The Ruby Notebook

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The Ruby Notebook Page 27

by Laura Resau


  The water is so blue, such a deep, delicious, clear blue, and so full of light, I can’t stop looking at it. We’re on the upper deck of the ferry in the Vieux Port of Marseille, headed out of the harbor, past le Château d’If, toward the chain of islands to the right. Les Iles de Frioul is where Illusion is going to play tonight at a music festival. It’s also the island where Jean-Claude and his family used to go to the beach, where he and Amandine had their picnic with his mother a few weeks ago. His mother and stepfather are sitting beside him and Amandine, talking and pointing at the islands in the distance. Every once in a while, his mother leans over to kiss his cheek or touch his hair, as if to convince herself he’s really there.

  Amandine and I have formed a tentative friendship, although we’re still far from being sisterly. Next to her sit Sabina and Julien, nuzzling each other, as usual. And beside them are Layla and Ahmed, who’ve been spending more and more time together lately. He’s brought his guitar, since Illusion invited him to be their guest soloist for a few songs. His stubble is even longer and more scrappy-looking now, just the way Layla likes it.

  When I told Layla the news about Tortue, she promised that if he hasn’t contacted us by the time her teaching contract is up at the end of the year, we’ll go find him. Near Layla, over by the railing, stand Madame Chevalier and Vincent, his arm around her shoulder. Three weeks ago, her nurse made a home visit to her apartment and noticed she was looking significantly better. She brought her to the hospital for tests, which revealed not a single cancer cell. “ ‘Spontaneous remission’ is what the doctor said,” Madame Chevalier told me with a girlish laugh.

  I lean my head against Wendell’s as we peer over the opposite railing. “Don’t you wish we could dive right in?”

  He smiles his half-smile, which I will never, ever get tired of. “We will. Next summer.”

  My eyes widen. “You see us?”

  “We’re underwater, Z. Swimming together. It’s the bluest, greenest water I’ve ever seen. And there are thousands of silvery fish around us.”

  My gaze moves back to the water below us, here and now—a liquid green gemstone, impossibly bright and dark at the same time, sunlight dancing on the surface, while deep blue shadows stretch far below. Our ferry hums through the waves, swirling together the darkness and light, making its way toward the open sea.

  GLOSSARY AND PRONUNCIATION GUIDE

  * The r in French is a raspy h sound formed in the throat with the back of the tongue.

  * The n sound at the end of a word is very nasal, made with vibration in your nose, not with your tongue. (But if the n is followed by an e, it’s a regular n sound.)

  * For French vowel sounds that don’t exist in English, I gave a rough approximation. For accurate pronunciation, listen to an online dictionary (or find some French-speaking friends!).

  2eme (deuxième) étage DUH-zee-em ay-TAZH second floor (for Americans, third floor)

  à la claire fontaine ah lah CLAYR fohn-TEN at the clear fountain

  Ah bon? ah BOHN Oh really?

  Aidez-nous! EH-day-NOO Help us!

  Aix-en-Provence EX-ahn-proh-VOHNS city in southern France

  allez-y ah-lay-ZEE go ahead

  alors ah-LOHR well/so

  Amandine ah-mahn-DEEN female name

  Amant ah-MAHN lover

  attendez ah-tahn-DAY wait

  au clair de la lune oh CLAYR duh lah LEWN in the light of the moon

  au revoir oh ruh-VWAHR goodbye

  Au secours! oh suh-COOR Help!

  Bac BAHC an important French

  exam

  Béarnaise bay-ahr-NEZ type of butter sauce

  Béchamel bay-chah-MEL creamy white sauce

  bien sûr bee-EN SYUR of course

  Bizarre bee-ZAHR weird

  bon anniversaire BOHN ah-nee-vayr-SAYR happy birthday

  bon courage bohn coo-RAHZH good luck

  bon voyage bohn vwah-YAZH happy travels

  bonjour bohn-JOOR hello

  bonne chance bun SHAHNS good luck

  bonsoir bohn-SWAH good evening

  Boulangerie boo-lahn-ZHREE bakery

  ça craint sah CRAHN that/this sucks

  Ça va? sah VAH How’s it going? or It’s going (fine).

  café au lait cah-FAY oh LAY coffee with milk

  Café Cerise cah-FAY suh-REEZ Cherry Café

  Cave CAHV basement

  centimes sohn-TEEM cents

  c’est ça say SAH that’s it

  C’est chouette! say shoo-ET That’s great!

  c’est la vie say lah VEE that’s life

  C’est lui pour moi. say loo-EE poor MWAH. He’s for me. I’m for

  Moi pour lui. MWAH poor loo-EE. him.

  c’est magnifique say MAHN-ee-feek that’s wonderful

  Charcuterie shahr-kew-TREE butcher’s shop

  Château d’If shah-TOH DEEF Castle of If

  chère, chérie SHAYR (shayr-EE) dear

  Chez Gilles SHAY ZHEEL restaurant name

  Comme elle est belle! COHM el ay BEL How beautiful she/it is!

  crème brûlée CREM brew-LAY creamy, sweet dessert

  crêperie crep-REE crepe shop

  Crêpes crep crepes (thin pancakes)

  curiosités CEW-ree-ah-see-TAY curiosities

  cybercafé SEE-behr-cah-FAY Internet café

  de rien duh ree-EN it’s nothing/you’re

  welcome

  Désolé(e) day-soh-LAY sorry

  Écoute ay-COOT listen

  eh bien ay bee-EN well then

  Eh bien, dis donc! ay bee-EN dee DOHN Well then, how about that!

