Les Contamines-Montjoie...

“ Les Contamines en Confidences” by Abbot Babaz.
(out of print)

“Les Contamines au fil du Temps” by Christine Barbier.
Published by Edimontagne. July 1999.
As time goes by and the seasons play out their changing drama against the décor of baroque churches and miraculous testimonials engraved in stone, Les Contamines-Montjoie invites you to discover the intimate life of a village and its inhabitants.

“Les Contamines au début du siècle” by Ségolène Jacqueau.
Photos by the amateur photographer Doctor Ancelet.
Thanks to the combination of his two passions, the village of Les Contamines-Montjoie and photography, Dr Ancelet has left us an irreplaceable account of life in Les Contamines at the start of the century.


Le Mont-Blanc...

“Mémoires du Mont-Blanc d’antan” by Albert Mermoud.
Published by the author. November 2001.
In a sweeping historical panorama, this book relates how mankind has left his mark on this grandiose natural environment, as beautiful as it is indomitable.

“Les Mots de la Montagne autour du Mont-Blanc” by Hubert Bessat and Claudette Germi.
Editions Littéraires et Linguistiques of the University of Grenoble. 1991.
By studying the vocabulary of the mountains in the French spoken by the communities nestled under the Mont-Blanc (which is both a factor of unity and diversity), the authors introduce us to the extremely rich regional lexicon encountered around this legendary mountain.

“Lieux en Mémoire de l’Alpe” by Hubert Bessat and Claudette Germi.
Editions Littéraires et Linguistiques of the University of Grenoble. 1993.
After the recollections of the patois gathered from the local French dialect of “Mots de la Montagne autour du Mont-Blanc”, Hubert Bessat and Claudette Germi invite us to discover a realm of legendary renown, but which was rarely explored in such details: the realm of place names hitherto known only to the mountains’ shepherds and hunters.

“Les Noms du Paysage Alpin” by Hubert Bessat and Claudette Germi.
Editions Littéraires et Linguistiques of the University of Grenoble. 2001.
Hubert Bessat and Claudette Germi have given us a toponymic atlas of the French side of the Alpine Arc. A hundred or so maps, essentially devoted to relief and water, illustrate the most common geographical names found in this region that shares two distinct linguistic heritages: Franco-Provençal and Alpine Langue d’oc or Occitan.

“Les Noms du Patrimoine Alpin” by Hubert Bessat and Claudette Germi.
Editions Littéraires et Linguistiques of the University of Grenoble. 2004.
Hubert Bessat and Claudette Germi explore the more frequently changing field of place names related to human activity and the history of the Alpine civilisation.
Fiction...

“Rendez-vous à San Marco” by Christine Barbier.
Published by L’Harmattan.
The sensual and impressionistic writing of “Rendez-vous à San Marco”, submerges us in a timeless dream, filled with sounds, smells and sensations. Illusion blends with reality enveloping us in the magic of the city of the Doges. Where do dreams begin? In Venice, carnival masks, the play of light and shadow and an unbearable lightness of being, draw us closer to our inner selves and to our dreams...
Web: www.rendez-vous-a-venise.com

All these books are available at the Merlin bookstore in Les Contamines-Montjoie.
Tel.:+ 33 (0)4 50 47 06 67