I must admit that I have never attempted any of Julia's recipes, except maybe the Scrambled Eggs, that said, her book My Life in France is one of my favorite books. On August 15, 1912, Julia McWilliams was born in Pasadena California. In 1942, Julia was declared too tall to join the Women's Army Corps and so, she joined the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) as a typist but soon became a researcher of the top-secret variety, working directly under William J. Donovan, head of the OSS. Her file from OSS became available to the public in 2008 and can be seen here: Child, Julia [McWilliams, Julia] - OSS File. Part of her duties included helping to develop shark repellant that is still used to this day. While working for the OSS, Julia met fellow OSS officer Paul Child. They married in 1946 and remained so until Paul's death in 1994. It was Paul who introduced Julia to French Cuisine. When Paul was assigned to France with the US Information Agency in 1948, Julia began her foray into the world of French Cuisine by attending Le Cordon Bleu. After Cordon Bleu, Julia, along with Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, created L'école des trois gourmandes (The School of the Three Food Lovers), to teach American women in Paris how to cook. In 1961,
"If you're afraid of butter, use cream." So decrees Julia Child, the legendary culinary authority and cookbook author who taught America how to cook-and how to eat. This delightful volume of quotations compiles some of Julia's most memorable lines on eating-"The only time to eat diet food is while you're waiting for the steak to cook"-on drinking, on life-"I think every woman should have a blowtorch"-on love, travel, France, and much more.
Here, in Spitz's biography, the Julia Child we know and love comes vividly to life. Spitz provides a clear-eyed portrait of one of the most fascinating and influential Americans of our time - a woman known to all, yet known by only a few. 'Dearie' is a story about a woman's search for her own unique expression.
Shy sixteen-year-old Elaine has long dreamed of being the next Julia Child, to the dismay of her feminist mother, but when her first friend, the outrageous Lucida Sans, convinces Elaine to enter a cooking contest, anything could happen.
"In Paris, Julia devoured recipe books, shopped in outdoor markets, consumed all kinds of foods, and whipped through culinary school. And although she wasn't always successful in the kitchen, she was determined to "master the art" of French cooking. Through perseverance and grit, Julia became a chef who shared her passion with the world, making cooking fun, and turning every meal into a special event." --Publisher's website.
Follow Julia Child-chef, author, and television personality-from her childhood in Pasadena, California, to her life as a spy in WWII, to the cooking classes she took in Paris, to the publication of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, to the funny moments of being a chef on TV. This is a comprehensive and enchanting picture book biography, told in many panels and jam-packed with lively, humorous, and child-friendly details. Young chefs and Julia Child fans will exclaim, "ooooh la la," about this book, which is as energetic and eccentric as the chef herself.
Julie and Julia is the story of Julie Powell's attempt to revitalizeher marriage, restore her ambition, and save her soul by cooking all 524recipes in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, VolumeI, in a period of 365 days.The result is a masterful medley of BridgetJones' Diary meets Like Water for Chocolate, mixed with a healthy dose oforiginal wit, warmth, and inspiration that sets this memoir apart from mosttales of personal redemption.When we first meet Julie, she's a frustrated temp-to-perm secretary whoslaves away at a thankless job, only to return to an equally demoralizingapartment in the outer boroughs of Manhattan each evening. At the urging ofEric, her devoted and slightly geeky husband, she decides to start a blogthat will chronicle what she dubs the "Julie/Julia Project." What follows isa year of butter-drenched meals that will both necessitate the wearing of anunbearably uncomfortable girdle on the hottest night of the year, as well asthe realization that life is what you make of it and joy is not asimpossible a quest as it may seem, even when it's -10 degrees out and yourpipes are frozen.Powell is a natural when it comes to connecting with her readers, which isprobably why her blog generated so much buzz, both from readers and mediaalike. And while her self-deprecating sense of humor can sometimes dissolveinto whininess, she never really loses her edge, or her sense of purpose.Even on day 365, she's working her way through Mayonnaise Collee and endingthe evening "back exactly where we started--just Eric and me, three cats andBuffy...sitting on a couch in the outer boroughs, eating, with Juliachortling alongside us...."Inspired and encouraging, Julie and Julia is a unique opportunity tojoin one woman's attempt to change her life, and have a laugh, or ten, alongthe way. --Gisele Toueg
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