Judith Jones (née Bailey; March 10, 1924 – August 2, 2017) was an American writer and editor, best known for having rescued ''

The Diary of Anne Frank ''The Diary of a Young Girl'', also known as ''The Diary of Anne Frank'', is a book of the writings from the Dutch-language diary kept by Anne Frank while she was in hiding for two years with her family during the Nazi occupation of the Netherl ...

'' from the reject pile. Jones also championed Julia Child's ''

Mastering the Art of French Cooking ''Mastering the Art of French Cooking'' is a two-volume French cookbook written by Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, both from France, and Julia Child, who was from the United States. The book was written for the American market and published ...

''. She retired as senior editor and vice president at

Alfred A. Knopf Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. () is an American publishing house that was founded by Alfred A. Knopf Sr. and Blanche Knopf in 1915. Blanche and Alfred traveled abroad regularly and were known for publishing European, Asian, and Latin American writers in ...

in 2011. Jones was also a cookbook author and memoirist. She won multiple lifetime achievement awards, including the James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.

Career

Editor

Jones joined Knopf in 1957 as an assistant to

Blanche Knopf Blanche Wolf Knopf (July 30, 1894 – June 4, 1966) was the president of Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., and wife of publisher Alfred A. Knopf Sr., with whom she established the firm in 1915. Blanche traveled the world seeking new authors and was especia ...

and editor working mainly on translations of French writers such as

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( , ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, and journalist. He was awarded the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the second-youngest recipient in history. His work ...

and

Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and litera ...

. Before that she worked for Doubleday, first in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and then in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, where she read and recommended ''The Diary of Anne Frank'', pulling it out of the rejection pile. Jones recalled that she came across Frank's work in a slush pile of material that had been rejected by other publishers; she was struck by a photograph of the girl on the cover of an advance copy of the French edition. "I read it all day," she noted. "When my boss returned, I told him, 'We have to publish this book.' He said, 'What? That book by that kid?'" She brought the diary to the attention of Doubleday's New York office. "I made the book quite important because I was so taken with it, and I felt it would have a real market in America. It’s one of those seminal books that will never be forgotten," Jones said. Jones's relationship with

Julia Child Julia Carolyn Child (née McWilliams; August 15, 1912 – August 13, 2004) was an American cooking teacher, author, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, '' ...

similarly began when Jones became interested in Child's manuscript ''Mastering the Art of French Cooking'', which had been rejected by a publishing house. After her years in Paris, Jones had moved to New York, where she was frustrated with the ingredients and recipes commonly available in the U.S. Jones said of the book ''Mastering the Art of French Cooking'', "This was the book I had been searching for," and she got it published. In America's postwar years, home cooking was dominated by packaged and frozen food, with an emphasis on ease and speed. After the success of Child's cookbook, Jones continued to expand the resource options for American home cooks. "I got so excited by Julia's book and what it did for making people better cooks, and the tools that you needed to make it really work in an American city or small town, and I thought, ''If we could do this for French food, for heavens' sake, let's start doing it for other exotic cuisines!''" Jones recalled. "I used the word "exotic," and that meant the Middle East with

Claudia Roden Claudia Roden (née Douek; born 1936) is an Egyptian-born British cookbook writer and cultural anthropologist of Sephardi/Mizrahi descent. She is best known as the author of Middle Eastern cookbooks including ''A Book of Middle Eastern Food'', ...

, it meant better Indian cooking with

Madhur Jaffrey Madhur Jaffrey CBE (née Bahadur; born 13 August 1933) is an Indian-British-American actress, food and travel writer, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing Indian cuisine to the western hemisphere with her debut cookbook, ...

