Julie and Julia, a movie based on a memoir based on a blog about a woman who attempts to cook every single recipe in Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking, opens tomorrow. I read the book when it was published a few years ago, and loved a lot of things about it, including that if Julie, on her sort of broken stove in her tiny apartment kitchen in a city where grocery shopping is inconvenient and time-consuming, could cook every single recipe in Mastering the Art of French Cooking, then I was probably capable of making one or two.

I expect a lot of people will feel the same way after seeing the movie this weekend, and therefore, I recommend the following UNP titles for those who feel inspired to tackle some adventurous cooking projects afterwards.

In How to Cook a Tapir, author Joan Fry recounts her days as a 20-year-old bride living in a hut in the jungle of Belize. There, Fry learns to cook dishes she had never heard of before out of unfamiliar ingredients over a makeshift stove. She starts small (instant oatmeal) and moves up to more and more complicated recipes (soups, candy, wild boar).  Recipes follow each chapter, and Fry, aware that not all of her readers have access to wild boar, makes sure to offer suggestions for substitutions.

In Masters of American Cookery, author Betty Fussell explains the unique and invaluable contributions to the American way of cooking and eating made by Julia Child and several other chefs. Fussell includes more than 200 recipes, accompanied by both instructions and history lessons.

Bon appétit.