PenguinReaders' Group
 

Readers' Group Review

Simply Read Reading Group

Members of The Simply Read Reading Group in Epsom, Surrey review Julie & Julia by Julie Powell

Our Reading Group, Simply Read, is based in our local Library in Epsom, Surry, and meets on the last Tuesday of every month. We've been running for just over 6 months, and to date our favourite read has been 'The Kite Runner' by Khalid Hosseini. We all looked forward to reading Julie and Julia, as the film had just been released, and there was a lot of talk about it in the press. A couple of us had seen and really enjoyed the film. Whilst enjoyable and laugh out loud funny in some parts, the book left us disappointed, rating a struggling 6 marks out of 10.

This was a story of what appeared to be a love affair with food, its preparation, presentation and one woman's attempt to cook all the recipes in Julia Child's book Mastering the Art of French Cooking, a book that was written approximately 50 years earlier. It was a task that she shared worldwide with a blog that followed her progress. At the same time as undertaking this mammoth task, Julie has to grapple with her normal day to day life, working in a New York Government agency, primarily dealing with the continuing aftermath of 9-11.

Much of the humour in this book comes from the day to day events (like the 'murdering'of the Lobster and the 'Bitch Rice) and the pressure Julie has placed herself under.

Some of our readers thought the story line was rather superficial, and felt Julie came across as self-centred and irritating. Others liked the general idea of drawing parallels between Julie and Julia; in particular the way Julie rose to the challenge and felt she gained a sense of identity from the feedback she received through her blog. We all agreed the story lacked some depth and if we were searching for a book with depth, we might not have picked this book.

Having said all this, it certainly gave us plenty to discuss, and isn't that the point of reading groups?