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Julia Child Rules: Lessons On Savoring Life
Many of us have dog-eared copies of Mastering the Art of French Cooking in our kitchens or fondly remember watching episodes of The French Chef, but what was behind the enormous appeal of this ungainly, unlikely woman, who became a superstar in midlife and changed our approach to food and cooking forever?
In the spirit of The Gospel According to Coco Chanel and How Georgia Became O'Keeffe, Julia Child Rules dissects the life of the sunny, unpretentious chef, author, cooking show star, and bon vivant, with an eye towards learning how we, too, can savor life.
With her characteristic wit and flair, Karen Karbo takes us for a spin through Julia's life: from her idyllic childhood in California to her confusing young adulthood in New York; her years working for the OSS in Sri Lanka; her world class love affairs with Paris and Paul Child; and her decades as America's beloved French chef. Karbo weaves in her own personal experiences and stops for important life lessons along the way: how to live by your whims, make the world your oyster, live happily married, work hard, and enjoy a life of full immersion. It celebrates Julia's indomitable spirit and irrepressible joy, giving readers a taste of what it means to master the art of living.
In the spirit of The Gospel According to Coco Chanel and How Georgia Became O'Keeffe, Julia Child Rules dissects the life of the sunny, unpretentious chef, author, cooking show star, and bon vivant, with an eye towards learning how we, too, can savor life.
With her characteristic wit and flair, Karen Karbo takes us for a spin through Julia's life: from her idyllic childhood in California to her confusing young adulthood in New York; her years working for the OSS in Sri Lanka; her world class love affairs with Paris and Paul Child; and her decades as America's beloved French chef. Karbo weaves in her own personal experiences and stops for important life lessons along the way: how to live by your whims, make the world your oyster, live happily married, work hard, and enjoy a life of full immersion. It celebrates Julia's indomitable spirit and irrepressible joy, giving readers a taste of what it means to master the art of living.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
31 people are currently reading
991 people want to read
About the author
Karen Karbo
36 books225 followersKaren Karbo's first novel, Trespassers Welcome Here, was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and a Village Voice Top Ten Book of the Year. Her other two adult novels, The Diamond Lane and Motherhood Made a Man Out of Me, were also named New York Times Notable Books. The Stuff of Life, about the last year she spent with her father before his death, was an NYT Notable Book, a People Magazine Critics' Choice, a Books for a Better Life Award finalist, and a winner of the Oregon Book Award for Creative Non-fiction.
Karbo is most well known for her international best-selling Kick Ass Women series, which examines the lives of a quartet of iconic 20th century women. Julia Child Rules (2013), How Georgia Became O'Keeffe (2011), The Gospel According to Coco Chanel (2009), and How to Hepburn (2007)
Her short stories, essays, articles and reviews have appeared in Elle, Vogue, Esquire, Outside, O, More, The New Republic, The New York Times, salon.com and other magazines. She is a recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in Fiction, was a winner of the General Electric Younger Writer Award, and was one of 24 writers chosen for the inaugural Amtrak Writers residency.
In addition, Karbo penned three books in the Minerva Clark mystery series for children: Minerva Clark Gets A Clue, Minerva Clark Goes to the Dogs, and Minerva Clark Gives Up the Ghost.
She is the co-author, with Gabrielle Reece, of Big Girl in the Middle, and the New York Times bestselling, My Foot is Too Big for the Glass Slipper: A Guide to the Less than Perfect Life.
Karbo also contributed to the anthologies, The Bitch is Back and What My Mother Gave Me: Thirty-one Women on the Gifts That Mattered Most.
Karen grew up in Los Angeles, California and lives in Portland, Oregon where she continues to kick ass.
Karbo is most well known for her international best-selling Kick Ass Women series, which examines the lives of a quartet of iconic 20th century women. Julia Child Rules (2013), How Georgia Became O'Keeffe (2011), The Gospel According to Coco Chanel (2009), and How to Hepburn (2007)
Her short stories, essays, articles and reviews have appeared in Elle, Vogue, Esquire, Outside, O, More, The New Republic, The New York Times, salon.com and other magazines. She is a recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in Fiction, was a winner of the General Electric Younger Writer Award, and was one of 24 writers chosen for the inaugural Amtrak Writers residency.
