert’s perspective on the Francophone populations in the United States. Canisius College (NY) Eileen M. Angelini OUKADA, LARBI, DIDIER BERTRAND, and JANET SOLBERG. Controverses. 2nd ed. Boston: Heinle, 2012. ISBN 0495797774. Pp. 304. $75. Versatility distinguishes this intermediate-level program with numerous options for teaching and learning. The text and Student Activities Manual (SAM...