Words as Keys - Stories from A French Life

In partnership with:
La Renaissance Française, USA
American Society of the French Academic Palms
American Association of Teachers of French

Event begins at 1pm PT / 2pm MT / 3pm CT / 4pm ET

Each new word isn’t just vocabulary—it’s a key that takes us a little further from “getting by” to a deeper sense of belonging in France.

Join us for a conversation with France Today columnist and blogger Kristin Espinasse who will talk about her new book, A Year in a French Life.

Kristin Espinasse is the writer behind French Word-A-Day, the long-running blog and newsletter she founded in 2002. Through brief, true-to-life vignettes from her family’s life in the south of France, she pairs approachable vocabulary with cultural context and a mini-glossary—French Vocabulary—that teachers and learners can use right away. Her everyday encounters often become spontaneous posts on the blog, keeping the journal fresh, alive, and relatable. She is the author of Words in a French Life: Lessons in Love & Language in the South of France, and her ongoing book series A YEAR IN A FRENCH LIFE gathers favorite stories with beautiful photos, taken locally, to illustrate each chapter.

For twenty years, Kristi has written for France Today magazine, notably the back-page column “Le Dernier Mot.”Recently, La Renaissance Française awarded her the Médaille d’or des Valeurs francophones for contributions that share and celebrate francophone culture. She has spoken at Shakespeare and Company and the American Library in Paris, and at Alliance Française meetups in Seattle and Denver. In talks with students, teachers, and general audiences, Kristi focuses on everyday encounters—at the market, in the vineyard, or in a village café—and what they reveal about language, etiquette, and the art of noticing. Warm, candid, and practical, she aims to help audiences build confidence and curiosity in French while savoring the small moments that make francophone life so engaging. She lives in the south of France with her Franco-American family.

Order your copy of A Year in a French Life from Bookshop.org.