In addition, Karbo penned three books in the Minerva Clark mystery series for children: Minerva Clark Gets A Clue, Minerva Clark Goes to the Dogs, and Minerva Clark Gives Up the Ghost.
She is the co-author, with Gabrielle Reece, of Big Girl in the Middle, and the New York Times bestselling, My Foot is Too Big for the Glass Slipper: A Guide to the Less than Perfect Life.
Karbo also contributed to the anthologies, The Bitch is Back and What My Mother Gave Me: Thirty-one Women on the Gifts That Mattered Most.
Karen grew up in Los Angeles, California and lives in Portland, Oregon where she continues to kick ass.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 101 reviews
September 27, 2018
I am a huge fan of the great Julia, so this book was calling for me, “Pick me up, Cyndi. You know you want too!” Of course many books call to me this way (or maybe I’m just hearing voices. 🤷🏼♀️)
This is a very well researched and very well written biography of a great lady. The author and her friend spend time in France to research the places Julia cooked in and wrote her books. (Wish I could travel to France to research a book. Like wine 🍷I could go to France, drink lots of wine and then write about it. Hmmm. In this magical daydream I would never get a hangover)
But I digress...So, excellent book on an awesome person!
This is a very well researched and very well written biography of a great lady. The author and her friend spend time in France to research the places Julia cooked in and wrote her books. (Wish I could travel to France to research a book. Like wine 🍷I could go to France, drink lots of wine and then write about it. Hmmm. In this magical daydream I would never get a hangover)
But I digress...So, excellent book on an awesome person!
December 31, 2017
Yet another Julia Child book that was a pure delight. My only quibble was the author had lots of footnotes. Now I know I need new glasses, but most of the time I missed the asterisk, so I ended up just reading them on their own or searching for the spot in the copy. Really annoying. I tried to let it go, but just couldn’t.
October 1, 2013
You know those times when a book magically appears at just the right time and place in your life? Even if things are going fine and dandy, I guarantee you'll feel that way after reading Julia Child Rules. I'm not much of a cook, and don't know much about Julia Child beyond the movie Julie and Julia, but you don't have to in order to appreciate this awesome book. Karbo's writing style is vivid, warm, and engaging.
I devoured this book--in little nibbles--because every time I put it down, I had a spring in my step. It's not a standard biography; think of it as a lyrical lesson in joie de vivre structured around Julia Child's life. Karbo inserts just enough of her own life in order for you to appreciate where she's coming from, and to contrast some of Child's life with the less glamorous ordeals of the everyday cook. Her genuine love of Child's spirit/moxie is contagious. Highly recommended!
I devoured this book--in little nibbles--because every time I put it down, I had a spring in my step. It's not a standard biography; think of it as a lyrical lesson in joie de vivre structured around Julia Child's life. Karbo inserts just enough of her own life in order for you to appreciate where she's coming from, and to contrast some of Child's life with the less glamorous ordeals of the everyday cook. Her genuine love of Child's spirit/moxie is contagious. Highly recommended!
November 19, 2014
This was a curious read. At times, I was really bored when it became more about the author's childhood and her lack of interest in cooking. What did keep me reading was the interesting life of Julia Child. She is a fascinating, fastidious(in the culinary sense) person who truly exemplifies joie de vivre, through out all of her many endeavors. I loved hearing about Julia's process in writing the cookbook. That was amazing and so insightful. I am really inspired to find a copy of the second edition of her famous volumes on Mastering the Art of French Cuisine and baking some of her classic recipes.
October 17, 2021
What an absolutely delightful book! Even as I write that, I hear Julia saying it in her joyful, slightly nasal, burbly trill. Karen Karbo's book is one part very charming mini-biography on the incomparable Julia Child, one part love letter, and one part Karbo's frank and engaging account of her own reactions, emotions and experiences related to food in general and to Julia in particular. It's fun to read and chock-full of Julia's wonderful, irreplaceable wisdom. Loved it.
February 12, 2014
This Karen Karbo book was a delight to read.
I read it after reading Julie & Julia so I recommend you also read both books together.
Karen Karbo details her infatuation with Julia Child. The most memorable part of the book was when she and a friend rent an apartment in Paris to cook a Julia Child-inspired meal in the kitchen.
As a cook myself, I'm drawn to any book that talks about a love of cooking. Cooking a meal isn't sexist. Men can benefit from cooking too. It's a lost art: to cook with love over a stove instead of wolfing down fast food from a plastic container.
