I love this book. I am a beginer and have alredy tried a couple of recipes in this book. The bagels and the croisans they are both delicious. The book gives you very good explanations on how to make them so you don't have to be an expert. Unfortunatelly I don't own a mixer they are quite expensive so I'll have to wait until Christmas to give myself a gift. The Croissans are supposed to be made with a mixer but I was able to use my food processor instead, it did a good job mixing the dough, and the end result was good.
If you are thinking about baking delicious breads and pastries this book is for you.

Baking with Julia is a wonderful book for home cooks who take their cooking seriously. Since the book has several authors, each expert in his/her own area of baking, you get the best of each type of baking. Whether it's artisanal breads, chocolate cake, danish pastries, or fruit tarts, it's all in here.
The book itself is of high quality production and yet is a real cookbook, not a coffee table decoration. The pictures will sure to make you water. Most importantly, the directions are succint and clear. The primer in the beginning is a must-read, as it gives you instructions on how to do things correctly.
However, there is one major flaw in this book, especially to a home cook. Too many of these recipes require a standup mixer and a full-sized food processor. Not only are these not common place in a home kitchen, they are simply not necessary in some of these recipes. For example, I don't understand why a hand method was not given for a simple white bread recipe. The book states that many of the bread recipes are for serious home bakers and therefore would need a standup mixer for professional results. However, many other wonderful baking books have include this in their instruction, not to mention that people have been able to bake bread for millenia before the invention of a mixer. For this major omission I feel that this is really a book for those who not only have some prerequisite baking experience, but also have a large kitchen and with those 2 equipments.

'Baking with Julia' is just a book that must be owned by all baking-enthusiasts because of its concise directions, it's beautiful pictures, and the satisfaction of sharing the completed products with friends and family. There is something for everyone, and a basis for anyone to build off of. The book covers recipes from the simplest Irish Soda Bread (which is delicious nonetheless) to much more elaborate pastries and breads. What slightly disappointed me upon first opening the book was the presence of a heavy-duty mixture in almost every recipe. I still don't have my mixture, but I have completed many recipes successfully by hand (it's a great workout).
I am delighted that all of the recipes that I have tried have turned out so succesfully. I definitely recommend this book to everyone.

If you must purchase one baking cookbook, this is it. This book is a must have for anyone that bakes or wants to. No matter how good you are, baking always comes back to the basics.

This book has recipes and techniques that can be used as the foundation for extraordinary baking. It is well laid out, well photographed and simple to understand.

There are both easy and complex recipes in this book. Unlike other cookbooks, everything you need to know, to make the recipes is in the book. If you are a novice to baking, you can start simple and move up as your skills increase.

I can not say enough good about this book. No matter your skill level, this is one for your collection.