Bookshelf
Here you will find links to the books that have helped me with the research or served as inspiration for the current and previous seasons of the Comfortably Hungry podcast (along with my own publications, naturally!).
Where possible I have linked them to Bookshop.org, an online bookshop in the UK with a mission to financially support local, independent bookshops. If you live outside of the UK do consider ordering them from your favourite independent bookstore.
(If there is no link provided you may have to seek out a pre-loved copy).
Sam Bilton’s Books
Much Ado About Cooking (2025)
The Philosophy of Chocolate (2023)
The Christmas Book by Phaidon (2023) (Contributed an essay on Christmas Food)
First Catch Your Gingerbread (2020)
Season 4: Water
Between Two Rivers by Moudhy Al-Rashid
The Epic of Gilgamesh by Anonymous
Irish Food History: A Companion edited by Dorothy Cashman and Mairtin Mac Con Iomaire
Harvest of the Cold Months by Elizabeth David
Roman Recipes for Modern Cooks by Sally Grainger
Strong Roots by Olia Hercules
Three Men and a Boat by Jerome K Jerome
A Cold Spell: A Human History of Ice by Max Leonard
Is a River Alive? by Robert Macfarlane
In the Land of Ninkasi: A History of Beer in Ancient Mesopotamia by Tate Paulette
Drinking Water: A History by Ian Salzman
There are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak
Water Beings: From Nature Worship to the Environmental Crisis by Veronica Strang
Thirst: In Search of Freshwater by various authors (Wellcome Collection)
Filthy Queens: A History of Beer in Ireland by Christina Wade
Waters of Life: A History of Wine-distilling and Spirits from 500 BC to AD 2000 by C. Anne Wilson
Food in Shakespeare/Literature (Bonus Mini Season)
Eating Right in the Renaissance by Ken Albala
Cooking & Dining in Tudor & Stuart England by Peter Brears
A Gothic Cookbook by Ella Buchan and Alessandra Pino
Multisensory Shakespeare and Specialized Communities by Sheila T. Cavanagh
Shakespeare for Freedom: Why the Plays Matter by Ewan Fernie
Macbeth, Macbeth by Ewan Fernie and Simon Palfrey
Food in Shakespeare by Joan Fitzpatrick
Martha Lloyd’s Household Book: The Original Manuscript from Jane Austen’s Kitchen by Martha Lloyd
English Food: A People’s History by Diane Purkiss
This Is Shakespeare: How to Read the World's Greatest Playwright by Emma Smith
Food in Early Modern England by Joan Thirsk
Culinary Shakespeare: Staging Food and Drink in Early Modern England edited by Amy L. Tigner and David B. Goldstein
Straight Acting: The Many Queer Lives of William Shakespeare by Will Tosh
Dinner with Mr Darcy: Recipes Inspired by the Novels and Letters of Jane Austen by Pen Vogler