My Life in France by: Julia Child

There is so much to say about this book, both good and bad. I enjoyed it, but it surprisingly took me months to finish it, which is highly unusual for me. It isn't uncommon for me to complete a book in one night. So why was I so slow in completing it? I think that while it was a good book and it had interesting content, there really was no climax. Also, the majority of the book was about Julia Child's life before fame and I was really hoping for more about her life once she became a famous chef.  But then again, her life in France was so vital to her later success so it was a paramount part of her story. I'm definitely going back and forth with this one.

I loved hearing about her trips to the market and the parties she threw for friends. The house parties were the perfect picture of what entertainment was like in the 40s and 50s... something I wish existed more today. I could picture them all sitting around the kitchen table sipping wine and being served elaborate meals while they discussed politics, philosophy, and art. The trips that Julia described her and Paul taking through the French countryside sounded majestic and inviting. I found myself reminiscing about my own trip to France and the feeling of freedom and elegance I found there. Imagining her life there was one of the greatest points of the book. She led a life to be envied.

Then I read about her pain. Her pain from being unable to conceive a child, from her broken relationship with her father, and the constant rejection from publishers. Her life might have been charmed and full of love, but she still had pains of life like everyone else. Those details made her book real and relate-able.

And that doesn't even touch on learning about her cooking and the road to her becoming THE Julia Child. I love the phrase she has, "Never apologize!" Those two words can be very empowering in the kitchen. She was absolutely fearless...determined to succeed regardless of how much everyone expected her to fail. Though I did find it funny that she failed her first exam at Le Cordon Bleu... who knew?! Again though, there wasn't very much in the book about her life during/ after fame (and maybe that's because of when she wrote the book) so I still feel like I don't know much about her later life.

I leave this book having learned about motivation and perseverance. It took her years to get her cookbook published yet she did not compromise or turn her book into what everyone else wanted just so she could get published. I found that a rare and admirable trait. In fact, she was middle aged by the time she became famous, which is motivation in itself and also serves as a reminder that life isn't over at 40. While the book was a little slow, it did kick my butt back into the kitchen to start learning new recipes and perfecting my skills. I know one thing... I wish I loved something the way that Julia Child loved food.