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i am jealous of Alex Prud'homme. I wish Julia Child was *my* aunt. she is funny, honest, everything awesome. i can't say i'm knowledgeable about anything French, especially French food, but that absolutely did not matter while reading this book. in fact, i didn't want the book to end. now i plan to watch every episode of The French Chef and read her other books. maybe i'll blog about it. and get a wicked book deal. and a movie. just kidding... ;)
really and truly, i loved this book...and it was a ...more
really and truly, i loved this book...and it was a ...more
I had always admired Julia Child but that appreciation grew after reading this memoir. She came from a privileged life in Pasadena but she sought adventure in the OSS during WWII in Asia. She became smitten with Paul Childs and pursued a relationship with him. At first the more sophisticated Paul was not taken with the very tall and gawky girl but they became good friends. He eventually falls in love with Julia and they get married. Paul gets an OSS assignment in Paris and Julia finds herself wi
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I don't cook and knew little to nothing about Julia Child prior to seeing the movie Julie & Julia. I became intrigued by Julia Child after seeing her reaction in the movie to her sister's pregnancy announcement (which is random I know) but I knew there was more to the story and wanted to read about her life and time in France.
The book talks a lot about food and cooking (obviously) which I have little to no interest in but overall I found the book fascinating particularly her work ethic regardin ...more
The book talks a lot about food and cooking (obviously) which I have little to no interest in but overall I found the book fascinating particularly her work ethic regardin ...more
I know this was largely ghostwritten but I really felt this book was poorly written. The narrative is engaging and the story is inspirational (don't all of us in our 30s who have yet to find our calling hope that we are late bloomers too?) but ultimatly seems rather cheesy and dull. I also thought it rather strange that the food she was cooking was rarely described in English. I felt I missed out a lot on her excitement to make something difficult because I didn't know what it was.
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Julia Child's biography starts out as a fascinating view into life in France only a few years after World War II, and this part of the book is wonderfully evocative of the time period, both the landscape and the food. Alas, time passes and the story devolves into a litany of places she went and the development of her books and TV show and it gets a bit tedious. But it's still worth reading.
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While, individually, I enjoyed each of Julia Child's delightful stories of la belle France, I felt that, as a whole, the flow of the book was a bit jumpy and disjointed. Perhaps the fault lay in that I tried to read the book as a novel. After a few weeks of picking it up, I began to treat it as a collection of short stories, and found myself far more drawn in and satisfied.
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This is a second (or third?) read of this book. It had not been entered in the list before this time so . .
Julia Child's work to bring great cooking to the world is a storied and famed history. Her personal life and challenges are illuminating as added 'ingredients' to the whole of her recipe. (I couldn't resist the food/cooking reference).
Highly recommended to bio readers, foodie/gluttons, serious connoisseurs of haute, nouvelle, and any other cuisine du jour. ...more
Julia Child's work to bring great cooking to the world is a storied and famed history. Her personal life and challenges are illuminating as added 'ingredients' to the whole of her recipe. (I couldn't resist the food/cooking reference).
Highly recommended to bio readers, foodie/gluttons, serious connoisseurs of haute, nouvelle, and any other cuisine du jour. ...more
Some of it was really good and illuminating. I have been to the restaurant Le Grand Véfour which she talks about. It is among one of the finest restaurants in Paris still, and is among the priciest as well (88 Euros for lunch). Since I had been to Paris for several months, this book might have been more interesting if I had never been. And some of the new information was great, and a lot of it flew over my head. Part of the book talks about her life in Germany and Norway (and even the United Sta
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Worthwhile for a look at the formative period of an American icon, but not enthralling unless you have an independent interest in JC or the expat experience in postwar France.
Such a joy. Child has a writing style that reads easily: full of vivid detail, unique humor, and mouth-watering descriptions of French food. And it has pictures! I feel this is a book a will treasure forever and return to again and again, especially when I'm hungry!
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May 15, 2009
April (The Steadfast Reader)
marked it as to-read
Sep 30, 2009
Lillian
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Oct 21, 2009
Emily
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Jan 20, 2010
Erin
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Jan 17, 2012
Tingting Wei
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Feb 22, 2012
Maggie
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Nov 17, 2013
Caitlin
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Apr 25, 2014
Ashley
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