Dearie

The Remarkable Life of Julia Child

By: Bob Spitz

Narrated by: Kimberly Farr

Length: 25 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

The definitive biography of Julia Child - with access to Julia's diaries and letters - written by the author of the best-selling and critically acclaimed The Beatles and timed to Julia's 100th birthday.

From Pasadena to Cambridge to New York, Washington, D.C., India, Ceylon, Paris, Marseilles, Santa Barbara, and Maine, Bob Spitz re-creates an extraordinary life. He takes us beyond the image of Julia as the tall, eccentric woman with a funny voice who taught America how to cook, to establish her as a genuine rebel and beloved icon, a woman who redefined herself in middle age, helped to change the role of women in America, set the standard for how to create a public personality in the modern media world, and altered the way America eats and thinks of food. There might not be a Food Network or even a PBS if Julia had not blazed the trail.

Spitz chronicles Julia's friendships, her struggles, her heartwarming romance with Paul, and of course, the story of the publication of Mastering the Art of French Cooking and her triumphant TV career. A thorough, surprising, affectionate, and extraordinarily entertaining account of a truly remarkable life.

©2012 Bob Spitz (P)2012 Random House Audio

great book

Where does Dearie rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

at the top of my list for biographies

What did you like best about this story?

the mention of so many other people that Julia new and worked with

Have you listened to any of Kimberly Farr’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

THis is my first time listening to her.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Dearie

Any additional comments?

The reader is excelent

Slow start but well worth the finish. What a class

Julia Child had always been my hero both on the kitchen and in life. I enjoyed this book immensely and felt her bigger than life in the snippets and telling a of the various aspects of her life and career.

Butter is Better!

This is a wonderful story! The reader is excellent. The story is excellent. I was not hungry listening, but was inspired to try to enjoy cooking (something that is a rarity for me). I read/listen to 100's of audible books, but never write a review. "Dearie" is just darling. It is so inspiring to understand that she did not become "Julia Child" until later in life. Get through the first part (it's a bit slow but necessary in understanding Julia), once you get to Paris, say goodbye to everyone and enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

Amazing!! Highly recommend

This book is so well done I will be getting another of Bob Spitz books for the shear joy it. I enjoyed every aspect of the book.

I learned a lot about Julia from this bio

Julia taught me to cook. No biography will take that away from me. I enjoyed reading this book.

A wonderful book!

At first I had reservations about reading this book. It is long and I thought, what is so remarkable about Julia Child? the truth is I loved it! The performance is flawless, one of the best I have listened to. I cried at the end when Julia died because by then I felt she was a good friend instead of a stranger. Wonderful book and narration! Highly recommended.

The Third "Life of Julia:" A New Reading

Reviewing this text presents a somewhat perplexing dilemma: how to distinguish my response to the text itself and my response to the portrayal of the subject, Julia Child? This is now the third life of Julia Child. In no small measure,"Dearie" is a retelling of the two earlier works, "Appetite for Life" and "My Life in France." I suppose therefore that redundancy in the present bio is to be expected. The two earlier accounts however, were written before Julia’ passing, and so it do not contain the poignant final chapter of "Dearie." I’ve listened to "Dearie" no less than three times and I have gone back to review the other two texts as well. I find it curious to hear what Spitz includes and does not include. One odd difference is that the Julia of “My Life” eventually received a postdated diploma from Cordon Bleu but the Julia of “Dearie” does not. Did Spitz make this adjustment for dramatic effect? And if so, are there other details in his account that also have been adjusted?
Moving from the text to the portrait of Julia, Spitz’ biography confronts the reader with a Julia of two sides. While the reader coddles to a women of ostensible charm there seems to hide beneath the smile a very self-possessed ego intent upon control. While we are enjoined by a free spirit who dismisses artifice, we read of woman whose vanity calls for a face lift. While we delight in hearing of a marriage that united two unique individuals in a lifelong common pursuit, we find that they had separate bedrooms in Provence and in Boston.
The narrator also seems to tell the listener certain details that “passent sous silence.” Details were the listener must interpret between the lines. When we hear that Paul writes to his brother “ between us girls.’ or that Paul was accused by the McCarthy mob as being homosexual, or that Paul was fastidious, moody and disagreeable and that he vehemently disparaged gays, the listener begins to suspect .
The same question begins to work its way when it comes to Julia. From her tomboy days as a child to her awkward gestures in her television kitchen, it would be difficult to set up Julia as typically feminine. The author’s account of the marriage of Julia’s equally awkward sister, Dort, to a known gay man seems to suggest a parallel. Over these situations looms the dark shadow of Julia’s complete lack of identification with her father.
Whatever her intimate life may have been, there are few who reached out to so many and who opened to them such a rich and engrossing new world, not just in the kitchen but in a richer life experience. Spitz’ account no matter how interpreted, belongs in the library of everyone with a love for Julia and a taste for fine food.
A side note. This reading as with so many texts that feature words from languages would have benefited by a reader familiar with the language in question. The problem of correct pronunciation is not unique to this text; it is indeed, endemic in audiobooks. I do not see why the production companies do not secure the help of foreign language diction editors.

Another point to Audible: It would be helpful to have a discussion forum for your listeners. Exchange would open new perceptions of the texts.

The Real Julia Child

This lovely biography brings to life the personal and professional persona of Julia. She was a great teacher as well as a great chef. How she got to be that way is a fascinating story.
This book lays it all out with wit and charm.

Loved every minute!!!

Where does Dearie rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This tops the list. Julia was remarkable. I wish I had known her.

What did you like best about this story?

Everything.

What about Kimberly Farr’s performance did you like?

She did a great job in all aspects.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, but impossible given it is 25 hrs long!

Any additional comments?

A truly great "read".

Great Book about an Amazing Woman

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This was such an enjoyable book to listen to. It did not feel like the author sugar-coated the story of Julia Child's life. I had read & heard how she had gotten started cooking and knew a small bit about the writing of the first "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" But I did not know much about her life after that. I feel that I got to know Paul as well. And to discover how she just kept going and going was amazing. She put her heart and soul into her cooking and then her writing. Julia was quite a character with a good sense of humor.

What does Kimberly Farr bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I feel the narrator did a very good job telling Julia's story. I was able to picture in my mind what the author intended.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

At 25+ hours, I would not have wanted to listen to all in one sitting. Also, I wanted to savor it over several days!