n How to Cook by Carolyn Humphries (Foulsham, £5.99)

IT has to be a good idea to write a cookery book for those just starting out on the food trail.

If you wander around the supermarket unsure of what to buy and how to cook it, look no further.

There is a chapter on each of the food groups, one on how to keep your kitchen hygienic and tricks of the trade to make your passage into food easy.

No matter if you are a student moving into digs, away from mum or halls; or perhaps this is your first foray into cooking to impress, this book is the one. It's inexpensive, cuts to the nitty gritty and explains all those weird cookery terms.

If there is one failing it's that there are few illustrations, especially since you can't always judge what a dish is supposed to look like.

However, the taste is the thing that matters, and from experience some dishes that look divine actually can taste quite dreadful, so maybe the author knows what she is doing! Annie Dendy