Pen Names, African American Cook Book, and Magic Books: March Books Roundup

Our ongoing look at new books that have recently caught the eye of our print and online editors this month.

A Domestic Cook Book: Containing a Careful Selection of Useful Receipts for the Kitchen by Malinda Russell

This 1866 text is the oldest known published cookbook written by an African American woman. Russell was born in Tennessee and worked as a cook and companion. In 1864, she moved to Paw Paw, Michigan, and published a cookbook “with the intention of benefiting the public” as well as supporting herself. It features 260 recipes and household tips, showcasing her skills as a pastry chef. This new edition uses the only known copy of the original book housed in the Janice Bluestein Longone Culinary Archive at the University of Michigan Library's Special Collections Research Center. From University of Michigan Press.

Vergil: The Poet's Life by Sarah Ruden

A biography of the Roman poet by the translator of his Aeneid which looks at how Vergil became arguably the world’s first media celebrity. Published by Yale University Press

Epic of the Earth: Reading Homer’s "Iliad" in the Fight for a Dying World by Edith Hall

And from the same stable, an intriguing study of Homer’s Iliad in terms of it representing the beginnings of the awareness about ecological issues and climate change.

The Chapter: A Segmented History from Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century by Nicholas Dames

If you missed the hardback publication of this back in 2023, the paperback is now out. A history of book chapters, from the Roman world, through the divisional systems of the Gospels and medieval romances, and up to the present day looking at how famous writers such as Laurence Sterne, Goethe, Tolstoy, George Eliot, and B. S. Johnson approached them. From Princeton University Press.

The Magic Books: A History of Enchantment in 20 Medieval Manuscripts by Anne Lawrence-Mathers

The history of medieval magic, from Yale University Press, told through 20 illuminated manuscripts including an astronomical compendium made for Charlemagne’s son, The Sworn Book of Honorius used by a secret society of trained magicians, and the Picatrix. 

Edgar Allan Poe: A Life by Richard Kopley

Described by University of Virginia Press as "the most comprehensive critical biography of Poe yet produced", aimed at the general reader as well as Poe experts.

Type by Lucian Bernhard, Aldo Novarese, and Roger Excoffon

Three titles in Letterform Archive Books' Collected Specimen Booklets which each focuses on a typography giant from the 20th century, Bernhard who is known for his advertising work and posters, Italian type designer Novarese, and Excoffon who was famous for his typeface designs. 

Noble Fragments: The Gripping Story of the Antiquarian Bookseller Who Broke Up a Gutenberg Bible
 by Michael Visontay

A personal memoir about NY bookseller Gabriel Wells who broke up the Gutenberg Bible to sell off individual pages and how it involved the author's family history. From Scribe. You can read Visontay's guest post about it on Fine Books here.

Letterlocking: The Hidden History of the Letter by Jana Dambrogio and Daniel Starza Smith

Not only is this a history of folding and securing a letter into its own envelope for delivery in the pre-gummed envelope days, it also provides instructions on how exactly to do it yourself. The book is accompanied by a website and instructional videos. From MIT Press.

Jane Austen in 41 Objects by Kathryn Sutherland

A fascinating book timed for the 250th Austen celebrations this year which looks at objects connect to Austen, both in her lifetime and after her death, including a teenage notebook, locked tea caddy, theatrical poster for a play she attended, the dining-room grate at Jane Austen's Chawton home, and a dinner plate decorated by Bloomsbury artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant. Naturally, Mr Darcy’s wet shirt worn by Colin Firth in the 1995 BBC adaptation is included. From Bodleian Library Publishing.

Pen Names by Kirsty McHugh and Ian Scott
 
Also from the Bodleian, this is a short look at the history of 40 famous pen names over the last couple of centuries and the motivations behind their selection. A wide variety of authors, not all as well known as  George Eliot, Currer Bell, Lewis Carroll, and George Orwell is featured. This is the book of the similarly excellent exhibition at the National Library of Scotland where the authors are curators.