Foodstuff

I read cookbooks like other people read novels. But I'm overwhelmed by the extensive choices at, say, Borders and Barnes & Noble. I want them all, and usually walk away with nothing. My solution? I joined The Good Cook, the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook club (call toll-free 800-348-7128, or write to The Good Cook, Camp Hill, PA, 17012-0001). Each month I get a list of recommendations from the club -- which isn't so long I lose interest or so short that I feel my choices are limited -- for scintillating texts. Then I order my picks through the mail. I save a few bucks with each book that way, and, even better, the Good Cook lists the award-winning books of several South Florida chefs: Steven Raichlen, Maida Heatter, and Norman Van Aken included.