Julia Child Rules was a breezy, shorter book long on fascination with this cook that rose to fame only in mid-life.
For all women longing to re-invent ourselves or truly become who we are after 35 and older:
Karen Karbo's book shows us it's not ever too late to cook up a feast and celebrate ourselves:
as cooks, as women, as fierce females blazing a trail.
We owe a debt to Julia Child who lived a long life doing what she loved.
In the end, doing what you love is what counts.
With or without a blow torch.
I read it after reading Julie & Julia so I recommend you also read both books together.
Karen Karbo details her infatuation with Julia Child. The most memorable part of the book was when she and a friend rent an apartment in Paris to cook a Julia Child-inspired meal in the kitchen.
As a cook myself, I'm drawn to any book that talks about a love of cooking. Cooking a meal isn't sexist. Men can benefit from cooking too. It's a lost art: to cook with love over a stove instead of wolfing down fast food from a plastic container.
Julia Child Rules was a breezy, shorter book long on fascination with this cook that rose to fame only in mid-life.
For all women longing to re-invent ourselves or truly become who we are after 35 and older:
Karen Karbo's book shows us it's not ever too late to cook up a feast and celebrate ourselves:
as cooks, as women, as fierce females blazing a trail.
We owe a debt to Julia Child who lived a long life doing what she loved.
In the end, doing what you love is what counts.
With or without a blow torch.
November 6, 2014
Sigh. I wanted to like it. Unfortunately somewhere shy of half way, I tossed this book aside to pick up something more enjoyable. And I cannot make myself go back to it.
I thought at first it was the way the author squints at Child thru the lens of her own life and self-proclaimed neuroses, in order to derive Important Life Lessons for us all. Then I thought maybe it was the way she spends half of each chapter whining about why she herself does not love to cook. However, what finally drove me away was the overall tone. Too much trying to be droll about life, the universe, and everything.
I thought at first it was the way the author squints at Child thru the lens of her own life and self-proclaimed neuroses, in order to derive Important Life Lessons for us all. Then I thought maybe it was the way she spends half of each chapter whining about why she herself does not love to cook. However, what finally drove me away was the overall tone. Too much trying to be droll about life, the universe, and everything.
January 11, 2021
I really enjoyed this fun, entertaining biography of Julia Child with a mixture of memoir by Karen Karbo on the side. I didn't really become a fan of Julia Child until after I read Julie & Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes . And honestly, I loved Meryl Streep in the movie version of the book. Karen Karbo even mentioned the Julia Child's great masterpiece - Mastering the Art of French Cooking saw a spike in sales as a result of Julie & Julia (guilty).
Since then, I have read several biographies of Julia Child and found her life story fascinating. What attracted me most was her attitude about facing adversity, struggling against the norms and still finding a way to do what she wanted to do. These very characteristics are what Karen Karbo focused on in her book. She plowed though Julia's life in an unconventional approach to biography. To add to Julia's story, Karen explained her own relationship with food and cooking, her mom's approach to cooking and other related personal tales and opinions. To top it off, she and her friend Kathy rented an apartment in Paris and cooked fabulous meals in honor and appreciation of the woman who changed cooking (and television watching) for all of us Americans who cook.
I loved that Karen complained that there are way too many dishes to wash after you attempt these crazy 85-step recipes (no one else admits that). I loved that she discussed the food issues with cooking a certain way (meat, dairy, butter, more butter, etc.) and the struggles of cooking for children who all barely tolerate what she cooked.
I chuckled and snorted and laughed out loud a few times while reading this book. I recommend it to anyone who has an affinity for Julia Child and has already read at least one or two books on her life. For my next book, I have been inspired to read As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto: Food, Friendship, and the Making of a Masterpiece. It's been sitting on my shelf for so long and now that I have finished this book, I need to keep reading about Julia. She was such a positive force of energy! I also plan to read more books by Karen Karbo - quite a fun approach to writing.
Since then, I have read several biographies of Julia Child and found her life story fascinating. What attracted me most was her attitude about facing adversity, struggling against the norms and still finding a way to do what she wanted to do. These very characteristics are what Karen Karbo focused on in her book. She plowed though Julia's life in an unconventional approach to biography. To add to Julia's story, Karen explained her own relationship with food and cooking, her mom's approach to cooking and other related personal tales and opinions. To top it off, she and her friend Kathy rented an apartment in Paris and cooked fabulous meals in honor and appreciation of the woman who changed cooking (and television watching) for all of us Americans who cook.
