My Life in France cover art

My Life in France

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Unlimited access to our all-you-can-listen catalogue of 15K+ audiobooks and podcasts
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

My Life in France

By: Julia Child
Narrated by: Kimberly Farr
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

About this listen

 In her own words, here is the captivating story of Julia Child’s years in France, where she fell in love with French food and found her “true calling.”

From the moment the ship docked in Le Havre, en route to Paris, in the fall of 1948, Julia had an awakening that changed her life. Soon this tall, outspoken gal from Pasadena, California, who didn't speak a word of French and knew nothing about the country, was steeped in the language, chatting with purveyors in the local markets, and enrolled in the Cordon Bleu.

This memoir is laced with wonderful stories about the French character, particularly in the world of food, and the way of life that Julia embraced so wholeheartedly. Here, she reveals the kind of spirit and determination, the sheer love of cooking, and the drive to share that with her fellow Americans that made her the extraordinary success she became. Cooking Entertainment & Celebrities Food & Wine Gastronomy Celebrity Culinary Adventures Inspiring

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Red Sauce Brown Sauce: A British Breakfast Odyssey cover art
Under a Mackerel Sky cover art
One More Croissant for the Road cover art
The Last Chinese Chef cover art
Au Revoir to All That cover art
Risotto with Nettles cover art
Out of the Frying Pan: Scenes from My Life cover art
My Soul Looks Back cover art
Provence, 1970 cover art
Blood, Bones & Butter cover art
My Twenty-Five Years in Provence cover art
Middlemarch cover art
Appetite for Life cover art
Love, Loss, and What We Ate cover art
Almost French cover art
The Making of a Chef cover art

Critic reviews

“Exuberant, affectionate, and boundlessly charming . . . It chronicles, in mouth-watering detail, the meals and the food markets the sparked her interest in French cooking . . . It also tells the story of the inspired partnership between Child . . . and her husband, Paul . . . Every day in France brought a thrilling new discovery, but Child’s capacity for wonder and delight co-existed with ‘show me’ skepticism . . . It is a wonderful picture of the most successful American export to France since Benjamin Franklin.”
–William Grimes, The New York Times

“In mouth-watering detail, her learning years in Paris and the stellar career that followed.”
–Meeta Agrawal, Life Magazine

“Captures her charm, warmth, and, above all, her determined and robust spirit . . . Anyone who has heard her on television will immediately recognize the frank, jovial, and embracing tone.”
–John Skoyles, The Seattle Times/Associated Press


“What a joy . . . charming . . . inspiring.”
–Jennifer Reese, Entertainment Weekly

“Like a surprise nougat bursting from the center of a chocolate truffle, My Life in France also serves up her moving romance with the Renaissance man of her life . . . her husband, Paul Child.”–Andrew Marton, The Philadelphia Inquirer
All stars
Most relevant
This has been on my to-read list for a while, and I'm so glad I picked it up. The narrator is wonderful, and just about every chapter made me hungry. It's one of the few novels I actually might leave on my phone, even though I've completed it. I keep getting the urge to re-listen to bits of it when I'm puttering around my kitchen and attempting to make something half as fantastic as Julia Child's dishes. It's one of those books I got completely absorbed in, which is rare for me with nonfiction. It's funny and sweet and made me want to book a holiday to France as soon as possible.

Oh, and a word of advice: if you're using Audible for Android, make sure you download the book as two parts. For some reason the download failed when I tried to download it as one part, and the customer service rep I spoke to had the same issue when trying to replicate the problem. I almost had to have it refunded since I couldn't get it onto my phone. The two-part download worked fine, though, so I was happy in the end.

Lovely!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This book transported me to the streets of Paris and compelled me to devour her cook books. The story of her life is captivating, as is her food! I couldn't leave this alone!

Wonderful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The mispronunciations of some of the English words were very odd. But great overall. I wish was twice as long.

Brilliant

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I became aware of Julia Child comparatively recently, when I saw Meryl Streep’s great performance as Child in ‘Julie and Julia’, and wanted to find out more about the real person. This was a fun and interesting story that gives some insight into the world of French cooking. The narrator gives a lively and believable reading - with convincingly awkward French pronunciation! (I’m assuming that is deliberate!) I’m unlikely to experiment with serious French catering myself, but this enjoyable book should enhance my appreciation of any French dishes I will eat in the future.

Good fun

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Wonderful story of the making of a culinary classic and masterpiece. Ordered a copy of both of Julia Child's books as soon as I'd finished this.

Beautifully narrated by Kimberley Farr - but oh the DREADFUL pronunciation of many French words and place names! Why do narrators not check with someone who speaks the language before they embark on reading? Ms Farr is far from the only culprit in this.

Wonderful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews