The American Woman's Cook Book Review - Collectibility
This review discusses The American Woman's Cook Book, a vintage cookbook published originally in 1939. The cookbook has been printed in several editions and bindings, including most notably the wartime Victory binding and the National binding. The Victory binding includes a dedication to General Douglas McArthur. The wartime Victory binding editions tend to have the highest value, though there is a boxed edition that We've seen sell for over $100. We've also seen a Domestic Arts editon with a wonderful art deco style cover.
Some of our details below reference the edition shown which is the 1948 National Binding. Our copy has dark blue cover boards. The first edition has a medium forest green cover with a series of vertical stripes on on the left side and a single stripe on the right side through the title and editor's name. Some early editions note the copyright as 1938, but the first edition was published in 1939.
Cookbook Title: The American Woman's Cook Book
Author: Edited by Ruth Berolzheimer
Publisher: Garden City Publishing Co., Inc. (some editions were published by Consolidated)
Copyright: 1948 (edition shown in photo is the 1948 National Binding)
Format: Hardcover, 823 pages
Specialization Categories: Vintage Cookbooks
Average Price: $20 (the Domestic Arts edition and 1942 boxed wartime Victory Binding are valued average $25-$40)
COOKBOOK COLLECTIBILITY RATINGS RATINGS EXPLAINED
Availability: 6.0
Popularity: 6.0
Investment Outlook: 7.0
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Final Collectibility Factor: 6.33
The American Woman's Cook Book - Availability Rating - 6.0
This cookbook is widely available on the Internet as there are numerous editions and bindings available. Because it's not mass market and still a vintage book, we give it an availability rating of 6.0. The more sought after boxed Victory binding form 1942 is much more difficult to find and has a higher score than the availability rating we use here as our average covering all editions. Most used cookbook stores (Cookbook Village included) have copies of this book available.
The American Woman's Cook Book - Popularity Rating - 6.0
Among collectors of vintage cookbooks, this is one of the staples in every collector's collection. It is on par with a Betty Crocker's Cook Book or Joy of Cooking in the sense that it is a classic cookbook, loaded from beginning to end with recipes for all sorts of American dishes. We give it a 6.0 rating for popularity as it is not a household name among those that enjoy mainly contemporary cookery books.
The American Woman's Cookbook - Investment Outlook Rating- 7.0
This book has generally held on to its value. We've seen several collectibles decline in value over the past several years. A few have managed to bounce back in this past year. The American Woman's Cook Book remains somewhat steady around $20 on up dependent upon the edition (as noted above). We believe that it will continue to hold its value and increase down the road when the economy hopefully makes a comeback. If anything, we do believe wartime editions of this book will definitely go up in value over time.
The American Woman's Cookbook - Final Collectibility Factor Rating - 6.33
As noted, this book is a vintage classic and should be part of a collector's collection. If you are truly looking to collect for investment purposes, seek out the boxed Victory binding WWII edition from 1942. Some collectors strive to obtain all editions. (If you are one of them, we'd love to interview you as part of our "Spotlight on Cookbook Collectors" interview series. Please contact us via comment below or through our Contact page form.)
Other Editions
1962 National Binding, 1951 New and Revised Edition, 1943 Wartime Edition Victory Binding (as shown left to right below)
