Accidentally Finding Rare Cookbooks

+ a shop disaster

Finally, it’s April. I’m hoping a new month will bring with it a fresh start as March was one of the worst on record for my bookshop. These things happen, of course. It’s just extremely bad timing - I’m in the middle of expanding the shop and improving the website. A lot of money has been spent.

Still, I’m hoping it’ll be worth it. It better! Candlestick is becoming fancier, with recipes from old cookbooks and interviews with interesting people, plus new shop sections (I’m very excited about this one) and just generally a lot nicer to use and interact with. I’m really excited for everyone to see it. I’m also now, understandably, a little bit nervous about it all.

So if there’s something on the shop that’s caught your eye in the past now would be a wonderful time to sling a few bob my way <3

Until next time,
Katie

Accidentally Finding Rare Cookbooks

While in the queue at my favourite charity bookshop the other week a book’s spine caught my eye. Was that…?

Without even looking at the price (or the actual book) I bought it.

The book in question was Margot Henderson’s cookbook from 2012, You’re All Invited. I knew this book must be rare because I didn’t even know Margot Henderson had a cookbook. A quick search online told me the book was out of print, rare, and currently going for £70+.

The recipes are beautifully simple, generous and not too exacting, with most condensed to just a page (Nigel Slater: take note). I could easily imagine myself making a dish for a friend’s party or simply feeding my family at dinnertime. It is rare to find a modern cookbook that caters so broadly.

A week later I was in another secondhand bookshop and stumbled upon a book by architect John Pawson. I pulled it off the shelf expecting it to be his latest cookbook, Home Farm Cooking, and was baffled to find it was actually Living and Eating. This cookbook appeared to be even rarer than Henderson’s, with some copies reselling for over £200¹.

(John Pawson flex: my husband is friends with his son and I have visited his house and yes, it is absolutely increds)

Both cookbooks are similar in theme — food is to be celebrated and shared — though Pawson takes this one step further and explains how to set the tone in the kitchen (equipment, utensils) and for hosting dinner parties (the perfect cutlery, plates) amongst other things. It is to be expected from an architect known for his exacting design and I love it.

For example -

The perfect candle? “[Candles] are best used with restraint, but their appeal endures - especially that of untapered ivory church candles, made with a high proportion of beeswax. A 23cm candle will outlast the most expansive dinner.”

Of all the cookbooks I have bought recently I hold a soft spot for Living and Eating. It is just so exquisitely designed. The photography, the dust jacket, even the font is perfect to me.

Although I added Pawson’s to my shop I think I will hold on to Henderson’s cookbook for a little longer. Sometimes, as a cookbook fan, it is just too hard to let go.

1. I could never sell a book for £200. I know, I am terrible at business. I try to price things reasonably. I think books should be loved and enjoyed. So sue me! (pls don’t - I’m broke. Obviously).