I loved that Karen complained that there are way too many dishes to wash after you attempt these crazy 85-step recipes (no one else admits that). I loved that she discussed the food issues with cooking a certain way (meat, dairy, butter, more butter, etc.) and the struggles of cooking for children who all barely tolerate what she cooked.
I chuckled and snorted and laughed out loud a few times while reading this book. I recommend it to anyone who has an affinity for Julia Child and has already read at least one or two books on her life. For my next book, I have been inspired to read As Always, Julia: The Letters of Julia Child and Avis DeVoto: Food, Friendship, and the Making of a Masterpiece. It's been sitting on my shelf for so long and now that I have finished this book, I need to keep reading about Julia. She was such a positive force of energy! I also plan to read more books by Karen Karbo - quite a fun approach to writing.
February 11, 2015
Poorly written. Disjointed. Expected to read more about the life and times of Julia Child. There was some biography of interest; thus, the two stars. Much ridiculous introspection and opinions from the author that were difficult to understand, especially how they related to Julia's life story. Yet there they were like a red herring. This was a thoroughly disappointing read and merely a vehicle for Karbo to stroke her massive ego. Not a good read and definitely not in my wildest imaginings, a recommendation for anyone.
February 15, 2015
I really enjoyed this book, in part because Julia Child came across as someone very likeable, while living life on her own terms. I enjoyed learning about Julia's persistence and tenacity when working on recipes, and how she considered herself a teacher.
I was inspired to complete this book after attending a Cookbook Club yesterday at the local public library, lead by my librarian friend, Jenny. :-)
I was inspired to complete this book after attending a Cookbook Club yesterday at the local public library, lead by my librarian friend, Jenny. :-)
October 27, 2013
I don't quite know what I was expecting but this wasn't it.
July 31, 2025
I’m not always sure what to do with a biography of someone that is just as much about the biographer as the subject, but this was an easy read- the illustrations and length definitely make is a great gift book, and the fact that it glosses over Julia’s time in France (she tells that better than anyone else could anyway) and highlights the time before and after makes this a worthy read for any Julia fan.
Read
June 4, 2021Fun and chatty and quick. Good for a few 100F plus days spent reading on the balcony with a cup of tea and cookies.
August 11, 2016
Julia Child was a woman who lived life to the fullest, celebrated every momemt, and was fiercely passionate about the people and things she loved. Having watched her as a child on her PBS cooking show and Good Morning America, in addition to reading My Life in France and Julie and Julia, I thought I knew a lot about her. This book proved me wrong. I may not agree with the kind of food she loved to cook, since most of her recipes would add 50# to me in a flash, but her outlook on life and how to live it is one that I can surely take to heart.
Each chapter is titled with one of Julia's life lessons. Some of my favorites are:
1. Live with Abandon 2. Learn to Be Amused 3. Obey Your Whims 4. To Be Happy, Work Hard 5. Solve the Problem in Front of You 6. Make the World Your Oyster.....Not a bad way to live, I think.
One of the most surprising things about Julia was finding out what a party girl she was in college. Her personal motto at Smith College had been Less Learning, More Moonshine. The only time she was inspired to improve her grades was when she found out that seniors who maintained a B average could keep a car on campus. She purchased a 1929 Ford she named Eulalie and used it almost exclusively to venture out to speakeasies in nearby Holyoke. The car was a convertible, which was convenient, as it allowed Julia and her friends to get sick over the side without ruining the upholstery. I got a big laugh out of that one!
Her love of being with people, staying up till all hours of the morning, and knocking back a few drinks or more lasted well into her seventies and beyond. She could work harder and on less sleep than those a third of her age. In her seventies she still kept the insane hours she always did, up by six, and to bed no earlier than midnight. The 12 hour long days of taping her TV show energized her. Often, when the day wrapped at 10:00 pm, she would ask the crew where they were going to eat dinner. Even the 25 year olds would groan with fatigue!
Not only did Julia Child master the art of French cooking, she seems to have mastered the art of living. I want to be as energetic, happy, and full of life as she was, and I'll start by incorporating some of those life lessons she lived by into my own life.
