Julia by Heather B. Moore - ADVISABLE

Julia by Heather B. Moore, 384 pages. Shadow Mountain Publishing, 2025. $28.

Language: PG (1 swear, 0 “f”); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG

BUYING ADVISORY: ADULTS - ADVISABLE

APPEALS TO: SEVERAL

Before Julia Child took any cooking classes, the bombing of Pearl Harbor spurred her to move to Washington DC to see how she could assist in the war effort. Before she ever set foot in France, Julia worked for the OSS (a US intelligence agency) in Ceylon (modern-day Sri Lanka) and China, falling in love with the abundant flavors of Asian food. Becoming Julia Child was the adventure of her lifetime.

I knew two things about Julia going into this book: that she cooked very well and that her married last name was Child. So when the Julia of the first couple chapters did not know how to cook and when she experienced familiar uncertainties regarding her crush, Paul Child, I was hooked. With every page of her story that did not reveal the Julia Child I thought I knew, my interest only grew. Her life is full of encouragement and hope, even as it is riddled with difficulties and setbacks.

The majority of characters are American and French. The mature content rating is for alcohol use and mentions of drugs. The violence rating is for discussions of war and bombs, mentions of suicide and murder, and a near-death experience.

Reviewer: Carolina Johnson