I was a fan of the old Julia Child TV cooking series, so I couldn't wait to see the film, Julie & Julia, with Meryl Streep reincarnating Julia. I loved the movie, but agreed with the critics that too much time was given to Julie the blogger, and not enough to Julia.
I got my hands on Julia's account of her introduction to France and French cooking, My Life in France. which fills in the holes in the story: how Julia fell in love with French people (contrary to most Americans' view of the French as unfriendly snobs), how she became friends with the young maid who came with her first Parisian apartment - after seeing the maid burst into tears when Julia tried to sit her down to talk to her in mangled French about how to do things "right" (i.e., Julia's way), how she began to amass a huge collection of French cooking tools, etc.
As soon as I finish that book, my next project is to simplify Julie's project. I'm going to find the simplest and easiest recipe in Mastering the Art of French Cooking, which has never gone out of print and went back on the NY Times bestseller list! After I find the recipe, I will cook it. I'm betting it will have something to do with eggs. Stay tuned.
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someday someone will make the definitive movie about julia child, but i guess i have to disagree with you and the critics. i simply LOVED the movie, and i loved the way it went back and forth from julia to julie. i didn't feel there was too much footage on julie....it WAS her story.
ReplyDeleteThe movie hasn't come out here yet (next week or so) but I did have the Julie Julia book which was okay. I found Julie a little bit whiney for my taste. HOWEVER, it rekindled my love of French food. I had loaned the Julie/Julia book to a visiting Minnesotan for her trip home and in thanks she sent me My Life in France AND Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Mrs Child herself! This particular guest has cemented her permanent invitation to Chez Moi. I loved both of the books tremendously!! Now I wish I had watched The French Chef shows more often when I was a kid instead of merely tolerating them until a kid's show was on.
ReplyDeleteJay gave me volumes I and II of Mastering the Art of French Cooking for my 40th birthday and I'm amazed at how simple some things are to make! I had NO IDEA how to make a simple lemon/butter sauce for fish...no idea, until now. Let us know what you make Major Reader!
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