Each chapter is titled with one of Julia's life lessons. Some of my favorites are:
1. Live with Abandon 2. Learn to Be Amused 3. Obey Your Whims 4. To Be Happy, Work Hard 5. Solve the Problem in Front of You 6. Make the World Your Oyster.....Not a bad way to live, I think.
One of the most surprising things about Julia was finding out what a party girl she was in college. Her personal motto at Smith College had been Less Learning, More Moonshine. The only time she was inspired to improve her grades was when she found out that seniors who maintained a B average could keep a car on campus. She purchased a 1929 Ford she named Eulalie and used it almost exclusively to venture out to speakeasies in nearby Holyoke. The car was a convertible, which was convenient, as it allowed Julia and her friends to get sick over the side without ruining the upholstery. I got a big laugh out of that one!
Her love of being with people, staying up till all hours of the morning, and knocking back a few drinks or more lasted well into her seventies and beyond. She could work harder and on less sleep than those a third of her age. In her seventies she still kept the insane hours she always did, up by six, and to bed no earlier than midnight. The 12 hour long days of taping her TV show energized her. Often, when the day wrapped at 10:00 pm, she would ask the crew where they were going to eat dinner. Even the 25 year olds would groan with fatigue!
Not only did Julia Child master the art of French cooking, she seems to have mastered the art of living. I want to be as energetic, happy, and full of life as she was, and I'll start by incorporating some of those life lessons she lived by into my own life.
September 23, 2013
In the latest of her Kick Ass Women series, Karen Karbo cooks up some “Lessons on Savoring Life” by examining the problems and passions in the biography of Julia Child. Here’s one reason Julia Child’s life is so illuminating for contemporary women:
"My theory is that our real attachment to Julia is less about her cooking, or even about what she did for the cause of serious cuisine, and more about our admiration for her immutable aptitude for being herself. Julia’s real genius wasn’t in breaking down the nine million steps in cooking a mind-blowing beef bourguignon, or assembling a thousand-page cookbook, but in having the confidence to stand in front of a camera, week after week, without trying to change one thing about herself." p. 10
Julia Child Rules tells the story of Julia Child’s life in broad strokes within a structure of 10 rules for living. Rule Number 1 is Live with Abandon.
More thoughts on my blog: Book Review: Julia Child Rules by Karen Karbo
"My theory is that our real attachment to Julia is less about her cooking, or even about what she did for the cause of serious cuisine, and more about our admiration for her immutable aptitude for being herself. Julia’s real genius wasn’t in breaking down the nine million steps in cooking a mind-blowing beef bourguignon, or assembling a thousand-page cookbook, but in having the confidence to stand in front of a camera, week after week, without trying to change one thing about herself." p. 10
Julia Child Rules tells the story of Julia Child’s life in broad strokes within a structure of 10 rules for living. Rule Number 1 is Live with Abandon.
More thoughts on my blog: Book Review: Julia Child Rules by Karen Karbo
December 20, 2015
At times hilarious, at times informative, and thoroughly enjoyable at all times. Looking at other reviews, it seems that some people went into this book expecting to get something in particular out of it, so my advice to the would-be reader is to let go of any expectations and simply get cozy with this book. Not particularly serious, not particular life-changing, but fun.
Entertaining, personal, well-researched. Some well-played self-deprecating humor. Great footnotes, whether funny or illuminating (or both!). One such footnote contained a L&O: SVU reference.
One of my favorite quotes from this book:
"Had she been a more instinctive, 'natural' cook, she might have felt less compelled to parse each recipe, to tackle each one as though getting it right were a matter of life and death." (page 124 of the 2013 edition)
Entertaining, personal, well-researched. Some well-played self-deprecating humor. Great footnotes, whether funny or illuminating (or both!). One such footnote contained a L&O: SVU reference.
One of my favorite quotes from this book:
"Had she been a more instinctive, 'natural' cook, she might have felt less compelled to parse each recipe, to tackle each one as though getting it right were a matter of life and death." (page 124 of the 2013 edition)
June 13, 2014
I disagree with some of her "lessons" and I always wonder about the accuracy of second-hand biographies like this. This is the only book about Julia Child I have read; I am not interested in the kind of food she cooked either. What is interesting about this book is that it's more about the life of a free spirit and a great woman who refused to scramble to fit in with everyone else in her generation. The tone is quite positive, and I learned a lot; not just about Julia, but about Greatest Generation America growing up. It made me feel a bit better about my life to read about women of that era marrying and having children later in their 30's than was proper, as I am personally in no hurry to settle down.
