The Joy of Cooking - Irma S. Rombauer & Marion Becker, 1953 Bobbs-Merrill Blue Cloth Edition

Irma S. Rombauer & Marion Becker

Published by The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., 1953

About this Item

A lovely mid-century copy of America's most beloved cookbook, The Joy of Cooking, co-authored by Irma S. Rombauer and her daughter Marion Rombauer Becker. This Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged Later Printing (1953) represents one of the definitive Bobbs-Merrill 'blue-cover' household editions, retaining the classic layout and illustrations by Ginnie Hofmann. First published in 1931 from Rombauer's own funds, The Joy of Cooking became a staple of American domestic life and remains the nation's best-selling cookbook. This expanded postwar revision includes modernized instructions, menu planning, and over 4,000 recipes ranging from traditional American fare to continental specialties. Condition: Very Good. Bound in publisher's light-blue pictorial boards patterned with 'The Joy of Cooking' logos; spine crisp with clear titling; minor shelfwear and a faint horizontal surface rub to front. Textblock clean and tight; pages bright and unmarked except for a neat pencil ownership note ('Calina Abdow') on the front endpaper. Two charming period pieces of ephemera laid in including a mid-century 'Cook Book' advertising bookmark advocating for the use of natural gas and a typewritten household recipe card for 'Beef in Burgundy' adding vintage character. Volume protected in a clear removable mylar jacket. Removal not recommended due to age and shelf-compression. Irma Starkloff Rombauer (1877-1962) self-published The Joy of Cooking during the Depression, adapting recipes from her St. Louis community to a conversational, self-help tone that resonated with American home cooks. Her daughter Marion Rombauer Becker (1903-1976) later expanded and systematized the work into the modern reference it remains today. Ginnie Hofmann was a beloved American illustrator and artist, best known for her charming work in children's literature and commercial art. Born Virginia Ritsman in 1920 in Toledo, Ohio, she studied at the Art Academy of Cincinnati and later became widely recognized for her illustrations in the Joy of Cooking and her iconic paper dolls featured in Betsy McCall magazine.

Seller Inventory # NF.ROM.1953.2

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Joy of Cooking - Irma S. Rombauer & Marion Becker, 1953 Bobbs-Merrill Blue Cloth Edition
• Publisher: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc.
• Publication Date: 1953
• Language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Ginnie Hofmann
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket
• Seller catalogs:
  • Cooking
  • Non-Fiction