What's the big deal about French food?

I'm no expert on this subject, so I'm just going to pose the question: Why such a big deal about French cooking?
I've never knowingly cooked French food, so I plead ignorance. However, I have noticed that memoirs of French cooking and eating proliferate. Every time I check what new books are being released, inevitably nestled among the other cookery-type books, there is a My Time With Food in France kind of book. I'm a sucker for food writing. And, I did read Julie and Julia a couple months back and rather enjoyed the story of Julie cooking through Julia Child's Master French Cooking Vol.1. But the elaborateness of the food definitely didn't entice me to want to try my hand at French cooking. Maybe it's just that the French care more about their food?
What's your opinion?