Clementine in the Kitchen by Phineas Beck (aka Samuel Chamberlain - 1943 First Edition with Illustrations
When a book is written like "Clementine in the Kitchen," that combines humor, people, recipes, art, history, you're wrong in dubbing it just another cookbook. It's more a story of living in which food has an important part." Cissy Craig for The Courier-Journal, November 28, 1943
{HISTORY}
Behind this unassuming blue coverboard, is the most enchanting true story of a French cook and the American family she worked for.
Set in rural France in the 1930s, we first meet the vivacious, artistic Chamberlain family and their cook Clementine in a small village just outside of Paris. There, Clementine dazzles the family each day with her delectable fare, but this idyllic, epicurean paradise in their provincial town doesn't last forever and when WWII forces the family to flee to the United States, Clementine is invited to move with them - a big decision for the petite woman who has never left her birthplace.
A natural in the kitchen in France, Clementine becomes a fish out of water in America. She doesn't understand the language or the shopping style of her new country. Ingredients are different. Convenience foods are popular. And daily outdoor market shopping is replaced with weekly trips to that strange place called the indoor supermarket.
As the story unfolds and Clementine tries to understand this puzzling new place while still holding onto her French roots and recipes, she leans much about the family she works for, her cultural identity, her cooking style and what it means to be a French woman living in America in the 1940s. How does Clementine cope with all this change? We don’t want to spoil it for you, so you have to read it to find out. But what we can say is that this book is funny and charming and filled with recipes. The surprise ending, cinematic storyline and ever-engaging character of Clementine makes it seem like a perfect candidate for movie adaptation and it offers the added benefit of learning some of the basics of French cooking.
Published in 1943, in collaboration with Gourmet magazine, under the nom-de-plume of Phineas Beck, Samuel Chamberlain manages to bring to life the delightful character of Clementine in the most engaging of ways. A captivating and highly original read, this book is also illustrated throughout with whimsical illustrations by Henry Stahlhut and drawings by Samuel Chamberlain, who is no stranger to the Vintage Kitchen himself. Find other books by him and his wife Narcissa here, and here.
{SPECIAL FEATURES}
- First Edition published by Hastings House in collaboration with Gourmet Magazine, 1943
- 228 pages
- Memoir with recipes
- Illustrated throughout along with decorated endpapers
- Interesting recipes include Coquilles St. Jacques, Steak Bordelaise, Jambon Forestiere En Papillotes, Poulet Marengo, Aubergine A La Turque, Haricots Rouge A L'etuvee, Choux Rouge A La Clementine, Charlotte de Pomme Monseigneur, Pommes Marguerite, Fruits Rafraiches Du Cardinal, Mousse Au Chocolat, Clementine's Risotto (Please note; while all recipes retain their french names the recipes themselves are all written in English for American kitchens)
{CONDITION}
In lovely vintage condition. The coverboards and interior pages are clean and bright. There is some slight tanning to the spine. Although the dust jacket is missing, a piece of the dust jacket flap is pasted inside the back cover. There is a bookplate from a previous owner on the inside front cover. Please see photos.
{SIZE}
Measures 8.25" inches (length) x 5.5" inches (width) x 1" inch (depth) and weighs 1 lb.