." After working with

Edna Lewis Edna Regina Lewis (April 13, 1916 – February 13, 2006) was a renowned American chef, teacher, and author who helped refine the American view of Southern cooking. She championed the use of fresh, in season ingredients and characterized Souther ...

on ''The Taste of Country Cooking'', Jones focused more on American regional cooking. Major culinary authors Jones brought into print include

Lidia Bastianich Lidia Giuliana Matticchio Bastianich (; born February 21, 1947) is an Italian-American celebrity chef, television host, author, and restaurateur. Specializing in Italian and Italian-American cuisine, Bastianich has been a regular contributor to ...

James Beard James Andrews Beard (May 5, 1903 – January 23, 1985) was an American chef, cookbook author, teacher and television personality. He pioneered television cooking shows, taught at The James Beard Cooking School in New York City and Seaside, ...

, Marion Cunningham, Rosie Daley, Edward Giobbi,

Marcella Hazan Marcella Hazan (née Polini; April 15, 1924 – September 29, 2013) was an Italian cooking writer whose books were published in English. Her cookbooks are credited with introducing the public in the United States and the United Kingdom to the ...

, Irene Kuo, Edna Lewis,

Joan Nathan Joan Nathan is an American cookbook author and newspaper journalist. She has produced TV documentaries on the subject of Jewish cuisine. She was a co-founder of New York's Ninth Avenue Food Festival under then-Mayor of New York City, Mayor Abraham ...

, Scott Peacock,

Jacques Pépin Jacques Pépin (; born December 18, 1935) is a French chef, author, culinary educator, television personality, and artist. After having been the personal chef of French President Charles de Gaulle, he moved to the US in 1959 and after working ...

, and Nina Simonds. The 18-book Knopf Cooks American series was Jones' creation. Jones was also the longtime editor of noted authors

John Updike John Hoyer Updike (March 18, 1932 – January 27, 2009) was an American novelist, poet, short-story writer, art critic, and literary critic. One of only four writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction more than once (the others being Booth ...

Anne Tyler Anne Tyler (born October 25, 1941) is an American novelist, short story writer, and literary critic. She has published twenty-four novels, including ''Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant'' (1982), ''The Accidental Tourist'' (1985), and '' Breathin ...

John Hersey John Richard Hersey (June 17, 1914 – March 24, 1993) was an American writer and journalist. He is considered one of the earliest practitioners of the so-called New Journalism, in which storytelling techniques of fiction are adapted to n ...

Elizabeth Bowen Elizabeth Bowen CBE (; 7 June 1899 – 22 February 1973) was an Irish-British novelist and short story writer notable for her books about the "big house" of Irish landed Protestants as well her fiction about life in wartime London. Life E ...

Peter Taylor Peter Taylor may refer to: Arts * Peter Taylor (writer) (1917–1994), American author, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction * Peter Taylor (film editor) (1922–1997), English film editor, winner of an Academy Award for Film Editing Politic ...

, and William Maxwell. Other major authors whom Jones edited include

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, Hug ...

, and

Author

Jones wrote three books with her husband Evan, and wrote three on her own after his death: one on cooking for one person; a memoir of her life and food; and a cookbook for food that can be shared with dogs. Jones contributed to ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ''Vogue Australia'', an Australian fashion magazine ** ''Vogue China'', ...

'', ''

Saveur ''Saveur'' is an online gourmet, food, wine, and travel magazine that publishes essays about various world cuisines. The publication was co-founded by Dorothy Kalins, Michael Grossman, Christopher Hirsheimer, and Colman Andrews, who was also the ...

'', ''Bon Appétit, Departures'', and ''

Gourmet Gourmet (, ) is a cultural idea associated with the culinary arts of fine food and drink, or haute cuisine, which is characterized by refined, even elaborate preparations and presentations of aesthetically balanced meals of several contrasting, of ...

'' magazines. In 2006, she was awarded the

James Beard Foundation The James Beard Foundation is a New York City-based national non-profit culinary arts organization named in honor of James Beard, a prolific food writer, teacher, and cookbook author, who was also known as the "Dean of American Cookery." The prog ...

