Rating: 
Summary: Tchin! Tchin!
Review: The very first "naughty" French word that most beginning students in the French language learn is "merde!" Thus, "Merde!: The 'Real' French You Were Never Taught in School" by Geneviève is an appropriately titled supplemental glossary of "argot" (slang) that probably is not be covered in Conversational French courses. However, one needs to learn this terminology as much as one needs to learn the subjunctive if one is to navigate successfully through the streets of France. Also, now that the internet has made it possible for people to chat online in French-speaking chat rooms, one needs to know more than formal French. Geneviève has compiled in "Merde!" twelve small chapters of "a guide to survival." On each page the English words are on the left and the "equivalent" French colloquialisms are on the right. Geneviève has added asterisks to words that "indicate a degree of rudeness above the ordinary colloquial . . . .[and] two asterisks show a whopper," which means the "strength" and "rudeness" of the expression. Here are some of the chapter headings: "The Body and Its Functions"; "The Weighty Matters of Love and Sex (National Obsession Number One)"; "The No Less Weighty Matters of Food and Drink (National Obsession Number Two)"; "Hassling"; "Money Matters"; "Work and Social Status"; "Indulging in Racism, Xenophobia and Disrespect for One's Elders"; "To Exit Rapidly"; "Positive Thinking"; and "Foreign Invasions of the Language." The first two chapters: "Musts" and "Variations on a Theme" go over basic idiomatic vocabulary, including all the parts of speech. At the end of all the chapters, there is either a "review" or a "quiz" to recapitulate what one has "learned." This short book concludes with a four question "final exam" (and the answers are given in English). There are several ways to approach this book. If one speaks decent French already, one may enjoy browsing through the book to "pick up" a bit of slang. (One will hear this type of language all over France and online in French chat rooms.) Further, one could make an attempt to memorize the vocabulary so that one may understand what is being said (or typed). "Merde!" offers a brief overview of the more salacious and, as Geneviève says, "authentic" language of modern France. However, "Merde!" does not offer that many idiomatic phrases because it is primarily a vocabulary book. Highly recommended for travelers, whether "real time" or "cyber"!
Rating: 
Summary: good slang vocabulary book
Review: This book does contain lots and lots of slang words well arranged in categories. Somewhat lacking are examples of how these words are used. This should be treated as a vocabulary book rather than a book to learn to speak and understand slang. It is hard to learn to speak the real french from a book containing list of words. For that, one will have to pick up an audio tape and books containing dialogs.
Rating: 
Summary: tres utile!
Review: This book is an excellent source of words and expressions, of varying degrees of vulgarity, that are used all the time by french speakers. I used it often during the first of my two years in France. Its real value is not for those in French 101 but for those who already speak decent french and want to learn the expressions used every day by the young and some of the french media (magazines, movies etc). Translated literally many of these words might seem offensive (e.g., connard, encule, putain), yet as the book points out, many times these are the phrases you hear the most in the metro or cafes of France. It is important to realize that even though these words do not carry the same force as their English translations, one must still pay attention to the social context in order to aviod disrespectful "faux pas"!
Rating:
Summary: Going to France to enjoy yourself? You need this book!
Review: When I first moved to Paris, I could barely speak a word of French (and had no job, and nowhere to stay, but that's another story), apart from a heavily-accented "une baguette de pain s'il vous plait Madame". And I can honestly say that this book was THE most useful thing I read -- indeed, it's the only book I pored over and learnt sections of by heart. Yes, speaking proper sentences and being polite and all that is all very useful, but if you really want to enjoy yourself, and get on with the locals, then this is the motherlode. Even if you only know two words of French, slipping a few well-chosen words like "bagnole", "boulot", and "flingue" (and the choicer swear words) into your conversation will break the ice, and impress your hosts, a LOT more than knowing the subjective pluperfect ever could. I eventually took "proper" French lessons at the Sorbonne, and had many arguments with my teacher about the relative merits of "correct" and "colloquial" French. For me, learning a language is about communicating, not about grammar, and this is the perfect place to start. To this day, I make sure that none of my friends or colleagues goes off to France for any period of time without a copy of this under their arm...
Rating:
Summary: Going to France to enjoy yourself? You need this book!
Review: When I first moved to Paris, I could barely speak a word of French (and had no job, and nowhere to stay, but that's another story), apart from a heavily-accented "une baguette de pain s'il vous plait Madame". And I can honestly say that this book was THE most useful thing I read -- indeed, it's the only book I pored over and learnt sections of by heart. Yes, speaking proper sentences and being polite and all that is all very useful, but if you really want to enjoy yourself, and get on with the locals, then this is the motherlode. Even if you only know two words of French, slipping a few well-chosen words like "bagnole", "boulot", and "flingue" (and the choicer swear words) into your conversation will break the ice, and impress your hosts, a LOT more than knowing the subjective pluperfect ever could. I eventually took "proper" French lessons at the Sorbonne, and had many arguments with my teacher about the relative merits of "correct" and "colloquial" French. For me, learning a language is about communicating, not about grammar, and this is the perfect place to start. To this day, I make sure that none of my friends or colleagues goes off to France for any period of time without a copy of this under their arm...
Rating:
Summary: Rated R
Review: While very accurate, if one wishes to get phrasing with the common touch with one foot out of the gutter don't buy this book. If you intend to hang out in the rough this is for you. I know, what a prude. Just looking for the common touch, not the Andrew Dice Clay sexual assault.
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