LOIS BURPEE'S GARDENER'S COMPANION AND COOKBOOK

An unsensational packet, from Mrs. Burpee of the seed company and Fordhook Farms, this proceeds through the seasons and, for each season, alphabetically by vegetable--a plentiful spread including Brussels sprouts, celeriac, Chinese cabbage, Jerusalem artichoke, kohlrabi, and so on through zucchini. . . with references here and there to the Burpee varieties. For each vegetable, there are some basic gardening and preparation tips and some simple recipes, essentially Farm Journal-American in character with several sweet-and-sour dishes and a few Indian spices mixed in. There are also snatches of autobiography, with kitchen memories of a childhood in Palestine and a later one of growing cress on a doormat to emulate the cress on cocofiber sold in Dutch and Scandinavian markets. Older folks, in particular, are apt to find it congenial.