The Art of Dining: A History of Cooking and Eating

My personal interest in reading this book was the Elizabethan period; but the book pulls one into all its eras with descriptive, memorable writing and beautiful layout -- paintings, photos, and drawings that explain and enliven its words. I'm not sure I would recommend it as a cookbook (the book is huge, like a heavy coffee table book, and there aren't many recipes); but there are recipes to try if the cooking descriptions get your mouth watering. A great book that's worth buying.