Pearl's Kitchen

New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1973. First edition. Hardcover. Red cloth boards. Very good, in good dust wrapper. 211 pages. 24.5 x 15 cm. Presentation copy, warmly inscribed to Yogi Berra: "Dearest Yogi and Family - These 'Pots' will send the Ball over the Fence. With love - your ever-lovin' sister & Umpire, Pearl."

Actress, singer, and born raconteur, Pearl Bailey brought her gift for storytelling to the kitchen in this exuberant blend of recipes, reminiscence, and philosophy. This copy carries an especially appealing association: Bailey's friendship with baseball great Yogi Berra. A devoted New York Mets fan, she attended Game 5 of the 1969 World Series - (Berra then serving as first base coach) - and she was famously captured on film shouting, "Did he hit him?! Oh, it's amazin' - AMAZIN'!" Her excitement and personality featured prominently in the official highlight reel of that championship series.

Bailey's rapport with the team continued after their historic win. During the ticker-tape parade that followed, she performed in Bryant Park, near the New York Public Library, in front of a crowd of thousands. As The New York Times (Oct. 21, 1969) recalled, she appeared "dressed in a black suit and black hat fringed with fun," joining Metropolitan Opera baritone Robert Merrill sing a lively duet of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," with broadcaster Ralph Kiner lending commentary.

Part memoir, part cookbook, Pearl's Kitchen invites the reader into Bailey's home - its rhythms, humor, and heart. Her recipes come suffused with song and story, a reflection of her singular warmth both onstage and off. A lovely presentation copy linking two American originals. Interior clean. Boards toned. Dust wrapper toned and chipped at edges, with small closed tear to front cover. Covered in protective mylar.