I’m a big believer in the virtues of books, so I’ve decided to start a running list of food-related books that I’ve read, enjoyed and that have made an impression on me, often ending up in a blog post. I’ll be updating this periodically, or constantly as the case may be—especially the cookbooks—because it takes time to remember them and to write them down, and because I keep reading new ones that I love! Also I seem to have a massive collection all over the house with new ones coming in pretty often. So do feel free to check back and see what’s new.

This list includes cookbooks, books about cooks, books about food and books about growing food—and oh yes, books by food writers/bloggers. There will also be books about the politics of food and books about organic food, local food and sustainability, as those are things very close to my heart. I hope you will check out, and even better, read some of these fine books. Feel free to reply back here and let me know what you think about these books, or tell me about some new ones. This is a running list and so I’m not putting it in alphabetical order…just a record. Enjoy!

Cookbooks:
• Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home: Julia Child and Jacques Pépin
• Heart and Soul in the Kitchen/Chez Jacques/Cuisine Econonmique/Jacques Pépin’s Table/Today’s Gourmet II/Jacques Pépin’s Complete Techniques: Jacques Pépin
• Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Beck, Bertholle, Child
• Cooking with Master Chefs/The Way to Cook/The French Chef Cookbook/Baking with Julia/Julia Child & Company/Julia Child & More Company/: Julia Child
• Chez Panisse: Alice Waters
• Recipes from the Bartolini Kitchens: John Amici
• Simple Italian Food: Mario Batali
• Cuisine Rapid: Pierre Franey
• The Gourmet Cookbook: Ruth Reichl
• The Bon Appétit Cookbook/Bon Appétit Desserts/Bon Appétit Holidays: Barbara Fairchild
• Summerland: Anne Stiles Quatrano
• Two Fat Ladies Full Throttle: Wright and Paterson
• Forever Summer: Nigella Lawson
• Jaime’s Dinners: Jaime Oliver
• Bon Appetit, Y’all: Virginia Willis
• The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook/Lee Bros. Simple, Fresh, Southern: Matt Lee and Ted Lee
• Damon Fowler’s New Southern Kitchen: Damon Fowler
• Cat Cora’s Kitchen: Cat Cora
• The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook: Ina Garten
• The Silver Palette Good Times Cookbook/The Silver Palette Cookbook/The New Basics Cookbook: Russo and Lukins
• The Joy of Cooking: Rombauer and Becker
• Cook and Love It: The Lovett School, Atlanta, GA
• Boy Meets Grill: Bobby Flay
• So Easy/The Food You Crave: Ellie Krieger
• The Vegetarian Epicure, Book Two: Anna Thomas
• Campfire Cuisine: Gourmet Recipes for the Great Outdoors: Robin Donovan
• The Gift of Southern Cooking: Edna Lewis and Scott Peacock
• Souper Jenny Cooks: Atlanta’s Soup Diva Shares Her Easiest Recipes: Jennifer Levison
• A Southerly Course/Screen Doors and Sweet Tea: Martha Hall Foose
• How to Cook Everything/Food Matters: Mark Bittman
• Martha’s American Food, A Celebration of our nation’s most treasured
dishes from coast to coast: Martha Stewart
• Tender, A cook and his vegetable patch: Nigel Slater
• Larousse Gastronomique, The Encyclopedia of Food, Wine & Cookery: Prosper Montagné

Local, Sustainable and Organic Food books:
• The Ominivore’s Dilemma/In Defense of Food/Second Nature: Michael Pollan
• Plenty: One Man, One Woman, and a Raucous Year of Eating Locally: Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon
• Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: Barbara Kingsolver

Books by Chefs/Cooks or about them:
• Appetite for Life: Noah Riley Fitch
• Julia Child: A Life: Laura Shapiro
• My Life in France: Julia Child and Alex Prud’Homme
• Backstage with Julia: Nancy Verde Barr
• Kitchen Confidential/A Cooks Tour/Medium Raw: Anthony Bourdain
• Tender at the Bone/Comfort Me With Apples: Ruth Reichl
• The Making of a Chef: Michael Ruhlman
• Blood, Bones & Butter: Gabrielle Hamilton

Books by Bloggers/Food Writers:
• The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels–A Love Story: Ree Drummond
• A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table: Molly Wizenberg
• Julie and Julia: Julie Powell