  enchanté(e) ahn-shahn-TAY enchanted/nice to

  meet you

  Entremont ahn-truh-MOHN an ancient Celtic-Ligurian settlement near Aix

  Entrez ahn-TRAY come in/enter

  épicerie ay-pees-REE small grocery store

  éternité ay-ter-nee-TAY eternity

  excellent ex-uh-LAHN awesome, great

  excuse-moi ex-CEWZ-MWAH excuse me

  Extraordinaire x-TROHR-dee-nayr extraordinary

  fantôme fohn-TOHM ghost/phantom

  Fête FET party

  Flics FLEEK cops

  Fou FOO crazy

  française frahn-SEZ French

  Garcon gahr-SOHN boy/young man

  Genial zhay-nee-AHL cool/nice

  Glace GLAHS ice cream

  Gourmands goor-MAHN food lovers/gourmets

  herbes de Provence AYRB duh proh-VAHNS herb blend of Southern France (rosemary, thyme, basil, marjoram, savory)

  hyper cool EEP-ayr KEWL really cool

  illusion ee-lew-zee-OHN illusion

  Imagine! ee-mah-ZHEEN Imagine!

  Incroyable ehn-cwah-YAH-bluh incredible

  Insupportable en-soo-por-TAHB-luh too much, unbearable

  je ne sais quoi zhuh nuh say KWAH a special, indescribable something (literally “I don’t know what”)

  je suis désolé(e) zhuh swee day-soh-LAY I’m sorry

  je t’aime zhuh TEM I love you

  Jean-Claude ZHON-CLOHD male name

  la femme de ma vie lah FAHM duh mah VEE the (female) love of my life

  la vie en rose lah VEE ohn ROHZ life in rose/pink (colored glasses), a song recorded by Edith Piaf

  le centre-ville SAHN-truh-VEEL downtown

  le grand amour luh GRAHND a-MOOR true love

  les eaux magiques layz OH mah-ZHEEK magic waters

  les eaux sacrées layz OH sah-CRAY sacred waters

  Les Iles de Frioul layz EEL duh free-OOL Islands of Frioul

  Les Secrets de Maude lay suh-CRAY duh MOHD Maude’s Secrets

  l’homme de ta vie LOM duh tah VEE the (male) love of your life

  Liberté absolue lee-bayr-TAY ahb-so-LEW complete freedom

  Lycée lee-SAY high school

  ma petite mah puh-TEET my little (one)

  madame mah-DAHM ma’am, Mrs., Ms.

  Madame Chevalier mah-DAHMshuh-vah-lee-AY Ms. Chevalier

  Mademoiselle mahd-
mwa-ZEL miss, young lady

  Mais MAY but

  Mais non! may NOHN But no!

  Marseille mahr-SAY big city on the Mediterranean coast of southern France

  Maude MOHD female name

  Merci mayr-SEE thank you

  merci en tout cas mayr-SEE ahn TOO CAH thanks anyway

  Merde MAYRD shit

  mes enfants mayz ahn-FAHN my children

  mille-feuilles MEEL-FUH-yuh type of pastry (literally “a thousand leaves/papers”)

  mon amour mohn ah-MOOR my love

  Mon Dieu! mohn DYUH My God!

  mon oeil mohn UH-yuh yeah, right (with sarcasm) (literally, “my eye”)

  mon père mohn PAYR my father

  monsieur muh-SYUH sir, Mr.

  Montez! MOHN-tay Get in!

  monument historique mohn-ew-MAHNees-toh-REEK historical monument

  navettes nah-VET shuttle buses

  Non NOHN no

  On y va! ohn ee VAH Let’s go!

  Ouais oo-AY yeah

  Ouf! OOF Phew!

  Oui WEE yes

  Parfait pahr-FAY perfect

  pas de problème PAH duh prohb-LEHM no problem

  Pâté pah-TAY ground liver or meat spread

  pâtisserie pah-tees-REE cake/pastry shop

  Pistou pees-TOO French pesto (ground garlic, basil, olive oil, Parmesan cheese)

  Place de la Mairie PLAHS duh lah may-REE Town Hall Square

  Place des Trois Ormeaux PLAHS day TWAHZohr-MOH Three Oaks Square

  Qu’est-ce qui se passe? kes KEE suh PAHS What’s going on? What’s wrong?

  regardez ruh-gahr-DAY watch (a command, formal/plural form)

  Rouge ROOZH red

  Rue REW road/street

  Salut sah-LEW hi

  s’il te plait SEE tuh PLAY please

  super cool SEWP-ayr KEWL really cool

  tarte au citron TAHRT oh see-TROHN lemon tart

  tarte aux fruits TAHRT oh frew-EE fruit tart

  Tortue tor-TEW turtle

  tout à fait TOOT ah FAY exactly

  très amusant TREHZ ah-mew-ZAHN very fun

  très intéressant TREHZ ahn-tay-reh-SAHN very interesting

  trompe l’oeil TROHMP-LUH-yuh painting that creates the illusion of depth

  Trop top TROH TOHP great, awesome(slang)

  un moment un moh-MAHN one moment

  vâchement cool VASH-mahn KEWL really cool

  Venez! vuh-NAY Come (here)! (formal/plural form)

  Viens (ici)! vee-EN ee-SEE Come (here)! (informal, singular form)

  Vieux Port VYUH POR Old Port

  Vincent vahn-SAHN male name

  voilà vwah-LAH there you go

  LAURA RESAU lived in the Mixtec region of Oaxaca, Mexico, for two years as an English teacher and anthropologist. She now lives with her husband, her dog, and her son, Bran, in Colorado, where she teaches cultural anthropology and ESL (English as a Second Language). She is also the author of What the Moon Saw, available from Yearling, and Red Glass, The Indigo Notebook, and Star in the Forest, all available from Delacorte Press.

 

 

 


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