×

Select Store

Dowload from Google Play Dowload from the App Store

Scan with Camera

Dowload via QR Code
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | Gradually Hardening French A1-B2 Books

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | Gradually Hardening French A1-B2 Books

Embrace the benefits of this cutting-edge translation method, offering a tailored learning experience by letting you select the difficulty level that fits you best. It improves your comprehension by urging you to deduce meanings from context, reducing the need for constant translation. While some translations are intentionally masked to encourage guessing, it's always acceptable to check unfamiliar words. This method strikes the perfect balance between challenge and accessibility, making language learning both effective and enjoyable. Immerse yourself in these translated classics and uncover the pleasure of learning through literary exploration.

I.ASCANDALINBOHEMIA
Je
I.
ToSherlockHolmessheis
toujours
alwaysthewoman.
Ihave
rarement
seldomheardhimmentionher
sous
underanyothername.
Inhiseyesshe
éclipse
eclipsesandpredominatesthewholeofher
sexe
sex.
Itwasnotthathe
ressentait
feltanyemotionakintoloveforIreneAdler.
Toutes
Allemotions,andthatone
en particulier
particularly,wereabhorrenttohis
froid
cold,precisebutadmirablybalanced
esprit
mind.
Hewas,Itakeit,the
plus
mostperfectreasoningandobserving
machine
machinethattheworldhasseen,
mais
butasaloverhewouldhave
placé
placedhimselfinafalse
position
position.
Heneverspokeofthesofterpassions,save
avec
withagibeandasneer.
Theywereadmirablethingsfor
les
theobserver—excellentfordrawingtheveilfrommen’smotives
et
andactions.
Butforthe
entraîné
trainedreasonertoadmitsuchintrusionsintohis
propre
owndelicateandfinelyadjustedtemperamentwasto
introduire
introduceadistractingfactorwhich
pourrait
mightthrowadoubtupon
tous
allhismentalresults.
Gritina
sensible
sensitiveinstrument,oracrackinoneofhisownhigh-powerlenses,wouldnotbe
plus
moredisturbingthanastrong
émotion
emotioninanaturesuchas
ses
his.
Andyettherewasbutone
femme
womantohim,andthat
femme
womanwasthelateIreneAdler,ofdubious
et
andquestionablememory.
Ihad
vu
seenlittleofHolmeslately.
My
mariage
marriagehaddriftedusawayfromeach
autres
other.
Myowncompletehappiness,
et
andthehome-centredinterestswhichriseuparoundthemanwhofirst
trouve
findshimselfmasterofhis
propre
ownestablishment,weresufficientto
absorber
absorballmyattention,whileHolmes,who
détestait
loathedeveryformofsociety
avec
withhiswholeBohemiansoul,
resté
remainedinourlodgingsin
Baker
BakerStreet,buriedamonghis
vieux
oldbooks,andalternatingfrom
semaine
weektoweekbetweencocaine
et
andambition,thedrowsinessofthe
drogue
drug,andthefierceenergyofhis
propre
ownkeennature.
Hewas
toujours
still,asever,deeplyattractedby
la
thestudyofcrime,and
occupait
occupiedhisimmensefacultiesandextraordinarypowersofobservationin
suivre
followingoutthoseclues,andclearingup
ces
thosemysterieswhichhadbeenabandonedas
sans espoir
hopelessbytheofficialpolice.
From
temps
timetotimeIheardsome
vague
vagueaccountofhisdoings:
ofhissummonstoOdessain
la
thecaseoftheTrepoff
meurtre
murder,ofhisclearingupof
la
thesingulartragedyoftheAtkinsonbrothersatTrincomalee,
et
andfinallyofthemissionwhichhehadaccomplishedsodelicately
et
andsuccessfullyforthereigning
famille
familyofHolland.
Beyondthesesignsofhisactivity,
cependant
however,whichImerelyshared
avec
withallthereadersofthe
quotidienne
dailypress,Iknewlittleofmyformer
ami
friendandcompanion.
Onenight—itwasonthetwentiethof
Mars
March,1888—Iwasreturningfroma
voyage
journeytoapatient(forIhad
maintenant
nowreturnedtocivilpractice),
quand
whenmywayledme
travers
throughBakerStreet.
AsI
passais
passedthewell-remembereddoor,whichmust
toujours
alwaysbeassociatedinmy
esprit
mindwithmywooing,andwith
la
thedarkincidentsoftheStudyin
Écarlate
Scarlet,Iwasseizedwithakeen
désir
desiretoseeHolmesagain,
et
andtoknowhowhewas
employait
employinghisextraordinarypowers.
