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Backstage with Julia: My Years with Julia Child
You'll love this intimate portrait of the inimitable Julia Child by Nancy Verde Barr, her executive chef and friend for twenty-four years. Brimming with anecdotes, memorabilia, and snapshots, "Backstage with Julia" conveys Julia's generosity, her boundless energy, and her love of food and life. This loving memoir celebrates the adventurous, unassuming essence of ...more
Paperback, 285 pages
Published
April 1st 2008
by John Wiley & Sons
(first published May 21st 2007)
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Sara
rated it
·
review of another edition
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Julia admirers, home chefs, seniors with no intention of slowing down
This insider's account of life with Julia is a very admiring look at the woman who taught America to cook. Julia's impact on the author (Nancy Verde Barr, long-time chef's assistant) is evident in the first few pages. Julia's philosophy was, as long as you are doing what you love and doing it well, what's the sense in stopping?
It is lovely to read that Julia embraced everything positive, from engaging eagerly with fans at book signings to re-enacting Dan Ackroyd's famous Saturday...more
It is lovely to read that Julia embraced everything positive, from engaging eagerly with fans at book signings to re-enacting Dan Ackroyd's famous Saturday...more
I really enjoyed learning about Julia Child and Nancy Verde Barr's experiences working with her. Since I'm an avid baker, getting to learn about all that goes in to cooking on television and cooking demonstrations was truly fascinating.
Another unique aspect of the book was that Barr also included pictures featuring herself and Julia during various adventures they shared.
Although the writing was not always what I wanted it to be, it was clear to me that Barr did know Jul...more
Another unique aspect of the book was that Barr also included pictures featuring herself and Julia during various adventures they shared.
Although the writing was not always what I wanted it to be, it was clear to me that Barr did know Jul...more
Gobbled up this book. It's a quick read and is written by a good friend of Julia Child's. They made friends after she was the Julia Child. Interesting inside look into an amazing woman. Shows a very positive view of her, but Barr acknowledged flaws at one point in the book. Great food descriptions too, as you'd expect from any book on Julia Child.
Barr worked with Julia for over two decades. She truly adored Julia Child. The book is a light read filled with short anecdotes that fans of Julia Child will relish. I liked the book, but after a while Barr’s overenthusiastic adulation and glossing over of Child’s less than agreeable character traits was kind of annoying.
i have read several books on julia and watched her on tv as well as listened to one of her books on cd and have loved them all. i look forward to this book, i find her very inspirational and hope it is as good as others....
this book was excellent! gave real insight to the person behind the name from a true friends perspective, highly recommend!
this book was excellent! gave real insight to the person behind the name from a true friends perspective, highly recommend!
On page 95, Barr writes that she "adored" Julia Child, and that pretty much sums up the book. It's a long, gushy fan letter of sorts. Barr alternates passages of reverential praise with justifications and proofs that she and Julia were True Friends, not just people who worked together.
I'm glad I read it, but the book was trying at times.
I'm glad I read it, but the book was trying at times.
Frenje
rated it
·
review of another edition
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
ardent fans of Julia Child who want to complete their collection of anecdotes about her
Shelves:
non-fiction
Gave up on this one. A hundred pages in, I got tired of Verde Barr going on and on about the glorious qualities of Julia Child -- oh she's so generous, so funny, etc etc. Or worse, when she starts going on about the teeny mistakes or gaffes she herself made (of the oh-so-trivial kind that no one else would possibly remember or think to write about after all these years). To be fair, it doesn't help that I've never seen Child in action on TV, and know little about her to begin with.
I have always been a fan of Julia Child the cook (her word) and the woman and this book endeared her to me even more. I can't say enough about the writing or the subject matter. My favorite quote from Julia, "Life itself is the proper binge". Bon Appetit!
An interesting read for fans. Julia Child seems larger than life in many ways, and this peek behind the scenes sure does emphasize it. Fascinating look at the production of groundbreaking TV cooking shows, book tours, and international travel with a master chef.
I liked this because I love Julia Child. Not for her amazing career cooking, but for her attitude towards life. She's my kind of lady! The book is written by a friend/former colleague, and she almost sounds sychophantic at times, but isn't. Overall it's full of great anecdotes and life lessons.
