Home Encyclopaedia. Compiled by the Good Housekeeping Institute. (National Magazine
Company. 455.) HERE, at last, is a book on cookery and household management which is no mere shadow of Mrs. Beeton, Good House- keeping Institute's Home Encyclopaedia has a completely fresh approach to the subject, aided by lavish photography, and in some ways surpasses her work in comprehensive- ness. The cookery half of the encyclo- paedia. bridges the usual gulf between kitchen and countryside and between cook and chemist. Berries, herbs and their culinary usage are deseribed ; poisonous toadstools are shown in colour. The sectiorr on apples includes not only recipes and, bottling hints but also notes on the best' varieties for the garden and their cultivation. Basic ingre- dients such as salt are chemically analysed to explain their function in recipes. The homecraft section fanges 'more widely than is usual in household books—from a history of antique furniture to plastics. Only the baby is neglected ; he is scarcely mentioned from A-Z, while his mother is instructed , -on being electrician, gardener, plumber. painter, as well as seamstress and washer- woman. The book is worth its price for the two thousand photographs and drawings alone. It will undoubtedly become a classic of its kind, and has much to teach not only an experienced housewife but also the gourmet and the "man about the house." J. H. D. The Saturday Book. Edited by Leonard Russell. (Hutchinson. 2 ss.)
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