Hisroomswerebrilliantlylit,
et
and,evenasIlookedup,I
vu
sawhistall,sparefigure
passer
passtwiceinadarksilhouette
contre
againsttheblind.
Hewaspacingtheroom
rapidement
swiftly,eagerly,withhisheadsunkuponhis
poitrine
chestandhishandsclasped
derrière
behindhim.
Tome,who
connaissais
knewhiseverymoodandhabit,his
attitude
attitudeandmannertoldtheir
propre
ownstory.
Hewasat
travail
workagain.
Hehadrisenoutofhisdrug-createddreams
et
andwashotuponthescentofsome
nouveau
newproblem.
Irangthe
cloche
bellandwasshownuptothechamber
qui
whichhadformerlybeenin
partie
partmyown.
Hismannerwasnoteffusive.
It
rarement
seldomwas;
buthewas
content
glad,Ithink,tosee
me
me.
Withhardlyawordspoken,
mais
butwithakindlyeye,hewavedmetoanarmchair,
jeté
threwacrosshiscaseofcigars,
et
andindicatedaspiritcase
et
andagasogeneinthe
coin
corner.
Thenhestoodbefore
le
thefireandlookedmeoverinhissingularintrospective
façon
fashion.
“Wedlocksuitsyou,”he
remarquer
remarked.
“Ithink,Watson,thatyouhaveputon
sept
sevenandahalfpounds
depuis
sinceIsawyou.”
“Seven!”
I
répondu
answered.
“Indeed,Ishouldhave
réfléchir
thoughtalittlemore.
Just
un
atriflemore,Ifancy,Watson.
Et
Andinpracticeagain,Iobserve.
Youdidnot
dit
tellmethatyouintendedtogointoharness.”
“Then,
comment
howdoyouknow?”
“I
vois
seeit,Ideduceit.
Comment
HowdoIknowthatyouhavebeengettingyourself
très
verywetlately,andthatyouhave
une
amostclumsyandcareless
servante
servantgirl?”
“MydearHolmes,”
dis
saidI,“thisistoomuch.
You
été
wouldcertainlyhavebeenburned,hadyou
vécu
livedafewcenturiesago.
Itis
vrai
truethatIhada
campagne
countrywalkonThursdayandcamehomeina
terrible
dreadfulmess,butasIhave
changé
changedmyclothesIcan’t
imaginer
imaginehowyoudeduceit.
AstoMaryJane,sheisincorrigible,
et
andmywifehasgivenhernotice,
mais
butthere,again,Ifailto
vois
seehowyouworkitout.”
Hechuckledtohimself
et
andrubbedhislong,nervoushands
ensemble
together.
“Itissimplicityitself,”
dit
saidhe;
“myeyestellme
que
thatontheinsideofyourleft
chaussure
shoe,justwherethefirelight
frappe
strikesit,theleatheris
marqué
scoredbysixalmostparallelcuts.
Évidemment
Obviouslytheyhavebeencausedby
quelqu'un
someonewhohasverycarelessly
gratté
scrapedroundtheedgesof
la
thesoleinordertoremovecrusted
boue
mudfromit.
Hence,you
voyez
see,mydoubledeductionthatyouhadbeen
dehors
outinvileweather,and
que
thatyouhadaparticularlymalignantboot-slitting
spécimen
specimenoftheLondonslavey.
Astoyour
pratique
practice,ifagentlemanwalksintomyrooms
sentant
smellingofiodoform,withablack
marque
markofnitrateofsilveruponhis
droit
rightforefinger,andabulgeonthe
droit
rightsideofhistop-hatto
montrer
showwherehehassecretedhisstethoscope,I
dois
mustbedull,indeed,ifI
ne
donotpronouncehimtobean
actif
activememberofthemedicalprofession.”
I
pu
couldnothelplaughingat
la
theeasewithwhichhe
expliqué
explainedhisprocessofdeduction.
“WhenI
entends
hearyougiveyourreasons,”I
remarquer
remarked,“thethingalwaysappearstometobesoridiculouslysimple
que
thatIcouldeasilydoitmyself,
si
thoughateachsuccessiveinstanceofyourreasoningIambaffled
jusqu'à
untilyouexplainyourprocess.
Et
AndyetIbelievethatmyeyesareasgoodasyours.”
“Quiteso,”he
répondit
answered,lightingacigarette,and
jetant
throwinghimselfdownintoanarmchair.
“You
voyez
see,butyoudonotobserve.
