Wartime Cookery by Ianthe Pemberton

Title: Wartime Cookery (I have to confess we are not ackcherly given a proper title for this book*)

Author: Ianthe Pemberton

Publisher: Adrian Coates

Source book: Northbridge Rectory by Angela Thirkell (Barsetshire #10)

Miss Pemberton lives in genteel poverty with her scholarly lodger Harold Downing. Her tiny cottage is cramped, cold and uncomfortable; however Miss Pemberton turns out to be a very talented cook. By chance in the early years of the war, she entertains one of publisher Adrian Coates’ assistants, Mr Holden, to dinner. Miss Pemberton gives her guests a casserole or stew which includes rice, mushrooms, bacon and tomato, rabbit stock, prunes, carrots, onion and pickled walnuts, thickened with oatmeal, and served with grated cheese. The ingredients are identified gradually by her guests as they eat the wonderfully tasty stew.

Mr Holden recognises how excellent the dinner is despite wartime restrictions and a lack of available ingredients, and immediately offers Miss Pemberton a contract to write a cookery book.

Miss Pemberton is somewhat taken aback to be offered an advance of £50 (Mr Holden could not offer more because of the war). Mr Downing , she says, has never been offered an advance for all his hard work on his scholarly books so payment on publication will suit her.

Angela Thirkell, who wrote several very well researched historical novels, was known to complain rather bitterly that she was forced to keep writing her bad books (the Barchester novels) because her much better books simply didn’t pay. I don’t know why she didn’t appreciate the genius of her Barchester novels. It’s rather sad.

Apparently Miss Pemberton had in earlier days made a name for herself with a life of Edward IV’s queen, Elizabeth Rivers, written with great accuracy, an exhausting number of footnotes and complete dullness. But we don’t discover this until What Did it Mean?

See also Miss Pemberton’s work on the Biographical Dictionary of Provence.

Also in Northbridge Rectory someone reads the fabulous sounding From Cardsharp to Cardinal. If only there was more information but that’s all we get. I feel this is a book crying out to be written.

*This is a relusion** to Mrs Turner's niece in Northbridge Rectory.

** If you haven't read Angela Thirkell, don't ask.