Julia Child and Alex Prud’homme have written a wonderful memoir of Julia Child’s journey to learn how to be The French Chef. Every page in this book focused on food; what she was eating, what she was cooking, and what she was serving.
In 352 pages, Julia Child shared her story as she moved to France, learn to be a French chef, and later became an American cooking. The book has two major parts. Part one covers her adventures in France as she learned to cook. Part two focuses on the writing of Mastering the Art of French Cooking.
They pulled the book, My Life in France, together from letters that she and her husband, Paul, had sent to her husband’s twin brother between 1948 and 1945. I suspect she also kept meticulous notes of places she had been, people she had visited, and food she had consumed.
Child included French terms, phrases, and food names throughout the book. In some cases, these phrases were not defined and made reading the book a little more challenging.
There were many photos taken by her husband, Paul, sprinkled throughout the book. Paul was in charge of visual presentations for the Department of United States Information Services and the reason Julia was living in France.
In the book, Child spoke about the many and diverse relationships she had with people. These relationships included friends she met on the street as well as relations she had with her family. She shared both the good and the bad. For example, she discussed the strained relationship she had with their father and the changing relationship she had with her co-writer, Simca. Additionally, she gave a wonderful glimpse of post-World War II France and the 1950s and 60s. She accented these accounts with vivid descriptions of the architecture and culture of different parts of France.
Because of the book, I had the opportunity to watch the movie, Julie & Julia. It is not a movie that I would have sought out on my own accord. Because of the book, I did watch and enjoy it.
I chose My Life in France because of the Modern Mrs. Darcy reading challenge. My goal was to read a book set somewhere I’ve never been but would like to visit. I’ve never been to France, but I have a classmate and friend who lives in France. One day, I would like to travel there. I am also fascinated by cooking and watch various cooking shows. While I do remember Julia Child on television, I don’t remember sitting down to watch her. I intend to seek out The French Chef and watch a couple episodes. It was fascinating to get a glimpse of behind the scenes in the production of the show.
I enjoyed reading My Life in France. I got to know Julia Child a bit more. I learned a little about French cooking and the French culture. I also a better glimpse of this historical place and time. I would recommend this book as well as the movie Julie & Julia.
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