Noto Earthquake Donation: Alice B. Toklas Cook Book, Gertrude Stein's Paris Table

Alice B. Toklas' Cookbook: The Table of Gertrude Stein in Paris
Toklas, Alice B.
Translated by Yuichiro Takahashi / Ina Kanaseki
Shueisha, 1998

The author was an American writer who lived most of her life in France. Gertrude Stein (1874-1946), a master of modernist literature, was her lifelong lover. Toklas, known to the world through Stein's "The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas" (1933), wrote this book herself for the first time. Stein, who was also a creative mentor to Hemingway and Fitzgerald, was a pioneer who opened up new horizons in all fields of literature, such as poetry, drama, and prose, and was a trendsetter in contemporary art who was quick to appreciate the painters who heralded the dawn of 20th-century painting, such as Cézanne, Matisse, and Picasso. Set in Paris in the 1920s and the small village of Bilignin in the south of France, this book vividly depicts the love life of the two women and the friendships of their friends who admired them, and contains many of the dishes that enlivened the artists' tables. With a combination of witty essays and recipes that will delight gourmets, this is a coveted book that has been read by many readers since its first edition.

Table of Contents
The Artists' Table
The Tradition of French Cuisine
Kitchen Murder
Dishes I Was Treated to in French Homes
The Story of the Dishes I Took with Aunt Pauline and Lady Godiva
Meals in the United States of America on a Lecture Tour in 1934 and 1935
The Vegetable Garden of Bilignin

Françoise Gilot's description of Alice when she visited Gertrude with Picasso was of a strict and unforgiving woman, like a gatekeeper to be cleared in order to see Gertrude. However, that image changes greatly in this book. She put down roots in a foreign land with her partner, survived two wars, entertained guests, was entertained, traveled, had a vegetable garden, prepared the daily table, and compiled those days into a book as her own work after her partner passed away. From the way the recipes are passed down from person to person, one can feel a heartwarming yet rich era. (From a review)

This is an ex-library book and shows "damage" like in the photos.
The proceeds will be donated to the salt fields of Suzu, which were affected by the Noto earthquake.




WesternCulture
Gourmet
WesternLiterature
France
1920s
LostGeneration