My Life in France
by Alex Prud'Homme, Julia Child
|
List Price: Our Price: $3.90 You Save: $12.10 (76%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.01 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of My Life in France
Book Review: passion and persistence
Summary: 3 Stars
I don't cook and I don't speak French, but I did enjoy this book. I admired Julia Child's passion for French cooking and her incredible persistence in testing and creating recipes. I had no idea how hard she worked on each and every recipe. It was a good reminder of the importance of passion and persistence in one's pursuits.
I would love to watch some of her cooking shows now (unfortunately, I mainly remember Dan Aykroyd's impersonation of her on Saturday Night Live). I admired how she threw herself into her work and immersed herself in the culture of each new country she lived in. Her enthusiasm jumped out of each page. I marveled at how much meat and wine these people could consume. The weak parts of the book were her sprinkling in of current events, her belittlement of her father, and her categorization of people as "intellectual" or not. The book's was at its best when it focused on food.
Book Review: Inspiring and fun!
Summary: 5 Stars
What a fantastic, adventurous life Julia Child had the great fortune to lead! I learned so much about Julia as a person by reading My Life in France, and the details in this book made it that much more fun to go back to her first cookbook (I have a copy from 1965) to create more of those wonderful French dishes. The inspiration really came when I discovered that Julia didn't even take her first cooking school until the age of 37! As a 37 year old myself, it truly opened my eyes to the possibilities that are on the horizon. Julia passed away before the book was finished, which made me recognize how Alex Prud'homme's writing captured the very essence of Julia in this wonderful work. Don't worry if you are not into food, wine, or cooking, if you love the human spirit you will love this book. I'll never make scrambled eggs any other way....Book Review: A Memoir
Summary: 5 Stars
"My Life in France" by Julia Child w/ Alex Prudhomme, ©2006
I love how this book reminds me of Julia, from seeing her on television. You can just hear her expressing herself, in person, about something, just that way.
She had a love of life and her husband. Of course she was a bit privileged and her husband earned a good salary with the fringe benefit of living in foreign countries, like France and Norway. But the privilege and life she led seems to be less important than her attitude: she truly was having fun.
This book is not limited to her life in France. She describes her childhood, how she met her husband, her parents, where they lived in Washington, her politics, etc. It is more her memoir. A more fun memoir can not be imagined. It is wonderful she and her great-nephew got this done.
Book Review: Wonderful book
Summary: 5 Stars
Although I wish the book had had pictures and the French bits had had translations I still can't bear to give this book anything less than the full 5 stars. The movie Julie & Julia was my only exposure to the legendary Julia Child (too young for the TV show) but the depiction by the also legendary Meryl Streep compelled me to get this book.
Julia is intelligent, hard working, strong, funny and most of all tenacious, determined to get the most accurate information for her recipes, it really made me admire her as a person. Reading her memoirs of her time in Europe and her writing/TV career felt like spending time and reading letters written by a dear friend from a different time. I wish I could thank her for sharing her life with us.
Book Review: Hats off to the First Lady of Cooking
Summary: 5 Stars
This was a wonderful memoir about Julia Child. I especially found it interesting that she fell into cooking at the age of forty. Her passion to learn about cooking and gastronomy, as well as, her love for good food and wine were contagious. It made me want to get in the kitchen and whip something up. I think what Julia said at the end of the book, sums up what I learned by reading My Life in France, "Learn how to cook-try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless, and above all have fun!".
While I was reading My Life in France, I watched the video "Julia Child! America's Favorite Chef". I found it to be a good compliment to the book. It was like a visual summary of everything I had read.