Last refreshed at 0600GMT Friday The best five books on everything | 30 July 2010

The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

Marcella Hazan
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There is no finer recipe writer. Her recipes are concise, they’re clear, they’re unfussy and she never leaves me in any doubt about what I’m supposed to be doing. I would have thought this was the perfect book for somebody who actually doesn’t know how to cook.