Extrait des Complete Adventures of Charlie and Mr Willy Wonka (slightly adapted)
“I’ve never seen anything like it!”[1] cried Mr Wonka.
“The children are disappearing like rabbits! But you mustn’t worry about it![2] They’ll all come out safely!”[3]
Mr Wonka looked at the little group that stood beside him in the corridor. There were only two children left[4] now – Mike Teavee and Charlie Bucket.[5] And there were three grown-ups, Mr and Mrs Teavea and Grandpa Joe. “Shall we move on??” Mr Wonka asked.
“Oh yes!” cried Charlie and Grandpa Joe at the same time.
“My feet are getting tired,” said Mike Teavea. “I want to watch television.”
“If you’re tired then we’d better[6] take the lift,” said Mr Wonka. “It’s over here. Come on! In we go!” He skipped across[7] the passage to a pair of doors. The doors slid open[8]. The two children and the grown-ups went in.
“Now then,” cried Mr Wonka, “which button shall we press first? Take your pick!”
Charlie Bucket stared around him in astonishment.[9] This was the craziest lift he had ever seen[10]. There were buttons everywhere! The walls, and even the ceiling, were covered with hundreds of rows of black buttons! There must have been[11] a thousand of them on each wall, and another thousand on the ceiling! And now Charlie noticed that every button had a tiny printed label[12] beside it telling you which room you would arrive at if you pressed[13] it.
Notes
1.
“rien de pareil”
2.
“s’inquiéter de” (so
which pronoun?)
3.
“sains et saufs”
4.
use “il ne restait
que...”
5.
you could make up good
French versions of these names
6.
Use “il vaut mieux...”
7.
use “traverser à petits
bonds”
8.
say “opened, sliding”
(same principle as note 7)
9.
use “étonné”
10.
subjunctive after
superlative, but which tense/
11.
say “il devait y avoir”
12.
“une étiquette imprimée”
13. to press = appuyer sur, presser
[1] Rien de semblable or rien de pareil
[2] Which pronoun?
[3] Sains et saufs
[4] Use Il ne restait que…
[5] Why not make up good French versions of these names?
[6] Use il vaut mieux
[7] Use traverser à petits bonds
[8] Say “opened, sliding” (similar principle to note 7)
[9] astonished -
étonné
[10] Subjunctive after superlative, but which tense?
[11] Say il devait y avoir
[12] une étiquette imprimée
[13] to press – appuyer sur, presser