''À La Pym: The Barbara Pym Cookery Book'' (published in

the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

as ''The Barbara Pym Cookbook)'' is a 1988

cookbook A cookbook or cookery book is a kitchen reference containing recipes. Cookbooks may be general, or may specialize in a particular cuisine or category of food. Recipes in cookbooks are organized in various ways: by course (food), course (appetize ...

by Hilary Pym and

Honor Wyatt Honor Ellen Wyatt (6 February 1910 – 23 October 1998) was an English journalist and radio presenter, known for her association with Barbara Pym, Robert Graves, and Laura Riding as well as for her own work. She was the mother of the actor Ju ...

collecting recipes for meals served, or mentioned, in the novels of Hilary's sister,

Barbara Pym Barbara Mary Crampton Pym (2 June 1913 – 11 January 1980) was an English novelist. In the 1950s she published a series of social comedies, of which the best known are '' Excellent Women'' (1952) and '' A Glass of Blessings'' (1958). In 1977 ...

. The book was published in the United States by

E. P. Dutton E. P. Dutton was an American book publishing company. It was founded as a book retailer in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1852 by Edward Payson Dutton. Since 1986, it has been an imprint of Penguin Group. Creator Edward Payson Dutton (January 1, ...

in 1988, and in the United Kingdom by Prospect Books in 1995.

Pym published her novels between 1950 and 1980, with many of them exploring the lives of

spinster Spinster or old maid is a term referring to an unmarried woman who is older than what is perceived as the prime age range during which women usually marry. It can also indicate that a woman is considered unlikely to ever marry. The term origin ...

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

priests, and

anthropologists An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...

. Especially in her early novels, which take place shortly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

when rationing was still in effect, Pym's characters are often noted for their simple meals. Food is often used in Pym's novels as a marker of class or social position, and many of Pym's characters face culinary disasters in her novels. In '' Some Tame Gazelle'', the protagonist

sisters fret over whether to serve

cauliflower cheese Cauliflower cheese is a traditional English dish. It can be eaten as a main course, for lunch or dinner, or as a side dish. Cauliflower cheese consists of pieces of cauliflower lightly boiled and covered with a milk-based cheese sauce, for whic ...

to the new vicar. When they serve some to a paid domestic, she is disgusted to find that there is a

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder ...

on the cauliflower, leading to an awkward situation. In '' An Unsuitable Attachment'', parts of which take place in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, English characters struggle to adjust to the food and the cuisine. Concerns about serving, eating, and affording food recur throughout Pym's ''oeuvre''. Wyatt and H. Pym take their inspiration from all 12 of Pym's completed novels. The recipes are accompanied by quotes from the novels. A few of the recipes included were Pym's own. Many of the recipes are staples of

English cuisine English cuisine encompasses the cooking styles, traditions and recipes associated with England. It has distinctive attributes of its own, but is also very similar to wider British cuisine, partly historically and partly due to the import of i ...

, and many were seen as old-fashioned by the time of the book's publication.

Context and critical reception

The 1980s was a peak period for interest in Pym's work, especially in the US."Invisible Ink: No. 68"
Christopher Fowler,''The Independent'', 13 March 2011, accessed 30 September 2011 After being ignored by publishers for 16 years, Pym had been rediscovered in 1977. All of her books were republished, and new volumes accepted by publishers, before her death from

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

in 1980. As a result of the strong interest, her literary executors made available several previously unpublished novels, an autobiography, and a biography. The cookbook was well received. ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' called it "respectfully yet whimsically presented" and noted the importance of cooking and other "small things in life" to Pym's literary style. ''

The Paris Review ''The Paris Review'' is a quarterly English-language literary magazine established in Paris in 1953 by Harold L. Humes, Peter Matthiessen, and George Plimpton. In its first five years, ''The Paris Review'' published new works by Jack Kerouac, ...

'' notes that, while Pym herself was acknowledged as a good cook, the food featured in her novels is often (deliberately) unsatisfactory, and that renders the idea of a cookbook taken from her works rather unusual to 21st century tastes.Stein, Sadie, ''Salmon Mousse, or Absolute Power'', ''Paris Review'', 17 August 2015, accessed 27 April 2020
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References

{{Barbara Pym 20th-century British cookbooks 1988 non-fiction books

Contents

Context and critical reception

References