As we are all shopping for our holiday meals we find an abundance of food available.  In the 1940’s, during World War II this was not always the case.  The Tuesday Afternoon Book Club read a book about England during World War II and their policy of rationing food items.  Many items were in short supply.  For example an adult could have about 1 pound of meat, a 2 oz. (also 2 inch) cube of cheese, 4 tablespoons of butter, 1 egg and 1 cup of sugar per week to mention a few of the rationed items.  That amount of food wouldn’t go far in feeding someone for 7 days, 3 meals a day. .  Many had gardens, raised chickens or other livestock, if it was available, to supplement the rations.  

In the book “The Kitchen Front” by Jennifer Ryan we get a glimpse of what life was like living during that time.  In an effort to help housewives with food rationing, a BBC radio program called “The Kitchen Front”, decided to hold a cooking contest.  The grand prize would be a job as the program’s first-ever female co-host. The book follows the women in the contest:  a young widow, a kitchen maid, a lady of a manor and a trained chef as they select and prepare foods. Winning the contest would be life-changing!! The novel takes the reader to the English village and its eccentric and believable characters.  

Book Club members enjoyed Ryan’s book.  She brought to life an aspect of the War we usually do not consider.   

This book is available at the LeRoy Public Library.  Stop by to check it out or browse many of the other titles available. 

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