Julia Child was a fascinating woman and this book gives a good portrait of her, interspersing personal bits with "backstage" looks at working with, and as, Julia Child.
I really enjoyed this book. I already knew about Julia Child's career, but I didn't know much about her personal life. This book really introduced me to that side of her. It's a quick read that is very well written. I enjoyed reading about Julia's fun and exciting life.
Just adds to my admiration of Julia Child. You really get a feel for what she was like and makes you want to have known her.
I didn't think there was much more that I could learn about Julia, but this was a charming read that I thoroughly enjoyed. She was a one-of-a kind person; always funny and true to herself. Loved it!
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Pretty good memoir of working with Julia Child. Read it if you're a Julia Child fan who wants to read humorous anecdotes from her life.
fun to read about julia child's personality but it felt a little braggy to me.
stories about Julia Child told by her 20 year executive chef
Fun read. WWJD? must have originated with this woman, Nancy Barr.
couldn't finish the book although I made it halfway through. Good, but not intriguing enough to finish.
A clear and loving portrait of an inspirational woman.
This really tells you everything you would like to know about Julia Child. She was as funny,warm and witty off-stage as she was on. It also chronicles her remarkable achievements in helping to make the culinary arts a true profession in America.
I wanted to love this book but the overwhelming amount of detail bogged it down. Do I really need to know the architecture and history of the building in which they were going to eat lunch? No, I do not.
This could have been a g...more
I wanted to love this book but the overwhelming amount of detail bogged it down. Do I really need to know the architecture and history of the building in which they were going to eat lunch? No, I do not.
This could have been a g...more
This a great biography of Nancy Verde Barr, an amazing cook in her own right, and an amazing remembrance of Julia Child. There are a lot of things that didn't make it in to 'My Life in France' and Nancy especially fills in the last years of Paul and Julia's love. So well written, I ate it up.
This is a remarkable look at Julia Child by the woman who started as one of her sous-chefs and ended up one of her best friends. Verde Barr paints a picture of Julia that seems larger-than-life but only because Julia WAS larger-than-life. A truly remarkable woman who even in her 90s relished adventure, was keenly passionate about cooking and whose motto for everything seemed to be "Why not?" Her indefatigable energy and spirit dominate the book. Makes you wish you, too, were one of Ju...more
A quick fun read written by one of Julia's assistants later in her career. More amusing stories about Julia and some interesting behind the scenes information.
Wendy
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Foodies, those who love Julia
Shelves:
foodies,
non-fiction
Fascinating insight into Julia Child's personality (warts and all). The prose is decent, although not poetic. There's probably more about Barr's personal life than one really cares to know, but her stories about working with Child are gems. She also paints a dynamic picture of the world of television cooking shows. This book is a great companion to Child's "My Life in France."
I read this before the movie "Julie and Julia" was released so I could learn more about Julia Child. The author worked closely with Child and had many stories that illustrated how delightful and down-to-earth Child could be. Clearly Verde Barr was very fond of her former boss, and after reading this book, I understand why.
Another good book about Julia Child. This one covered the 1980s & 90s when Julia was doing tons of TV. Enjoyed learning a little more about what she was like with her friends and co-workers. A consummate professional. The book did get a bit repetitive at times, so even though I enjoyed it, I got a little bored.
This was fun. Impulse buy in a bookstore which proved to me that I'll pick up almost anything about Julia Child. What a life! But be warned that this is a very personal memoire (too personal, some might say) that reads more like People than like... well, anything more serious, I guess.
Well, I loved it, but Julia is my role model, and someone who really inspires me. But it is wonderful hearing about one of her close friends personal stories about such an amazing woman.
This was a whimsy of a book, a fast read. Wonderful stories and quips about Julia, not too in depth but a delight to read all the same.
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Nancy Verde Barr was executive chef to Julia Child from 1980 to 1998 and the culinary producer for PBS's Baking with Julia and ABC's Good Morning America. She has written for Gourmet, Food & Wine, Bon Appétit, Parade, and Cook's Magazine and is the author of three award-winning cookbooks.
More about Nancy Verde Barr...
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