This short, powerful novel introduces the reader to George and Lennie, two farm workers in the US, dreaming of a better life during the Great Depression. The story is a heart-wrenching exploration of friendship, hope and love. Steinbeck’s writing is simple yet interesting, which makes it accessible for English learners. 

Audiobooks with Pip

Of Mice & Men by John Steinbeck: Chapter 1

This episode is a companion to Chapter 2 of The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. This short podcast highlights some of the themes and vocabulary from this chapter, and it also shares a fun quote.

Here are the vocabulary words from this chapter covered in this episode:

1. isolated (adj.) – not near to other places or people
2. thunderstruck (adj.) – amazed or surprised
3. apparition (n.) – a ghost or ghostlike image of a person
4. cumbersome (adj.) – large or heavy and therefore difficult to carry or use;
unwieldy
5. indulgently (adv.) – in a way that allows someone to have or do what they
want
6. acquaintance (n.) a person that you have met but do not know well

If you would like to join the The Little Prince book club, please feel free to DM me and I will be happy to share more information! 🌟

Book Club: The Little Prince

Let's Explore The Little Prince: Chapter 2

Het Nederlands is niet altijd even gemakkelijk te vertalen naar een andere taal. Het meest bekende voorbeeld is misschien het woord ‘gezellig’ waarvoor in het Engels wel eventueel ‘cosy’ gebruikt kan worden, maar niet in elke context. In de aflevering van vandaag gaan we kort spreken over een ander moeilijk te vertalen woord, namelijk ‘gunnen’. 

Beter Gezegd

Onvertaalbaar Nederlands: Gunnen

📩 Aprende una palabra coloquial al día: https://acortar.link/d8H9at

Español coloquial

2 expresiones para decir "no entiendo nada"

I detta avsnitt pratar jag om att jag och min partner testade att fasta i 37 timmar och om andra hälsosamma saker jag gjort för min kropp påsistone!

Detta är ett ord som säkert är nytt för många: Autofagi = självätande (kroppen äter sig själv)
Det vill säga en städprocess på cellnivå som startar i kroppen när en fastat i ungefär 17-24 timmar (det finns lite olika källor på nätet)

Nobelpriset 2016 i fysiologi eller medicin gick till den japanske cellbiologen Yoshinori Ohsumi för hans forskning om hur celler bryter ner och återvinner delar av sig själva. Fenomenet kallas autofagi – grekiska för ”själv-ätande” – och har kopplingar till Parkinsons sjukdom, diabetes typ 2 och många andra sjukdomar.

https://fof.se/artikel/2016/12/medicin-kroppen-ater-sig-sjalv/

Tankar på svenska

Tankar På Svenska : Fasta i 37 timmar

If you see someone sitting alone in a restaurant, you might assume they're waiting for someone, or perhaps they're grabbing a quick lunch on their break.

But more and more people around the world are purposely dining alone.

Japan has a special word for this: ohitorisama, which refers to people confidently doing things alone without worrying about what others think.

A recent survey found that 23% of Japanese people eat out alone, up from 18% in 2018. And in the US, solo dining reservations have risen 29% over the last two years, according to restaurant reservation site OpenTable.

OpenTable CEO Debby Soo thinks remote work is one reason for the increase, with people looking for a break from their home offices.

The increasing popularity in solo dining comes as more people are living alone. In 2019, the Pew Research Center found that 38% of US adults ages 25 to 54 were living without a partner, up from 29% in 1990. In Japan, single households now make up one-third of the total; that’s expected to increase to 40% by 2040, according to government data.

Growing interest in solo travel — particularly among travelers ages 55 and over — is also leading to more meals alone.

But Soo thinks there could be more to it than that.

"I think there's a broader movement of self-love and self-care and really … enjoying your own company," Soo said.

As a result, many restaurants are redoing their seating, changing their menus and adding other special touches to appeal to solo diners.

But some aren't always happy to seat one diner. A Michelin-starred London restaurant caused a stir last year when it started charging solo diners the same price as two customers. The restaurant, which has 34 seats, offers an eight-course menu costing about $280 per person.

Other restaurants say it's worth seating one person because solo diners will often come back and eat there again.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Party of One: Solo Dining Increasing in Popularity

Learn German with Stories at https://www.german-stories.com
Greetings and farewells in a text message &amp; irregular verbs: geben/lesen/sehen, modal particle 'aber'.
Paul is chatting with Laura again. This time he is not so clumsy. He invites her to his housewarming party, and she accepts the invitation. But Paul is unsure: Should he also invite Tim? Maybe Anna wouldn't like that ...
<h4>Our characters DON'T speak at a regular speed, just like native speakers among themselves. Why?</h4>
They speak natural German. But we put in countless hours of work to direct every voice actor so that he or she speaks a bit slower and more clearly, adapted to the language level. You can always speed up the audio in the app. We believe this is the better way. Just as we believe that at the beginning, training wheels teach a child to ride a bike better than bruises from falls. If you want know why we spent over 1 1/2 years of work before we even published our first lesson, go to https://www.german-stories.com/the-best-way-to-learn-german
<h4>Here's how to get YOUR NAME on the next German Stories episode:</h4>
This link might help to find us on Apple Podcasts: https://www.apple.co/32tKQgF.
If not, launch the Apple Podcast app on your iPhone / iPad and tap the search icon (on top).
Search for &ldquo;German Stories | Learn German with Stories&rdquo;, and tap on our podcast.
Once you're there, scroll down to "Ratings &amp; Reviews", and tap "Write a Review" (or log in first).
Write us something nice and give us 5 stars :-)

German Stories | Learn German with Stories

18: Kommt Laura zur Party? | Is Laura coming to the party?


Oh, je voudrais tant que tu te souviennes,
Des jours heureux quand nous étions amis,
Dans ce temps là, la vie était plus belle,
Et le soleil plus brûlant qu’aujourd’hui.
Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle,
Tu vois je n’ai pas oublié.
Les feuilles mortes se ramassent à la pelle,
Les souvenirs et les regrets aussi,
Et le vent du nord les emporte,
Dans la nuit froide de l’oubli.
Tu vois, je n’ai pas oublié,
La chanson que tu me chantais…
C’est une chanson, qui nous ressemble,
Toi qui m’aimais, moi qui t’aimais.
Nous vivions, tous les deux ensemble,
Toi qui m’aimais, moi qui t’aimais.
Et la vie sépare ceux qui s’aiment,
Tout doucement, sans faire de bruit.
Et la mer efface sur le sable,
Les pas des amants désunis.
Nous vivions, tous les deux ensemble,
Toi qui m’aimais, moi qui t’aimais.
Et la vie sépare ceux qui s’aiment,
Tout doucement, sans faire de bruit.
Et la mer efface sur le sable
Les pas des amants désunis…



Jacques Prevert is considered one of the leading French poets of the 20th century and Les Feuilles mortes is his most famous poem. “Les Feuilles mortes” literally means “Dead Leaves”. Thus the title of the poem is symbolic of the paradoxical co-existence of the past and the present. The poem is about the power of memory and it stresses how the painful experiences of the past can never be completely forgotten. The poet tells the reader that even though one does not wish to consciously remember the past, seeing certain things involuntarily reminds one of past experiences. Remembering the past brings back to the poet both joy of pleasant moments and sadness of his loss of love. Despite their separation, the poet still appreciates the value of his love in his life. The deceptively simple style of Autumn Leaves hides its subtle and profound psychological power.

French Treasures

 JacquesPrévert - Les feuilles mortes; a beautiful lesson 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fvVLa-8LtTGDYrKywASZdc5c-Jzfpx7o/view?usp=drivesdk