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A2 French story: the same coat returns to the second-hand clothing fair

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Read an A2 French story set at a second-hand clothing fair and track one blue coat through three neighbours and its return to the same event a year later.

In short

Follow Sara → Nadia → Luc → the second-hand clothing fair. Sara no longer needs the coat; Nadia wears it for work but later prefers a shorter cycling jacket; Luc uses it for theatre. Its return to the event does not mean Sara takes it back.

Two neighbours look at a blue coat with three yellow buttons on a rack at a community clothing event.
Three yellow buttons make the blue coat recognisable when it returns to the clothing fair. Illustration: Atelier

The three yellow buttons identify the same coat each time it appears. Read once for the sequence, then look for the reason each person passes it on. The final paragraph distinguishes returning to a place from returning to the original owner.

A2 · un vêtement, plusieurs parcours

Les trois boutons jaunes

En mai de l’année dernière, Sara a apporté un long manteau bleu à la bourse aux vêtements1 du quartier. Elle avait un autre manteau et ne portait plus celui-ci. On le reconnaissait facilement à ses trois grands boutons jaunes. Nadia, sa voisine, l’a essayé et l’a choisi.

Pendant tout l’automne, Nadia a porté le manteau pour aller au travail. Il était chaud et ses grandes poches2 étaient pratiques. En janvier, elle a commencé à se déplacer à vélo. Le manteau était trop long pour ses trajets, alors elle a préféré utiliser une veste plus courte.

En février, Luc cherchait un manteau pour une pièce de théâtre3. Nadia lui a proposé le bleu. Il lui allait bien, et les boutons jaunes se voyaient même du fond de la salle. Luc l’a porté pendant deux représentations, puis l’a gardé chez lui jusqu’au printemps.

Cette année, en mai, Sara aidait de nouveau à installer la bourse. Luc est arrivé avec le manteau sur le bras. Sara a reconnu les boutons avant de reconnaître le vêtement. « Il a fait du chemin ! » a-t-elle dit. Luc lui a raconté son passage sur scène4, puis Nadia est venue ajouter son histoire.

Les trois voisins ont suspendu le manteau sur un portant5. Sara ne l’a pas repris : elle n’en avait toujours pas besoin. Une autre personne pourrait maintenant le choisir. Le vêtement revenait au même événement, mais chacun de ses propriétaires6 avait eu une raison différente de le porter ou de le transmettre.

Read it in English

In May last year, Sara brought a long blue coat to the neighbourhood second-hand clothing fair. She had another coat and no longer wore this one. It was easy to recognise by its three large yellow buttons. Nadia, her neighbour, tried it on and chose it.

Throughout the autumn, Nadia wore the coat to work. It was warm and its large pockets were practical. In January, she started travelling by bike. The coat was too long for her journeys, so she preferred to use a shorter jacket.

In February, Luc was looking for a coat for a play. Nadia offered him the blue one. It fitted him well, and the yellow buttons could be seen even from the back of the room. Luc wore it for two performances, then kept it at home until spring.

This May, Sara was again helping set up the clothing fair. Luc arrived with the coat over his arm. Sara recognised the buttons before recognising the garment. “It’s been on quite a journey!” she said. Luc told her about its time on stage, then Nadia came over to add her story.

The three neighbours hung the coat on a rack. Sara did not take it back: she still did not need it. Another person could now choose it. The garment returned to the same event, but each of its owners had had a different reason for wearing it or passing it on.

The event and the owner are different destinations

Luc brings the coat back to the second-hand clothing fair. Sara sees it there, but the story explicitly says she does not take it back. Nadia’s reason for passing it on is also specific: her travel habit changes. The text does not say the coat is damaged or unsuitable for everybody.

Question 1No account needed
Who chooses the coat from Sara at the first clothing fair?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Nadia. Nadia tries it on and chooses it in the opening paragraph.

Question 2No account needed
Why does Nadia stop using it for her journeys?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

She starts cycling and prefers a shorter jacket.. January introduces the cycling change and the coat’s length as the issue.

Question 3No account needed
What happens when Luc brings it back a year later?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

It is put on a rack for another person to choose.. The ending places it on the rack and says Sara does not reclaim it.

When retelling the story, attach a person and reason to each transfer. Then state the final location separately. This keeps a changing object’s route clear without assuming that seeing an item again means owning it again.

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