Beyond the Kitchen: The Surprising Life of Julia Child

Get your whisk and ladle ready—it’s time to learn about the life of Julia Child! Have you heard of Julia Child, the bestselling cookbook author, and chef? I’m sure you have, but get ready to be astonished as you read about her life’s journey. She was much more than just that. Did you know she was also a breast cancer survivor, a TV trailblazer, and a spy during World War II? Yes, you heard that right! A spy! Let’s dive into the exciting and fascinating life of Julia Child to learn 5 fun facts about her.

5 Interesting Facts: The life of Julia Child

1. Secret Agent During World War II

Julia Child’s life was not lived in the kitchen during the war. She worked in the Secret Intelligence Division of the Office of Strategic Services, which was the CIA’s predecessor. With her hard work and dedication, she quickly rose through the ranks and eventually became the OSS Registry chief. This meant she had a top-level security clearance! And that’s where she met the love of her life, Paul Child, who was also an OSS officer.

2. Wedding in Bandages

After the war, when life was getting back to normal, Julia and Paul decided to take some time to get to know each other as civilians. They traveled and visited family before tying the knot. Julia was over the moon but had a little accident the day before her wedding, so she had to wear a bandage on her face in her wedding photos. How romantic!

3. Julia Child Dedicated 9 Years of her life to her First Cookbook

It took Julia Child nine long years to write her first cookbook, “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” published in 1961. But the journey was worth it as the cookbook revolutionized home cuisine. Julia started working on the book in 1952 after meeting Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle. They were working on a cookbook to teach Americans the art of French cuisine, and Julia was the third author representing the American chef. The book underwent multiple rewrites and rejections before finally being published by Alfred A. Knopf.

Are you a recipe history buff? You will enjoy Vintage Cookbooks in America: Recipes of Life. Have you ever considered picking up a vintage cookbook and reading the recipes? Then, prepare for a historical trip through time with vintage cookbooks and recipes!

4. Scrambling Eggs on TV

Julia Child’s big TV break came from an unlikely source: Boston’s local TV station. While promoting “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” she appeared as a guest on the program “I’ve Been Reading.” Instead of just talking about recipes, Julia decided to cook on live TV. She brought a hot plate with her and began cracking eggs into a pan and cooking an omelet while answering questions. The viewers loved it, and the rest is history!

5. Julia Child, Breast Cancer Survivor and Advocate

In the late 1960s, Julia’s biopsy results came back as cancerous, and her doctors recommended a mastectomy. After her 10-day hospital stay, she was feeling down, but with the support of her husband, Paul, she soon became an advocate for the procedure. She hoped that her outspokenness would help remove the stigma for other women. An article in Time Magazine quoted her as saying, “I would certainly not pussyfoot around having a radical [mastectomy] because it’s not worth it.”

Bonus: The Sacred Bag

Julia Child always had her cooking tools with her in a “sacred bag,” a huge black canvas bag that held all of her essential cooking tools like her pastry-cutting wheel, personal flour scoop, knives, and other special cooking tools. She started carrying this bag when “The French Chef” premiered and only trusted a select few with its care.

Cookbooks Reveal the Life of Julia Child!

Now that you know a little bit more about the life of Julia Child, why not learn more about the recipes and cooking recommendations in her many cookbooks? Her personality, knowledge, and love of food shine through in every recipe. Many of her cookbooks are in my online vintage bookstore, Reading Vintage.

I you are an avid reader of vintage cookbooks, you might appreciate the Dictionary of Terms from Vintage Cookbooks. Are you confused when reading a recipe in one of your vintage cookbooks? A recipe calls for a Beatle, and you’re unsure what that is. Unleash your inner chef with our guide to cooking phrases! 

Happy reading,

Meet Pam of Reading Vintage, an ardent curator of quality vintage books. Join her journey from hunting hidden gems at estate sales and offering them to you at her online bookstore, Reading Vintage, to offering insightful resources on her blog, Vintage Book Lovers. Explore, learn, and reconnect with timeless literature.

“I am sure there is Magic in everything, only we have not sense enough to get hold of it and make it do things for us.” – Frances Hodgson Burnett, ‘The Secret Garden’