Lifetime Achievement Award. She was portrayed by American actress

Erin Dilly Erin Dilly (born May 12, 1972) is an American actress. She is most noted for her portrayal of Truly Scrumptious in the 2005 musical ''Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'', for which she was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actr ...

in the 2009 film ''

Julie & Julia ''Julie & Julia'' is a 2009 American biographical comedy-drama film written and directed by Nora Ephron starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci, and Chris Messina. The film contrasts the life of chef Julia Child in the early years of her ...

'', and

Fiona Glascott Fiona Glascott (born 22 November 1982) is an Irish actress. She is best known for portraying a young Minerva McGonagall in the ''Fantastic Beasts'' franchise, a spin-off of the ''Harry Potter'' film series. Early life Glascott was born in Wate ...

in the 2022 series ''

Julia Julia is usually a feminine given name. It is a Latinate feminine form of the name Julio and Julius. (For further details on etymology, see the Wiktionary entry "Julius".) The given name ''Julia'' had been in use throughout Late Antiquity (e.g. ...

''. “Learning to like cooking alone is an ongoing process. But the alternative is worse.” "For a long time, the women — and they were usually women — who wrote about food were treated as second-class citizens. All because they cook! I think that's opened up. A good writer gets some good assignments, and they're treated better somehow. It just takes time."

Life and death

Jones lived in

after college, where she met her husband and collaborator, Evan Jones (died 1996). The couple had four children, including two from Evans's previous marriage. Jones died age 93 on August 2, 2017, in

Walden, Vermont Walden is a town in Caledonia County, Vermont, United States. The population was 956 at the 2020 census. The community has no ZIP code of its own; mail is routed through the West Danville and East Hardwick post offices. Geography According to ...

Works

* ''Knead It, Punch It, Bake It!: Make Your Own Bread'', with Evan Jones, illustrated by Lauren Jarrett (for children, Thomas Y. Crowell Co., October 1981) * ''The Book of Bread'', with Evan Jones (Harper & Row, 1982) * ''The L.L. Bean Game and Fish Cookbook'', with Angus Cameron, illustrated by Bill Elliott (Random House, October 12, 1983) * ''The L.L. Bean Book of'' New ''New England Cookery'', with Evan Jones (Random House, October 12, 1987) (reprinted as ''The Book of New New England Cookery'', illustrated by Lauren Jarrett, in paperback by UPNE, April 1, 2001) * ''The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food'' (Knopf, October 23, 2007) * ''The Pleasures of Cooking for One'' (Knopf, September 29, 2009) * ''Love Me, Feed Me: Sharing with Your Dog the Everyday Good Food You Cook and Enjoy'' (Knopf, October 28, 2014)

Awards

* (1985) Who's Who of Food & Beverage

James Beard Award The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists in the United States. They are scheduled around James Beard's May 5 birthday. The media award ...

* (2006) James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award Cookbooks written or edited by Judith Jones that received James Beard Awards: * (1983) ''The Book of Bread'' by Judith Jones and Evan Jones. Award: Single Subject. * (1993) ''Peppers a Story of Hot Pursuits'' by Amal Naj and edited by Judith Jones. Award: Writing on Food * (1995) ''Jewish Cooking in America'' by

and edited by Judith Jones. Award: Food of the Americas * (2000) ''Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home'' by

Jacques Pepin Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...

and edited by Judith Jones. Award: General * (2000) ''A Spoonful of Ginger'' by Nina Simonds and edited by Judith Jones. Award: Healthy Focus * (2002) ''Jacques Pepin Celebrates'' by

and edited by Judith Jones. Award: Entertaining & Special Occasions * (2006) ''The New American Cooking'' by

and edited by Judith Jones. Award: Food of the Americas * (2006) ''Spices of Life: Simple and Delicious Recipes for Great Health'' by Nina Simonds and edited by Judith Jones. Award: Healthy Focus

References

External links

Judith Jones' Blog

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" on National Public Radio">NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...