Hosting & Entertaining Books for Readers Who Love a Well-Set Scene
As the holidays fast approach, so does the official party season. Now’s the time to start planning in order to make any event unforgettable by creating an atmosphere that warmly welcomes guests into your home and around your table.
But how? In novels and movies, it looks so easy. Everything seemingly comes together without a hitch. Hosting a successful gathering in real life can easily emulate a fictional celebration. Here at Page & Pairing, we’ve curated a list of cookbooks and entertaining and hosting guides to help you pull off a flawless dinner party, celebration, or holiday gathering.
Let’s start with the fall and winter holidays. Planning for a family Thanksgiving feast? How about a festive Christmas gathering with friends? Ushering in the New Year with a big blow-out? We have recommendations that can help you create the kinds of celebrations you’ve read about in some of your favorite books.
Bookish Entertaining Guides and Ideas for your next soirée, book club, or party
The Christmas Companion: Recipes, Crafts and Inspiration for a Magical Festive Season
by Skye McAlpine
If you loved Mr. Fezziwig’s boisterous Christmas party in Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, or you prefer a more low-key celebration like that of the March family in Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, then you’ll find inspiration in The Christmas Companion. From hosting to roasting to decorating, this gorgeous guide offers recipes and fool-proof menus for every event—from two-person romantic dinners to blowout cocktail parties or Christmas lunch for 20, plus McAlpine’s best tips for creating the perfect holiday.
Entertaining
by Martha Stewart
Another good guide to hosting a great gathering is the book that started it all, now reissued in a beautiful new edition! First published in 1982, Entertaining is the essential guide to entertaining, with 300 recipes, 450 full-color photographs, and thousands of inspiring ideas that have stood the test of time.
Planning and organization are the backbone of a successful party, and Martha gives invaluable advice on this as well as on creating a comfortable ambience for guests, presenting food beautifully, setting the perfect table, choosing the ideal lighting and music, and working efficiently with a caterer if the occasion arises. A perfect pick if you’re looking to throw a creative dinner like that in Peter Mayle’s.A Year in Provence.
Come for Tea: Favorite Recipes for Scones, Savories and Sweets
by Lorna Reeves
Fans of Jane Austen and Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton novels can create their own simple but elegant Regency-style afternoon tea settings with a modern twist with Come for Tea. Here you’ll find beautiful table settings and menus for the five most-celebrated special occasions celebrated with afternoon tea—Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas—plus an "à la carte" section featuring TeaTime magazine's all-time favorite recipes for scones, savories, and sweets for creating your own afternoon tea menu.
The Hostess Handbook: A Modern Guide to Entertaining
by Maria Zizka
Have a loved one’s birthday coming up? Or anniversary? Or some other achievement or milestone that should be celebrated? From an epic holiday bash to a casual get-together in the backyard, or an inspired dinner party, plan the perfect gathering with The Hostess Handbook. Here, Zizka provides recipes for everything from appetizers to desserts, and offers recommendations for party supplies and dinnerware, napkins, and cutlery along with ideas on setting the table.
Gatherings: Casual-Fancy Meals to Share
by America's Test Kitchen America's Test Kitchen
Of course, a gathering doesn’t have to be as grandiose as, say, Bilbo Baggins’s “eleventy first” birthday party in Tolkein’s The Fellowship of the Ring, or as lavish as Jay Gatsby’s summer party in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. In Gatherings: Casual-Fancy Meals to Share. the cooks of America's Test Kitchen explain how to throw a dinner party so memorable and fuss-free that everyone will want to repeat it-—even the host. Here they share how they entertain at home, with 140 recipes from simple to showstopping and airtight planning strategies.
The Art of the Board: Fun & Fancy Snack Boards, Recipes & Ideas for Entertaining All Year
by Olivia Carney
Another simple way to feed a crowd is with snack boards. In her award-winning guide, Carney offers over 75 seasonally inspired, approachable snack boards along with recipes and cocktail ideas for fun, stress-free entertaining year-round.
The Southern Entertainer's Cookbook: Heirloom Recipes for Modern Gatherings
by Courtney Dial Whitmore
The South is renowned for its hospitality—and for its wonderful homestyle cooking. Southern authors have long worked some of the region’s favorite foods into their novels. Fannie Flagg’s titular Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café is one example. And then there’s Calpurnia’s Crackling Bread in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and “hoppin’ john” in Carson McCuller’s A Member of the Wedding. In these instances, food is more than just sustenance; it reflects characters’ social class, cultural traditions, and family dynamics.
In The Southern Entertainer’s Cookbook, Whitmore shares modern twists on classics and beloved heirloom recipes from her family’s cookbooks (not to worry, no archaic methods or hard-to-find ingredients here) and provides tips throughout to make the most of any gathering. Covering everything from appetizers to vegetables and sides to pies and cobblers, you can serve your guests some of the very best in Southern cuisine without having to travel there to acquire these delicious dishes.
Time to Plan Your Next Gathering
And there you have it—our recommendations for cookbooks and hosting guides that will enhance your culinary and entertaining skills. Whether you’re planning your next book club or a seasonal soirée, let these inspiring reads guide you to creating a great gathering!
If you need book pairing inspiration, check out the Perfect Pairings from Page & Pairing.