As many of you already know, when I’m not wandering around my library or walking the Corgis, I’m probably going to be cooking. Besides the fact that cooking is the perfect activity to get in some audiobook listening time, it’s also a great way to express creativity, spend time with the people you love, or explore the world through new-to-you cuisine.
Make this your most bookish summer yet with personalized reading recommendations from Tailored Book Recommendations! Our bibliologists (aka professional book nerds) are standing by to help you find your next favorite read. Get your recommendations via email, or opt to receive hardcovers or paperbacks delivered right to your door. And with quarterly or annual plans available, TBR has something for every budget. Get started today from just $18!
Today, I’m sharing two of my favorite cookbooks, both of which include beautiful photography and mouth-watering recipes. But first, bookish goods!
Bookish Goods
Happiest When Reading Embroidered Sweatshirt by embroideredking
I’ve been very into embroidered sweatshirts at the moment. This one has perfected the beautiful simplicity of design. $67
New Releases
Magical/Realism: Essays on Music, Memory, Fantasy, and Borders by Vanessa Angélica Villarreal
When Vanessa Angélica Villarreal becomes a mother, she decides to return to Mexico to learn more about her grandmother and her family. But when Villarreal returns, she finds that her entire life — her marriage, her family, her reality — has fallen apart. With Magical/Realism, Villarreal puts her life back together using everything from pop culture references to video games.
The Infernal Machine: A True Story of Dynamite, Terror, and the Rise of the Modern Detective by Steven Johnson
The author of The Ghost Map returns to tell the story of the evolution of the NYPD. Set against the backdrop of 1914 New York City, Steven Johnson tells the story of the anarchy movement that led to the birth of the modern detective, when the NYPD stopped responding to crime and started solving it.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
I Am a Filipino: And This Is How We Cook by Miguel Trinidad and Nicole Ponseca
This incredible cookbook is a 2019 James Beard Award Finalist. Plus, it was named a Best Cookbook of the Year by The New Yorker, Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, New York Times Book Review, Houston Chronicle, Food52, PopSugar, and more. This phenomenal cookbook invites readers into the diverse range of Filipino cuisine with all of its many influences, including Chinese, Arab, Mexican, and Spanish cooking techniques. The authors invite readers to learn more about the origins of their recipes, creating a cookbook that is such a wonderful celebration of Filipino cooking.
In Bibi’s Kitchen: The Recipes and Stories of Grandmothers from the Eight African Countries that Touch the Indian Ocean by Hawa Hassan (with Julia Turshen)
My favorite cookbooks are those that have at least some little snippet of storytelling in them. I want to know more about where the recipe came from. Where did the cookbook author first discover their love of food? In Bibi’s Kitchen does that and more. Somali chef Hawa Hassan talks to bibis (grandmothers) from South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, Comoros, Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, and Eritrea. They share their recipes and wisdom around their love of food. This cookbook feels like travel writing, a memoir, and a cookbook all rolled into one!
That’s it for this week! You can find me over on my substack Winchester Ave, over on Instagram @kdwinchester, on TikTok @kendrawinchester, or on my podcast Read Appalachia. As always, feel free to drop me a line at kendra.d.winchester@gmail.com. For even MORE bookish content, you can find my articles over on Book Riot.
Happy reading, Friends!
~ Kendra