31 DECEMBER 1927, Page 17

Mr. Morton P. Shand rightly considers that food is a

serious subject. A Book of Food (Cape, 10s. 6d.) is a book of prejudices, so the author declares. It contains no recipes, but many suggestions, diverting, bitter, and often appropriate. He describes how a steak should be cut, with what ingredients mustard should be mixed, and he bewails our national failure to make coffee—" that bridge between a meal and a cigarette." Beverages also receive their share of praise and blame, in a chapter in which cider is eulogized and whiskey condemned as being only fit for navvies. This amusing book is not for the faddist or crank, but for him who has the capacity to enjoy a good meal and the diligence wherewith to pursue it.