AustLit

'Cookbooks have recently attracted considerably scholarly attention for what they have to offer to the study of food and gastronomy. Cookbooks also feature in discussions about popular culture, gender and media, history, literature, ethnicity and national culture for the insights they provide on a range of subjects. This collection brings together a series of case studies which demonstrate different ways of looking at writing, reading and publishing cookbooks through the lens of different themes: culinary culture and gastronomy; historical perspectives; cookbooks as popular culture; and writing, publishing and selling cookbooks. Taken together, these articles reveal how cookbooks provide a range of insights into everyday life and community relationships. Equally they show that cookbooks are a wonderful example of material culture; they have historic and social value that make them important in both institutional and personal collections. The focus on Australasian examples makes a distinctive contribution to food studies as well as to food writing in our region.' (Authors introduction)