Riquet à la Houppe: reading level, length and free edition
Riquet à la Houppe by Charles Perrault is a fairy tale in French. Our team rates it B1. It runs to 2,196 words with 617 different word forms, about 11–22 min of reading at 200 to 100 words per minute, and it is free from Project Gutenberg.
- Author
- Charles Perrault
- Language
- French
- Level
- B1
- Form
- fairy tale
- Words
- 2,196
- Different word forms
- 617
- Forms for 95% / 98%
- 508 / 574
- Reading time
- 11–22 min
- Free edition
- Project Gutenberg
Conte de fée sur un prince laid mais spirituel et une princesse sotte mais belle.
Is Riquet à la Houppe right for your level?
To recognise 95% of the running words in Riquet à la Houppe, you need its 508 most frequent word forms; for 98%, the share at which most readers manage a novel without a dictionary, 574. The median French B1 book in our table needs 4,435 forms for 95%, so by this measure the book is easier than most for its level: number 1 of 3, easiest first.
A word form is any spelling that appears in the text, so “walk” and “walked” count twice, and names count too. These numbers are a guide to how much vocabulary the book asks for, not a test. The level itself was set by hand by our team. Before you commit, read one page of the free edition and count the words you do not know: the one-page test takes two minutes.
Which words should you know before you start?
These are the words that Riquet à la Houppe uses most often but that are not among the 2,000 most common word forms across all 37 French books in our library; the number is how many times each appears. Names of people and places are left out. Learning a handful of them first makes the opening chapters easier.
- aînée 6
- épouser 5
- naissance 4
- cadette 4
- spirituel 3
- stupide 3
- avantage 3
How does it begin?
Il était une fois une reine qui eut un fils si laid et si mal fait, qu’on douta longtemps s’il avait forme humaine. Une fée assistait à sa naissance, elle assura qu’il aurait beaucoup d’esprit: elle ajouta même qu’il pourrait, en vertu du don qu’elle venait de lui faire, donner autant d’esprit qu’il en aurait …
From the Project Gutenberg edition, which is in the public domain. If this paragraph already feels slow, try a book one level lower.
How long does it take to read?
| Words | 100 wpm | 150 wpm | 200 wpm | 250 wpm |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,196 | under 1 h | under 1 h | under 1 h | under 1 h |
Learners reading a book at their level often manage 100 to 150 words per minute, and readers in their first language 200 to 250. Where these speeds come from, and a calculator for your own: How long does it take to read a book?
Where can you read it for free?
The free edition is Project Gutenberg eBook #17098. Project Gutenberg publishes books that are in the public domain in the United States, as EPUB, Kindle and plain text, free and without an account. Copyright terms differ by country: if you live outside the United States, check that the book is out of copyright where you are before you download it.
To read it with a translation over every word you tap, open it in Readlang Mobile on iPhone or iPad.
What to read next at B1
French books at the same level that ask for a similar amount of vocabulary:
- Le Horla, Guy de Maupassant: 41,691 words, 4,435 forms for 95%
- Boule de Suif, Guy de Maupassant: 36,423 words, 4,979 forms for 95%
See also all French books by level and books at B1 in all five languages.