OP: The Penguin Elizabeth David Cookery Book Set (5 vols)

Penguin Books, Ltd., c. 1975. Paperback. Very Good Plus in Very Good slipcase.

According to her biographer Artemis Cooper, Elizabeth David (1913–1992) “transformed the eating habits of middle-class England.” She was also one of the finest food writers of the 20th century.

After adventuresome younger years—when love affairs, a world war, and married life had her traveling throughout Europe, North Africa, and India—David returned to post-war England and found the food to be depressing, especially by comparison to what she had tasted elsewhere. 

David’s first five books, published between 1950 and 1960, were written out of yearning for the simple, bright flavors and ingredients she’d encountered. They were all a smashing success and evangelized to Brits the virtues of dishes like moussaka, Basque chicken and rice, pastas and gnocchis, kebabs, and pissaladiere.

This 1975 slipcased set of 7” x 4.5” Penguin paperbacks of the books which made David famous—Mediterranean Food (1950), French Country Cooking (1951), Italian Food (1954), Summer Cooking (1955), and French Provincial Cooking (1960)—is a great introduction to David’s opinionated and influential prose.

While the covers for this paperback series differ from the first editions, the interior black and white illustrations are by the original artists—John Minton (for the first two), Renato Guttuso, Adrian Daintrey, and Juliet Renny, respectively. 

Ours are all rated Very Good Plus, read but without much wear or creasing. The slipcase shows some scuffing but remains sturdy. A sweet and tidy assemblage for a budding collector.