Here's a game for those who like to test their knowledge of cookbooks. Guess how much two different book experts valued this book for.
I can tell you it really shocked me. I know it is rare but apparently finding one with a dust jacket is extremely rare.
I just received two "valuations" on a fairly rare cookbook and was shocked by both, one from an antiquarian book dealer here in SoCal who evaluates rare volumes for libraries and individuals referred by other dealers. (as I was)
The other is a retired antiquarian library specialist in New York who was one of the editors of a publications for book dealers for many years and to whom I was referred by another cookbook collector.
I found this book offered on line and the prices seemed reasonable but neither included the dust jacket. Apparently a dust jacket in some cases is more valuable than the book itself.
Title: EARLY CALIFORNIA HOSPITALITY
The Cookery Customs of Spanish California,
authored by Ana Bégué de Packman
This cookbook delves into the traditions of the Spanish settlers of California who followed Padre Junipero Serra as soldiers and colonists and adopted the native foods to their tables.
The author was a direct descendant of Juan Francisco Reyes and was a long time Secretary of the Historical Society of Southern California.
The dust jacket was printed on paper similar to "newsprint" and with a high acid content. There is some foxing inside, but not as much as I have seen in other books from the 1930s (a period when many printers were using less expensive papers).
It is an interesting cookbook I found in a Pasadena book shop many years ago, sadly another book shop that is gone but for decades was a favorite of mine.
