海角大神

A Covert Affair: Julia Child and Paul Child in the OSS

Among the bright young Americans who served their country in the Office of Special Services were Julia Child and her husband, Paul.

The 鈥渋mmensely tall, exceptionally lively鈥� Julie McWilliams 鈥� daughter of a wealthy Californian land manager 鈥� was in her early 30s before she finally found a place on this planet where she seemed to fit. And although the slightly awkward yet very engaging young woman would go on to become Julia Child, one of the world鈥檚 most beloved celebrity chefs, the first cozy life nook she found was not in the kitchen. On the contrary, the life experience that first helped Julie McWilliams to find herself was espionage.

In A Covert Affair, journalist Jennet Conant (author of 鈥淭he Irregulars: Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring in Wartime Washington鈥�) takes another deep dive back into English-language spy circles of the mid-20th century. This time she examines the experiences of Julia and Paul Child 鈥� the man who would become Julia鈥檚 husband 鈥� and several of their American colleagues, all employed by the US Office of Special Services (a precursor to the CIA) during and after World War II.

鈥淭he war made me,鈥� Julia Child would remember later in life. Although she was employed by the OSS in Washington, India, Ceylon (where she met her husband), and China, the woman who would become the French Chef was never really much of a spy. A skilled organizer with a tidy mind, she kept files and handled personnel and logistics matters in sometimes rugged conditions, serving as a discrete and able administrator.

She fitted in because her privileged background made her much like the others employed by the US鈥檚 fledging surveillance group, a cluster of youngish Americans drawn largely from 鈥渢he Ivy League and the Junior League鈥� 鈥� 鈥淪mith girls with gumption who could also type,鈥� 鈥渁 wide variety of PhDs,鈥� and 鈥渁n assortment of creative types.鈥�

Among the many bright young Americans with whom Paul and Julia Child shared dodgy accommodations, late-night drinks, and tight collegial ties was Jane Foster, a Californian society girl on the run 鈥� not unlike Julia 鈥� from a stifling life with her wealthy family.

Foster鈥檚 rather tragic story is at the center of much of 鈥淎 Covert Affair.鈥� Unlike Julia, she became more deeply involved in OSS attempts to harm and discredit America鈥檚 enemies 鈥� 鈥渁lmost any form of thoroughly amoral activity was condoned,鈥� Conant writes, 鈥渨hen it came to manipulating one鈥檚 foe.鈥�

Foster also became more profoundly disillusioned with her own government. After the war she was posted to Indonesia. There, instead of feeling thrilled that democratic forces had triumphed, she became depressed as it grew clear that, postwar, the US was frequently turning its back on questions of justice and siding with the European imperial powers.

Later in life 鈥� long after she had left government employment 鈥� Foster and her then-husband would be accused of having worked as Russian spies. Paul and Julia Child 鈥� known to be her longtime friends 鈥� would be dragged into the affair and Paul would risk losing his job.

Conant is the kind of writer who knows how to do her homework and 鈥淎 Covert Affair鈥� is built on letters, diaries, interviews, and a welter of recently declassified OSS and FBI documents. Her book paints a dark but intriguing picture of a particular decade or so of American life 鈥� an era when the conservatism and naivet茅 of citizens like Julia鈥檚 wealthy father allowed demagogues like Sen. Joseph McCarthy to flourish, even as the misguided idealism of bright young people like Jane Foster drew them too close to the Soviets for comfort. (How involved Foster was with the Russians is never fully clear, but Conant finally concludes that while 鈥淛ane was never an archvillain, smuggling out nuclear secrets and imperiling the security of the nation鈥� neither was she 鈥渁s innocent as she pretended.鈥�)

While Foster was under investigation (and could even have faced the death penalty), the Childs acquitted themselves admirably, refusing to betray a friend to keep themselves out of trouble.

The experiences of Paul and Julia Child are the organizing principle of 鈥淎 Covert Affair鈥� even though the couple themselves are not always at the book鈥檚 center. Despite the book鈥檚 subtitle (鈥淛ulia Child and Paul Child in the OSS鈥�) the narrative is really built around the stories of various OSS workers, with Foster as the major focus.

But Conant does well to both begin and end with the unlikely lovebirds. Although their romance has been chronicled in more depth elsewhere, its sweetness (with the ultimate triumph of Julia鈥檚 鈥渟imple love and niceness鈥� over Paul鈥檚 doubts about her lack of sophistication) serves as a reassuring counterweight to some of the ugliness of the Jane Foster experience.

It's also a useful reminder that, in the America that finally emerged from the Cold War, the Childs are still beloved icons, while Joseph McCarthy endures only as a symbol of shame.

Marjorie Kehe is the Monitor鈥檚 book editor.

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