January 22, 2015
You will find the best inspiration for how to be authentic and solve the problem in front of you while learning about the younger and unmarried Julia Child before she became famous. I had not heard of the Karen Karbo, but I liked the way she interweaves her own story as a millennial into what was happening with Julia. She creates ten rules which I wish I had written. Not a preachy book, more like a journal on how to have fun, find your passion and how to go from simmering about ideas to creating new paths. Every thirty-something person needs to read this book. I think advertisements and cultural expectations bombard women in particular. Julia rose above this confusion and found a life, a career, a husband and laughed all the way to the bank!
July 31, 2014
This was the perfect book to read while in bed recuperating from a nasty virus! I have always been a big Julia fan-her life was interesting and inspiring in a time when women were not encouraged to be either. Her biography was wonderful. Seeing her kitchen in the Smithsonian is always fascinating (yes, I really think that is the non-hyperbolic description it is worthy of) and I even started watching her old French Chef series, which streams live for free on the Roku with an Amazon prime account. My son made her french omelette this morning after watching that episode with me and it was truly a 4 second culinary masterpiece! Another Julia fan born....
September 18, 2015
This is a light weight book that is deceptive--inside the fun chatter is some real meat on how to live your life with the gusto and zest of Julia Child. Some of the advice is unattainable--have rich parents, find a husband as supportive as Paul Child but the meat comes from looking at Julia's acceptance of herself as she was, her perseverance, her energy, her love of eating, and her failure to be what most people thought she should be. That failure made her the icon she is to many of us.
Lovely, fun book--best read on a rainy afternoon, lying on the couch with either a cup of herbal tea or a glass of wine.
It's also a book worth buying and lending to your friends!
Lovely, fun book--best read on a rainy afternoon, lying on the couch with either a cup of herbal tea or a glass of wine.
It's also a book worth buying and lending to your friends!
March 15, 2014
Snarky tribute to Julia Child.
May 23, 2017
This is the fourth book I've read in Karbo's series on strong women, and I loved it. I've always known the name "Julia Child", but until this reading I did not really understand how she fit into America history. The book is a witty and fast read, centered around Julia's 10 rules of life, such as Live with Abandon, Obey Your Whims, etc. At the end I had a much stronger sense of who Julia was, where she came from, what she did for American cooks, and inspirational quotes and quips. There was one aspect of her life that surprised me, how she took up with a new man after her beloved Paul fell ill enough to be placed in a nursing home, but was still alive. The book did not (not sure if it could) explain the logic there; it seemed inconsistent with their epic love affair. Note to all foodie historians, the book contains a great "books to read" list at the end.
March 29, 2018
I love Julia Child. I will read anything by or about her. She's such a fabulous person, with such an interesting life and this totally buoyant personality. She charms the socks off me, inspires me, and amuses me. So I was happy to pick up this little volume and see what Julia Child wisdom it could give me.
I keep finding that when people write about Julia Child they almost always end up writing about themselves as well, and Karen Karbo is no exception to this rule. Part story of Julia's life, part memoir of her own life, and specifically her complicated relationship with cooking and her mother, the book meanders in places and just never quite hangs together to make the memoir section worthwhile.
Plus, for someone who admires the joie de vivre of Julia Child, Karbo makes no bones about saying how little she enjoys cooking.
Oh well.
I keep finding that when people write about Julia Child they almost always end up writing about themselves as well, and Karen Karbo is no exception to this rule. Part story of Julia's life, part memoir of her own life, and specifically her complicated relationship with cooking and her mother, the book meanders in places and just never quite hangs together to make the memoir section worthwhile.
Plus, for someone who admires the joie de vivre of Julia Child, Karbo makes no bones about saying how little she enjoys cooking.
Oh well.
January 18, 2019
I enjoyed this book, for the most part. This was almost two biographies/autobiographies in one. Karen Karbo interjects much of her own history, mostly to demonstrate why her high interest in Julia Child's life.
