The Book Bandit: July

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MY LIFE IN FRANCE

By Julia Child

Looking back on her 1948 arrival in Le Havre, France, Julia Child describes herself as a “rather loud and unserious Californian” who had never seen a shallot. But by the time she left her French home in 1992, she had become the first celebrity chef and was a cookbook and television pioneer.

“My Life in France” is Child’s account of the years she spent in France with her husband, Paul, who had originally been sent to “la belle France” after World War II as an employee of the U.S. Information Service based in Paris. Julia was along for the ride — and her first meal at Restaurant La Couronne set her on a journey of discovery and ignited a hidden passion for cooking.

The memoir is rich in description of the Childs’ life in Paris and Marseilles — the meals, the restaurants, the host of characters they befriended along the way and the quirky apartments they called home. As she was left alone during the day to wander the city’s shops and tinker around in the kitchen, Julia’s fascination with food became a full-fledged obsession. The book also examines her relationships with her “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” co-authors Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, and introduces readers to the legendary editor Judith Jones.

From Child’s first gourmet meal to her “French Chef” television show, “My Life in France tells” in delicious detail how Julia Child became an icon.

KAREN KNOTTS, knottsk@knews.com

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WHAT WOULD JACKIE DO?

By Shelly Branch and Sue Callaway

Ever been stumped as to how to handle a problematic acquaintance? Wished you could deal with a tragedy without falling apart? Wished someone would tell you, once and for all, if animal prints are tacky?

Well, take a page (literally) out of the master’s manual and ask Jackie. She’s smart, sexy, classy and stylish. In “What Would Jackie Do?,” Shelly Branch and Sue Callaway get inside the mind of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis and provide their readers with great advice.

Through stories from friends and employees, as well as well-publicized historical moments, the authors offer Jackie’s rules in a number of categories, including clothes, home, career and hobbies. In a chapter called “Daily Bred: Exude Grace in Everything You Do,” readers learn how Jackie set herself apart from other women by never being an “Interchangeable Woman.” In “Building Your Inner Temple: The Art of Self-Enrichment and Fulfillment,” dedication to one’s interests is encouraged, and readers learn that Jackie kept herself schooled in art history, foreign language and fashion. She was an avid reader and traveler, and she viewed the time she spent on her hobbies as sacred.

This entertaining book makes a great gift for any woman and provides truly useful advice on a number of matters. From the silly to the very serious, Jackie’s history can provide thoughtful answers on how to handle life’s indelicate situations with style and grace.

KAREN KNOTTS, knottsk@knews.com

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THE YIDDISH POLICEMEN’S UNION

By Michael Chabon

As a reader, you grow to trust a favorite author, even when he or she takes you on confusing twists and turns.

Michael Chabon rewards that trust in “The Yiddish Policemen’s Union,” Chabon’s alternative- universe noir detective story.

Chabon, who won the Pulitzer for “The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay,” invents a gripping what-if history in which the fledgling Israel collapsed after World War II, leading Jews to gather in hardscrabble Sitka, Alaska, which may or may not be reverting back to American control after decades of semi-independence.

Amid all of this, noir hero Detective Meyer Landsman faces down a murder case with global implications.

The hangdog Landsman never wears thin, thanks in part to a memorable supporting cast, most notably his hulking partner Berko and his ex-wife Bina, who just happens to also be his boss.

Yes, the plot gets complicated, what with the Orthodox gangsters, the arcane religious rituals, and the complex trail of the murder victim, who may or may not have been a mystical savior of his people.

Throw in plenty of Yiddish slang and you’ve got a recipe for disaster, but Chabon somehow manages to steer the story to a satisfying conclusion.

CHRISTIAN ZAVISCA, zaviscac@knews.com

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I LOVE YOU, BETH COOPER

By Larry Doyle

For Denis Cooverman, nerd extraordinaire and hero of Larry Doyle's novel “I Love You, Beth Cooper,” high school is a horror show of ironclad cliques, locker- room torture in the form of wedgies and swirlies, and endless humiliation at the hands of bullies and beauties alike.

Denis, state debate finalist and valedictorian, declares his love for Beth Cooper, the head cheerleader at Buffalo Grove High School, during his graduation speech. Beth is intrigued, approaches Denis afterward and accepts an invitation to a party that he really didn’t plan to have.

Unfortunately, this will inspire the wrath of Beth’s psychotic boyfriend and draw Denis into a night where his life and heart seem imperiled. In short, he has a dangerously good time.

I laughed out loud through much of the novel. Doyle’s dialogue is crisp and funny, his characters quirky and clearly drawn. The characters reminded me of those in the John Hughes movies of the ’80s where stereotypes dissolve and teens who once thought their classmates were from Mars find common ground.

“I Love You, Beth Cooper” is no romance, however. It’s a raucous comedy that will likely get more attention if adapted for film. That would probably be fine for Doyle, who writes for The New Yorker and is a former writer for the television show “The Simpsons.”

DARREN DUNLAP, dunlapd@knews.com

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