La
Thedistinctionisclear.
For
exemple
example,youhavefrequentlyseenthesteps
qui
whichleadupfromthehallto
cette
thisroom.”
“Frequently.”
“Howoften?”
“Well,somehundredsoftimes.”
“Then
combien
howmanyarethere?”
“Howmany?
Idon’tknow.”
“Quiteso!
Youhavenot
observé
observed.
Andyetyouhave
vu
seen.
Thatisjustmypoint.
Maintenant
Now,Iknowthatthereareseventeensteps,
parce que
becauseIhavebothseen
et
andobserved.
Bytheway,
puisque
sinceyouareinterestedin
ces
theselittleproblems,andsinceyouare
bon
goodenoughtochronicleone
ou
ortwoofmytriflingexperiences,you
pourriez
maybeinterestedinthis.”
He
jeté
threwoverasheetofthick,pink-tintednotepaper
qui
whichhadbeenlyingopenupon
la
thetable.
“Itcameby
le
thelastpost,”saidhe.
“Readitaloud.”
La
Thenotewasundated,and
sans
withouteithersignatureoraddress.
“Therewill
appellera
calluponyouto-night,at
une
aquartertoeighto’clock,”it
dit
said,“agentlemanwhodesiresto
consulter
consultyouuponamatterof
le
theverydeepestmoment.
YourrecentservicestooneoftheroyalhousesofEurope
ont
haveshownthatyouareonewhomaysafelybetrustedwithmatterswhichareofan
importance
importancewhichcanhardlybeexaggerated.
Ce
Thisaccountofyouwehavefrom
tous
allquartersreceived.
Beinyourchamberthenatthathour,
et
anddonottakeitamiss
si
ifyourvisitorwearamask.”
“Thisisindeed
un
amystery,”Iremarked.
“Whatdoyou
imaginez
imaginethatitmeans?”
“Ihave
pas
nodatayet.
Itisa
capitale
capitalmistaketotheorisebeforeonehas
données
data.
Insensiblyonebeginsto
tordre
twistfactstosuittheories,insteadoftheoriestosuitfacts.
Mais
Butthenoteitself.
Whatdoyoudeducefromit?”
I
soigneusement
carefullyexaminedthewriting,and
le
thepaperuponwhichitwas
écrit
written.
“Themanwhowroteitwas
vraisemblablement
presumablywelltodo,”I
remarquer
remarked,endeavouringtoimitatemycompanion’sprocesses.
“Such
papier
papercouldnotbeboughtunder
demi
halfacrownapacket.
Itispeculiarly
fort
strongandstiff.”
“Peculiar—thatis
le
theveryword,”saidHolmes.
“Itisnot
un
anEnglishpaperatall.
Tenez
Holdituptothelight.”
I
fait
didso,andsawa
grand
large“E”withasmall“g,”
un
a“P,”andalarge“G”
avec
withasmall“t”woveninto
la
thetextureofthepaper.
“Whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
demandé
askedHolmes.
“Thenameof
le
themaker,nodoubt;
orhismonogram,rather.”
“Notat
tout
all.
The‘G’withthe
petit
small‘t’standsfor‘Gesellschaft,’
qui
whichistheGermanfor‘Company.’Itis
une
acustomarycontractionlikeour‘Co.’‘P,’of
sûr
course,standsfor‘Papier.’Nowfor
le
the‘Eg.’LetusglanceatourContinentalGazetteer.”
Hetookdown
un
aheavybrownvolumefromhisshelves.
“Eglow,Eglonitz—hereweare,Egria.
Itisin
un
aGerman-speakingcountry—inBohemia,not
loin
farfromCarlsbad.
‘Remarkableasbeing
la
thesceneofthedeathofWallenstein,
et
andforitsnumerousglass-factories
et
andpaper-mills.’Ha,ha,my
garçon
boy,whatdoyoumakeofthat?”
Hiseyes
scintillaient
sparkled,andhesentup
un
agreatbluetriumphantcloudfromhis
cigarette
cigarette.
“ThepaperwasmadeinBohemia,”I
dit
said.
“Precisely.
Andtheman
qui
whowrotethenoteisaGerman.
Doyounotethe
particulière
peculiarconstructionofthesentence—‘Thisaccountofyouwehavefrom
tous
allquartersreceived.’AFrenchman
ou
orRussiancouldnothave
écrire
writtenthat.
ItistheGerman
qui
whoissouncourteoustohisverbs.