I've discovered that Julia Child was a much more interesting person than I had previously thought. She led an exciting life, doing things that most women didn't have the opportunity to do in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. She worked for the OSS, and traveled the world, long before she became The French Chef.
There were a couple of times, the book moved a little slow for me, making it easy to pick up other books to read. This might not have been really the fault of the book, as it is with my dubious relationship with Biographies and Autobiographies.
I've discovered that Julia Child was a much more interesting person than I had previously thought. She led an exciting life, doing things that most women didn't have the opportunity to do in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. She worked for the OSS, and traveled the world, long before she became The French Chef.
There were a couple of times, the book moved a little slow for me, making it easy to pick up other books to read. This might not have been really the fault of the book, as it is with my dubious relationship with Biographies and Autobiographies.
April 14, 2021
I really enjoyed this lighthearted take on Julia Child's attitude toward life. I laughed out loud in a few places with the way Karbo got her point across. Other reviewers didn't like Karbo's personal story interjected into Julia's, but I thought it showed how some people are taken with certain personalities, and others aren't. Julia seems to be a unique individual who just made the best for herself in life. Right now, I'm reading Dearie, a l.o.n.g. biography with a whole lot more detail. Also, I picked up her cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking just to see what her style was. Very detailed!!! Reminds me a bit of Test Kitchen cookbooks.
Anyway, this book was fun, quick and interesting as well as motivational (enjoy life!)
Anyway, this book was fun, quick and interesting as well as motivational (enjoy life!)
October 25, 2022
Karen Karbo writes some very amusing anecdotes and analyses of Julia, her life, her very successful marriage to Paul Child.
There is good coverage of the whole process of bringing MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING into being. There is good coverage of Julia's transition from a very tall California girl into a television icon of the 60s.
There were moments while reading this book that I truly laughed out loud.
However, there are footnotes on almost every page and much of the footnote material could have easily been incorporated into the text. This format really slowed the pace of the book and was annoying.
Also, I did not care for the illustrations.
( Picky - picky, I know, but this is an honest review.)
There is good coverage of the whole process of bringing MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING into being. There is good coverage of Julia's transition from a very tall California girl into a television icon of the 60s.
There were moments while reading this book that I truly laughed out loud.
However, there are footnotes on almost every page and much of the footnote material could have easily been incorporated into the text. This format really slowed the pace of the book and was annoying.
Also, I did not care for the illustrations.
( Picky - picky, I know, but this is an honest review.)
August 23, 2019
I am not sure what I expected when I picked up this book but I can honestly say I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had reading it! Part Julia Child biography, sprinkled with the author's delightful and sometimes laugh out loud antidotes about aging, Paris, and food, as well as sentimental at times when Karbo reminisced about her mother. But mostly, it was about Julia Child. While there were a few childish pranks she participated in that probably were annoying if one was on the receiving end, Child's love of life was always abundantly, endearingly obvious, making it very easy to forgive and admire her.
March 2, 2020
My stinginess with five star ratings notwithstanding, this truly is a gem. Karbo shares the non-fiction business of “Julia” while weaving in her narrative and ours. These are troubling times, where the temptation is to “get things right” have “grammable” moments, and generally be about the self-improvement movement. After all, if you aren’t in therapy now, what will it take?? Turns out, left to our own devices, we often over-solution the problems of everyday life. It might just be, slow down, enjoy your food, and quit taking it all so dang seriously.
September 2, 2021
I liked this book quite a bit. I learned a lot about Julia Child that I did not know and gained respect for her life, career and independent spirit. The commitment Julia and her husband had with one another was sweet and heartfelt. Julia's desire to bring a new way of cooking to American homes was history making.
The author's own stories interjected into those of Julia's brought things around to the present day in a nice way.
If you like/love cooking, know who Julia Child is (who doesn't, and even if you're not a fan) I think you'll find this book an easy informative read.
The author's own stories interjected into those of Julia's brought things around to the present day in a nice way.
If you like/love cooking, know who Julia Child is (who doesn't, and even if you're not a fan) I think you'll find this book an easy informative read.
May 17, 2023
It is 2.5 to 3 stars. The writing is good. I thought it would be more about Julia Child and how to be inspired to take on her "rules". Some of the book is like that. Then the author talks about herself and gives backhanded compliments about Julia. She mocks the rules when it applies to her or current life. That took away from the book.
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