Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Julie & Julia



Finished Julie & Julia in anticipation of the film's release in August. The film is based on this book and Julia Child's memoir My Life in France which I finished in August 2007, just prior to beginning this reading blog.

Julie & Julia chronicles Julie Powell's attempt to cook every recipe in Childs' Mastering the Art of French Cooking while blogging about her efforts. Compared to most of the books I've read in the last few years this is quite contemporary. It has all the angst, drinking, smoking and swearing of Bridget Jones' Diary, but it has something else as well. It has a sense of tangible accomplishment. Powell, a recovering theater geek, turned temp, turned permanent secretary, learns that she is capable of great and fearsome things. Not only do her cooking skills excel during the project, but her writing skills do as well. This book is very personal and very funny.

I'd have to say that of the two books I really prefer My Life in France. It's charming and equally as funny, but perhaps in a different way.

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