Miss Eliza's English kitchen : a novel of Victorian cookery and friendship /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

Good Housekeeping Book Club Pick * A Country Living Best Book of Fall * A Washington Post Best Feel-Good Book of the Year * One of the New York Times's Best Historical Fiction Novels of Fall

In a novel perfect for fans of Hazel Gaynor's A Memory of Violets and upstairs-downstairs stories, Annabel Abbs, the award-winning author of The Joyce Girl, returns with the brilliant real-life story of Eliza Acton and her assistant as they revolutionized British cooking and cookbooks around the world.

Before Mrs. Beeton and well before Julia Child, there was Eliza Acton, who changed the course of cookery writing forever.

England, 1835. London is awash with thrilling new ingredients, from rare spices to exotic fruits. But no one knows how to use them. When Eliza Acton is told by her publisher to write a cookery book instead of the poetry she loves, she refuses--until her bankrupt father is forced to flee the country. As a woman, Eliza has few options. Although she's never set foot in a kitchen, she begins collecting recipes and teaching herself to cook. Much to her surprise she discovers a talent - and a passion - for the culinary arts.

Eliza hires young, destitute Ann Kirby to assist her. As they cook together, Ann learns about poetry, love and ambition. The two develop a radical friendship, breaking the boundaries of class while creating new ways of writing recipes. But when Ann discovers a secret in Eliza's past, and finds a voice of her own, their friendship starts to fray.

Based on the true story of the first modern cookery writer, Miss Eliza's English Kitchen is a spellbinding novel about female friend­ship, the struggle for independence, and the transcendent pleasures and solace of food.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

Poet Eliza Acton is initially insulted by the suggestion that she write a cookery book. She refuses to entertain such a notion, until her father faces bankruptcy. Suddenly, organizing recipes and creating culinary delights are her only options. To aid her in this endeavor, she hires Ann Kirby, a woman living in desperate poverty. The two women, though from vastly different backgrounds, forge an unlikely friendship as they work tirelessly on Eliza's recipe book. Told from the dual perspectives of Eliza and Ann, this novel, based on actual events, chronicles the challenges they face due to gender and class; family pressures and obligations; and their hopes and dreams. Eliza's recipe format, the first of its kind, is still used today. With Eliza's writing skills and Ann's organic talent for cooking, the women made a formidable team. Eliza broke barriers and has been a model for many future English authors and cooks alike. VERDICT Abbs (The Joyce Girl) has written a fascinating, long overdue tribute to the unconventional Eliza Acton, the woman who revolutionized the English cookbook. Ann's and Eliza's drives for independence is inspiring, and their passion for cooking will awaken readers' inner chef.--Julie Whiteley, Stephenville, TX