AMERICA'S KITCHENS, by Nancy Carlisle and Melinda Talbot Nasardinov, tells the story of this important room and features New England hearths, detached kitchens on southern plantations, Spanish colonial kitchens of the Southwest, elaborate nineteenth—century kitchens in the Midwest, and middle—class open—plan homes of 1950s suburbia. The book traces technological developments such as the introduction of the cast—iron cookstove, the efficiency of the Hoosier cabinet, and the impact of the frozen food industry to suggest how these innovations have transformed kitchen work and changed lives.
Innovatively designed and lavishly illustrated with historic drawings, photographs, and a fascinating array of ephemera from Historic New England's diverse collections, America's Kitchens describes what it was like to live with and work in kitchens that had none of the conveniences we take for granted. At the same time, the book analyzes the profound place of the kitchen in our own lives today.

A curator for more than twenty years at Historic New England, Nancy Carlisle works with some of the most important historic kitchens in the country and has written and lectured widely on the material culture of domestic life. Melinda Talbot Nasardinov, a former assistant curator at Historic New England, is a graduate of the Winterthur Program in Early American Culture and writes about American decorative arts and the history of domestic life. This book follows The Camera's Coast in a series of books featuring Historic New England's collections.

"…AMERICA'S KITCHENS makes use of case histories and interviews to animate its text. Equally compelling are the numerous old photos, posters and advertising art that bolster the narrative…A rare hybrid…is equal parts scholarly research and coffee table book ? in short, serious fun." —Maine Sunday Telegram December 14, 2008
"…Innovatively designed and lavishly illustrated with historic drawings, photographs and a fascinating array of ephemera from Historic New England's diverse collections, AMERICA'S KITCHENS describes what it was like to live with and work in kitchens that had none of the conveniences we take for granted. At the same time, the book analyzes the profound place of the kitchen in our own lives today…" —Kennebec Journal, January 11,2009
"…a compelling homage to the beloved room within the home that is central to our lives in so many respects…richly embellished with paintings, photographs and historic drawings…" —Culinary History Enthusiasts of Wisconsin, March 23,2009