“She bubbled over with effervescence, spoke as if she had marbles in her mouth, and gleefully hammed it up in front of the camera.” She was also a cookbook author and television pioneer who changed the way Americans thought about cooking and food. Jessie Hartland’s picture book account of the life of Julia Child is as dynamic as her subject. Every page spread is packed with information and brimming with humor. The busy page design looks daunting but reads easily as fascinating details of Child’s life unfold in a series of borderless panel illustrations and an accompanying narrative full of facts and funny asides. Among the many things revealed is that, during high school, Julia’s “French class is a disaster. (She will make up for this later.)” The hand-lettered text blends printing and cursive writing, and the gouache illustrations capture a definite joie de vivre. (Ages 6–10)