"My Life in France" by Julia Child (and that other guy)

Quick note: the rent payment reversal was reversed. Bye-bye money.

On to the book review!

One of the books I bought during my kind-of-not-really date at Borders was My Life in France. It is credited to Julia Child, but another guy actually wrote it all down and prepared it for publication. Julia dictated the book, wrote snippets, and culled the information from her personal archives (date books, letters, etc.).

It was a wonderful book, hilarious, and so vibrantly told. The co-author kept Julia's little quirks intact, so you get the Yuck! and the Ouf! and the Merde! that she added at the end of passages. Reading the book, I could hear her voice dictating, in that high lilting way she has, and I could picture her doing the things. There are tons of photos in the book, scattered throughout the pages liberally and sometimes illustrating exactly what's happening in a passage, but sometimes just as a little bit of "oh, look at this funny picture" thrown in for laughs.

Part of the interest in it for me was the discussion of the diplomatic work the United States did throughout Europe following World War II. Julia's husband, Paul, headed up departments that organized art exhibits to educate Europe about America and Americans. It was part of an exercise to strengthen relations with other countries.

If you want a good, funny, ohmygodIwantcrepesrightnow kind of read, then I highly suggest it.