Itonly
reste
remains,therefore,todiscoverwhatis
veut
wantedbythisGermanwho
écrit
writesuponBohemianpaperand
préfère
preferswearingamaskto
montrer
showinghisface.
Andherehe
vient
comes,ifIamnotmistaken,to
résoudre
resolveallourdoubts.”
Ashe
parlait
spoketherewasthesharp
bruit
soundofhorses’hoofsandgratingwheels
contre
againstthecurb,followedbyasharppullatthe
cloche
bell.
Holmeswhistled.
“Apair,by
le
thesound,”saidhe.
“Yes,”he
poursuivi
continued,glancingoutofthe
fenêtre
window.
“Anicelittlebrougham
et
andapairofbeauties.
Une
Ahundredandfiftyguineasapiece.
There’smoneyinthis
affaire
case,Watson,ifthereis
rien
nothingelse.”
“IthinkthatIhad
mieux
bettergo,Holmes.”
“Notabit,
Docteur
Doctor.
Staywhereyouare.
Iam
perdu
lostwithoutmyBoswell.
And
cela
thispromisestobeinteresting.
Itwouldbeapityto
rater
missit.”
“Butyourclient—”.
“Nevermind
lui
him.
Imaywantyour
aide
help,andsomayhe.
Herehe
arrive
comes.
Sitdowninthatarmchair,
Docteur
Doctor,andgiveusyourbestattention.”
Un
Aslowandheavystep,
qui
whichhadbeenhearduponthestairs
et
andinthepassage,paused
immédiatement
immediatelyoutsidethedoor.
Thentherewas
un
aloudandauthoritativetap.
“Comein!”
saidHolmes.
Un
Amanenteredwhocould
guère
hardlyhavebeenlessthan
six
sixfeetsixinchesinheight,
avec
withthechestandlimbsof
un
aHercules.
Hisdresswas
riche
richwitharichnesswhichwould,inEngland,belookeduponasakinto
mauvais
badtaste.
Heavybandsofastrakhanwereslashedacrossthesleeves
et
andfrontsofhisdouble-breastedcoat,
tandis que
whilethedeepbluecloak
qui
whichwasthrownoverhisshoulderswaslined
avec
withflame-colouredsilkandsecuredatthe
cou
neckwithabroochwhichconsistedof
une
asingleflamingberyl.
Boots
qui
whichextendedhalfwayuphiscalves,
et
andwhichweretrimmedat
la
thetopswithrichbrown
fourrure
fur,completedtheimpressionofbarbaricopulence
qui
whichwassuggestedbyhis
toute
wholeappearance.
Hecarriedabroad-brimmed
chapeau
hatinhishand,whilehe
portait
woreacrosstheupperpartofhis
visage
face,extendingdownpastthecheekbones,
un
ablackvizardmask,whichhehad
apparemment
apparentlyadjustedthatverymoment,forhis
main
handwasstillraisedtoitashe
entré
entered.
Fromthelowerpartof
la
thefaceheappearedtobea
homme
manofstrongcharacter,withathick,hanging
lèvre
lip,andalong,straight
menton
chinsuggestiveofresolutionpushedto
la
thelengthofobstinacy.
“Youhadmynote?”
he
demandé
askedwithadeepharsh
voix
voiceandastronglymarkedGerman
accent
accent.
“ItoldyouthatIwouldcall.”
He
regarda
lookedfromonetotheotherof
nous
us,asifuncertainwhichtoaddress.
“Praytakeaseat,”
dit
saidHolmes.
“Thisismy
ami
friendandcolleague,Dr.Watson,
qui
whoisoccasionallygoodenoughtohelpmeinmycases.
WhomhaveIthehonourtoaddress?”
“You
pouvez
mayaddressmeasthe
Comte
CountVonKramm,aBohemian
noble
nobleman.
Iunderstandthatthis
monsieur
gentleman,yourfriend,isa
homme
manofhonouranddiscretion,whomI
peux
maytrustwithamatterof
la
themostextremeimportance.
Ifnot,Ishouldmuch
préfère
prefertocommunicatewithyoualone.”
Iroseto
aller
go,butHolmescaughtmeby
le
thewristandpushedmebackintomy
chaise
chair.
“Itisboth,ornone,”
dit
saidhe.
“Youmaysay
devant
beforethisgentlemananythingwhichyou
pouvez
maysaytome.”
The
Comte
Countshruggedhisbroadshoulders.
“ThenI
dois
mustbegin,”saidhe,“by
liant
bindingyoubothtoabsolute
secret
secrecyfortwoyears;
at
la
theendofthattime
la
thematterwillbeofnoimportance.
