My Life in France
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Filed under Cook Books
Product Description
In her own words, here is the captivating story of Julia Child’s years in France, where she fell in love with French food and found ‘her true calling.’
From the moment the ship docked in Le Havre in the fall of 1948 and Julia watched the well-muscled stevedores unloading the cargo to the first perfectly soigné meal that she and her husband, Paul, savored in Rouen en route to Paris, where he was to work for the USIS, Julia had an awakening that changed her life. Soon this tall, outspoken gal from Pasadena, California, who didn’t speak a word of French and knew nothing about the country, was steeped in the language, chatting with purveyors in the local markets, and enrolled in the Cordon Bleu.
After managing to get her degree despite the machinations of the disagreeable directrice of the school, Julia started teaching cooking classes herself, then teamed up with two fellow gourmettes, Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, to help them with a book they were trying to write on French cooking for Americans. Throwing herself heart and soul into making it a unique and thorough teaching book, only to suffer several rounds of painful rejection, is part of the behind-the-scenes drama that Julia reveals with her inimitable gusto and disarming honesty.
Filled with the beautiful black-and-white photographs that Paul loved to take when he was not battling bureaucrats, as well as family snapshots, this memoir is laced with wonderful stories about the French character, particularly in the world of food, and the way of life that Julia embraced so wholeheartedly. Above all, she reveals the kind of spirit and determination, the sheer love of cooking, and the drive to share that with her fellow Americans that made her the extraordinary success she became.
Le voici. Et bon appétit!
Amazon.com Review
Book Description
Julia Child single handedly awakened America to the pleasures of good cooking with her cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking and her television show The French Chef, but as she reveals in this bestselling memoir, she didn’t know the first thing about cooking when she landed in France.
Indeed, when she first arrived in 1948 with her husband, Paul, she spoke no French and knew nothing about the country itself. But as she dove into French culture, buying food at local markets and taking classes at the Cordon Bleu, her life changed forever. Julia’s unforgettable story unfolds with the spirit so key to her success as a cook and teacher and writer, brilliantly capturing one of the most endearing American personalities of the last fifty years.
Julie & Julia is now a major motion picture (releasing in August 2009) starring Meryl Streep as Julia Child. It is partially based on her memoir, My Life in France. Enjoy these images from the film, and click the thumbnails to see larger images.
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Tags: Cook Books
A. Hunt on Wed, 23rd Dec 2009 9:43 pm
The correct book was shipped. No pages were missing/folded/bent, etc. There were several small scratches/marks on the cover but those may be due to an unusually easy to scuff cardstock and the fact that the cover is white. I was, however, disappointed due to the very noticeable red permanent marker dot on the bottom binding that spread across a good chunk of pages. It may not have been an issue had this book not been bought as a gift for someone. This was a second attempt at ordering this book under the “new” category that had this blemish. I will return it like the first. I guess it is common for books to have this dot, however, at first I thought it was blood due to the irregular shape. If it were me, I would put these books under “used” or mention this characteristic in the description.
Rating: 2 / 5
frances fairbanks on Wed, 23rd Dec 2009 10:01 pm
Julia Child was totally cold hearted about animals and indeed, how they were sacrified or slaughtered. Looking for meats for new recipes,she was delighted to come upon a rabbit soaked in its own blood. She had no qualms about cutting up a lobster while it was still alive.
Her “cookery” obsession permeated her life and some of the pictures of France when she lived there are vivid. Julia too frequently peppers the text with French expressions, probably to reinforce how “French” she thinks she is. All the descriptions of the food, along with the constant reminders of her relentless bent for research and shopping, become tiresome. Julia Child is candid about who she is, but she is hardly likeable.
Rating: 2 / 5
Gilles Belin on Thu, 24th Dec 2009 12:18 am
I could not stand not seeing a five start review for this book … or for anything related to Julia
I only read an excerpt of this book in a magazine and was hooked and thrilled.
Rating: 5 / 5
Weston L. Thomas on Thu, 24th Dec 2009 3:06 am
am i the only person not to like this book? not the julia i knew, there is a sourness to it, and not very well edited . some pictures have captions, and some do not, some french is translated and some is not. Paul’s painting were pretty good, they are refereed to but never seen . julia child had breast cancer in the 70s, it was a very big deal for her ,as it is for all woman, and it is not even mentioned. weston thomas
Rating: 1 / 5
Scazza on Thu, 24th Dec 2009 3:55 am
You give me the sample and then won’t allow me to download the book. Does the (crappy) movie want us all to buy the book for their cover advertising? I think it’s unfair to your customers to remove a book you have available in your search in samples, and then withdraw it without comment. If you are loyal to corporations first, you could at least show some goodwill by explaining. When will it be available? Probably once we don’t want it anymore. Good thing I didn’t buy the full kindle and only have the iPhone app. Unreliable.
Rating: 3 / 5