Julie Powell thought cooking her way through Julia Child's <i>Mastering the Art of French Cooking</i> was the craziest thing she'd ever do--until she embarked on the voyage recounted in her new memoir, CLEAVING.<br><br>Her marriage challenged by an insane, irresistible love affair, Julie decides to leave town and immerse herself in a new obsession: butchery. She finds her way to Fleischer's, a butcher shop where she buries herself in the details of food. She learns how to break down a side of beef and French a rack of ribs--tough, physical work that only sometimes distracts her from thoughts of afternoon trysts.<br><br>The camaraderie at Fleischer's leads Julie to search out fellow butchers around the world--from South America to Europe to <st1:place w:st="on">Africa</st1:place>. At the end of her odyssey, she has learned a new art and perhaps even mastered her unruly heart.