At
actuelle
presentitisnottoomuchto
dire
saythatitisof
tel
suchweightitmayhave
une
aninfluenceuponEuropeanhistory.”
“Ipromise,”
dit
saidHolmes.
“AndI.”
“Youwill
excuserez
excusethismask,”continuedour
étrange
strangevisitor.
“Theaugustpersonwhoemploysme
souhaite
wisheshisagenttobe
inconnu
unknowntoyou,andI
peux
mayconfessatoncethatthe
titre
titlebywhichIhave
viens
justcalledmyselfisnot
exactement
exactlymyown.”
“Iwasawareofit,”
dit
saidHolmesdryly.
“Thecircumstancesareofgreatdelicacy,
et
andeveryprecautionhastobetakentoquenchwhat
pourrait
mightgrowtobeanimmense
scandale
scandalandseriouslycompromiseoneof
les
thereigningfamiliesofEurope.
To
parler
speakplainly,thematterimplicates
la
thegreatHouseofOrmstein,hereditarykingsofBohemia.”
“Iwas
aussi
alsoawareofthat,”murmuredHolmes,settlinghimselfdowninhisarmchair
et
andclosinghiseyes.
Our
visiteur
visitorglancedwithsomeapparent
surprise
surpriseatthelanguid,lounging
figure
figureofthemanwhohadbeenno
doute
doubtdepictedtohimasthe
plus
mostincisivereasonerandmost
énergique
energeticagentinEurope.
Holmes
lentement
slowlyreopenedhiseyesand
regardé
lookedimpatientlyathisgigantic
client
client.
“IfyourMajestywouldcondescendtostateyourcase,”he
remarquer
remarked,“Ishouldbebetter
mesure
abletoadviseyou.”
Themansprangfromhis
chaise
chairandpacedupand
bas
downtheroominuncontrollableagitation.
Then,
avec
withagestureofdesperation,he
déchiré
torethemaskfromhis
visage
faceandhurleditupon
le
theground.
“Youareright,”hecried;
“Iam
le
theKing.
WhyshouldI
essayer
attempttoconcealit?”
“Why,indeed?”
murmuredHolmes.
“Your
Majesté
MajestyhadnotspokenbeforeIwas
conscient
awarethatIwasaddressingWilhelmGottsreichSigismondvonOrmstein,Grand
Duc
DukeofCassel-Felstein,andhereditary
Roi
KingofBohemia.”
“Butyou
pouvez
canunderstand,”saidourstrange
visiteur
visitor,sittingdownoncemore
et
andpassinghishandoverhis
haut
highwhiteforehead,“youcan
comprendre
understandthatIamnotaccustomedto
faire
doingsuchbusinessinmy
propre
ownperson.
Yetthematterwassodelicate
que
thatIcouldnotconfideitto
un
anagentwithoutputtingmyselfinhis
pouvoir
power.
IhavecomeincognitofromPraguefor
le
thepurposeofconsultingyou.”
“Then,prayconsult,”saidHolmes,
fermant
shuttinghiseyesoncemore.
“Thefactsare
brièvement
brieflythese:
Somefiveyearsago,duringalengthy
visite
visittoWarsaw,Imade
la
theacquaintanceofthewell-knownadventuress,IreneAdler.
Le
Thenameisnodoubt
familier
familiartoyou.”
“Kindlylookherupinmy
index
index,Doctor,”murmuredHolmeswithout
ouvrir
openinghiseyes.
Formanyyearshehad
adopté
adoptedasystemofdocketing
tous
allparagraphsconcerningmenandthings,sothatitwas
difficile
difficulttonameasubject
ou
orapersononwhichhe
pouvait
couldnotatoncefurnish
informations
information.
InthiscaseI
trouvé
foundherbiographysandwichedin
entre
betweenthatofaHebrewrabbi
et
andthatofastaff-commanderwhohad
écrit
writtenamonographuponthedeep-seafishes.
“Letmesee!”
saidHolmes.
“Hum!
Né
BorninNewJerseyin
le
theyear1858.
Contralto—hum!
LaScala,hum!
Prima
PrimadonnaImperialOperaofWarsaw—yes!
Retiré
Retiredfromoperaticstage—ha!
LivinginLondon—quiteso!
Your
Majesté
Majesty,asIunderstand,becameentangled
avec
withthisyoungperson,wrotehersomecompromisingletters,
et
andisnowdesirousofgetting
ces
thoselettersback.”
“Preciselyso.
Mais
Buthow—”.