Synopses & Reviews
In 1931, Irma S. Rombauer, a recent widow, took her life savings and self-published a cookbook that she hoped might support her family. Little did she know that her book would go on to become America's most beloved cooking companion. Thus was born the bestselling andlt;Iandgt;Joy of Cooking,andlt;/Iandgt; and with it, a culinary revolution that continues to this day. andlt;BRandgt; In andlt;Iandgt;Stand Facing the Stove,andlt;/Iandgt; Anne Mendelson presents a richly detailed biographical portrait of the two remarkable forces behind andlt;Iandgt;Joyandlt;/Iandgt; -- Irma S. Rombauer and her daughter, Marion Rombauer Becker -- shedding new light on the classic kitchen mainstay and on the history of American cooking. Mendelson weaves together three fascinating stories: the affectionate though often difficult relationship between andlt;Iandgt;Joy'sandlt;/Iandgt; original creator, Irma, and her eventual coauthor, Marion; the bitter dealings between the Rombauers and their publisher, Bobbs-Merrill (at whose hands the Rombauers likely lost millions of dollars); and the enormous cultural impact of the beloved book that Irma and Marion devoted their lives to refining, edition after edition. andlt;BRandgt; Featuring an accessible new recipe format and an engaging voice that inspired home cooks, andlt;Iandgt;Joyandlt;/Iandgt; changed the face of American cookbooks. andlt;Iandgt;Stand Facing the Stoveandlt;/Iandgt; offers an intimate look at the women behind this culinary bible and provides a marvelous portrait of twentieth-century America as seen through the kitchen window.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;The New York Times Book Reviewandlt;/Iandgt; Anne Mendelson is a sensitive and careful chronicler of a remarkable family, of the andlt;Iandgt;Joy of Cookingandlt;/Iandgt; as an emblem of American civilization, and of "a society where cookbooks are replacing cooking."
Review
andlt;Iandgt;Los Angeles Timesandlt;/Iandgt; Anne Mendelson brings the story to vivid life...and adroitly strings together an enlightening cultural history of American women in the twentieth century.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;Entertainment Weeklyandlt;/Iandgt; A delicious story...Mendelson discusses this most definitely American kitchen manual with measured but contagious relish.
Synopsis
With more than sixteen million copies in print, The Joy of Cooking is as beloved an American institution as Thanksgiving turkey and apple pie. Stand Faring the Stove describes for the first time ingredients of its singular success.
Irma Rombauer self-published her first cookbook in 1931 after her husband's sudden death at the height of the Depression. Expanded and published commercially in 1936, the original Joy was the first cookbook to speak directly to women at home. Through edition after revised edition, Irma -- and, eventually, her daughter Marion-inspired amateur cooks across the nation. But as Anne Mendelson skillfully recounts, much of the enterprise was anything but joyful: the two women shared a contentious relationship not only with each other, but with their publisher, as well, at whose hands the Rombauers most likely lost millions of dollars.
Based on extensive research of the Rombauers' family papers and correspondence, this is the candid, fascinating portrait of the mother and daughter who started America's love affair with food.
About the Author
andlt;Bandgt;Anne Mendelsonandlt;/Bandgt; is a leading authority on the history of American cookbooks. She has written for a variety of magazines and newspapers, including andlt;Iandgt;Gourmet.andlt;/Iandgt; She lives in northern New Jersey.
Table of Contents
andlt;Bandgt;Contentsandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Preface andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Acknowledgmentsandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Introductionandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Part Iandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;1andlt;/Bandgt; The Golden Age of St. Louis andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;2andlt;/Bandgt; Beginnings and Endings andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;3andlt;/Bandgt; The Rombauers After the War andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;4andlt;/Bandgt; The Birth of Joy andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Part IIandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;5andlt;/Bandgt; andlt;Bandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Chronicles of Cookery 1andlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;6andlt;/Bandgt; Rombauer and Bobbs-Merrill: The Makingand#160;of an Enmity andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;7andlt;/Bandgt; Family Regroupings andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;8andlt;/Bandgt; War Maneuvers andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Part IIIandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;9andlt;/Bandgt; andlt;Bandgt;andlt;Iandgt;Chronicles of Cookery 2andlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/Bandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;10andlt;/Bandgt;and#160;Indian Summer Interrupted andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;11andlt;/Bandgt;and#160;The Last Battle andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;Part IVandlt;/Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;12andlt;/Bandgt;and#160;andlt;Iandgt;Little Acornandlt;/Iandgt; and andlt;Iandgt;Wild Wealthandlt;/Iandgt; andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;Bandgt;13andlt;/Bandgt;and#160;Marion's Last Years andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Epilogueandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Notes andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Selected Bibliographyandlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Suggested Reading andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Index andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Copyright and#169; 1996, 2003 by Anne Mendelson