Stand Facing the Stove: The Story of the Women Who Gave America The Joy of Cooking [Paperback]

In 1931, Irma S. Rombauer, a recent widow, took her life savings and self-published a cookbook that she hoped might support her family. Little did she know that her book would go on to become America's most beloved cooking companion. Thus was born the bestsellingJoy of Cooking,and with it, a culinary revolution that continues to this day.
InStand Facing the Stove,Anne Mendelson presents a richly detailed biographical portrait of the two remarkable forces behindJoy-- Irma S. Rombauer and her daughter, Marion Rombauer Becker -- shedding new light on the classic kitchen mainstay and on the history of American cooking. Mendelson weaves together three fascinating stories: the affectionate though often difficult relationship betweenJoy'soriginal creator, Irma, and her eventual coauthor, Marion; the bitter dealings between the Rombauers and their publisher, Bobbs-Merrill (at whose hands the Rombauers likely lost millions of dollars); and the enormous cultural impact of the beloved book that Irma and Marion devoted their lives to refining, edition after edition.
Featuring an accessible new recipe format and an engaging voice that inspired home cooks,Joychanged the face of American cookbooks.Stand Facing the Stoveoffers an intimate look at the women behind this culinary bible and provides a marvelous portrait of twentieth-century America as seen through the kitchen window.Anne Mendelsonis a leading authority on the history of American cookbooks. She has written for a variety of magazines and newspapers, includingGourmet.She lives in northern New Jersey.Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part I

1The Golden Age of St. Louis

2Beginnings and Endings

3The Rombauers After the War

4The Birth of Joy

Part II

5Chronicles of Cookery 1

6Rombauer and Bobbs-Merrill:lÃ'