A National Bestseller Winner of an International Association of Culinary Professionals Award for Literary Food Writing ''An absorbing portrait of an unexpected friendship.'' -- ''Entertainment Weekly'' ''Julia's inimitable voice shines through . . . These letters offer [a] glimpse of how the truly great can merge heart and soul in the pursuit of excellence.'' -- ''Wall Street Journal'' Julia is known around the world by her first name alone. But how much do we really know of the inner Julia Child? Through this riveting correspondence between Julia and Avis DeVoto, her ''pen pal'' and literary mentor, we hear Julia's deepest thoughts and feelings and witness the blossoming of a unique and lifelong friendship. We see, too, the turbulent creation of one of the most influential cookbooks ever written. Frank, bawdy, funny, exuberant, these astonishing letters show an America on the verge of political, social, and gastronomic transformation and two women deeply engaged in the making of that new world. ''[Child] comes booming back to life in these dishy missives . . . A delicious read.'' -- ''People ''(31/2 of 4 stars) ''Blazingly alive and entirely irresistible.'' -- ''Boston Globe''