Particular scoops Mitchell's Caribbean cookbook in four-way auction

Particular Books has won a four-way auction for Kin, a Caribbean cookbook with “serious cultural intent” by Marie Mitchell.

Richard Atkinson, publishing director at Penguin Press, bought world all language rights to Kin: Caribbean Recipes for the Modern Kitchen from Milly Reilly at the Jo Unwin Literary Agency in a two-book deal. It will be released in hardback in spring 2023.

The synopsis explains: “A collection of recipes from the Caribbean and its diaspora, Kin celebrates the powerful connection food gives us to our families, culture, and to places and people around the world. In exploring the food of the Caribbean – from Trinidad and Barbados in the south to Jamaica and Cuba in the north, and the many islands in between – Marie Mitchell weaves in the stories behind the recipes, revealing their historical and cultural roots. These are recipes with heart – but they are also fresh and modern, and perfectly suited for health-conscious home cooks. This cookbook crackles with energy as it reclaims the heritage of Caribbean cuisine and celebrates its tradition of sharing and connecting through food.”

Mitchell is chef and co-founder of Island Social Club, a “soul-lifting” modern Caribbean supper club. During its four-nightly residency in Hackney in 2019, Island Social club fed and watered more than 6,000 guests, and received rave reviews from the likes of ES Magazine and the Guardian, as well as featuring on “Jamie’s Meat Free Meals”.

She described Kin as “a way to break bread with my readers by bringing them to the vastness and variety of Caribbean cooking”. She said: “The Caribbean is family, home, comfort, joy, colour and celebration. I hope to show how true exploration and understanding of our food promises a chance to break down barriers and see our unity and kinship rather than our differences. Sharing is at the heart of my cooking, and it is at the heart of Kin.”

Atkinson added: “I’m so excited by Marie’s combination of delicious food, strong design sensibility and serious cultural intent. Kin offers a collection of recipes that showcase the vastness, variety and nuances of Caribbean cooking. From Pepperpot to Green Banana Croquettes, Marie’s recipes had readers at Penguin running to the kitchen to make them. This ambitious, enticing book has the potential to unlock the cuisine of a whole region for a new audience.”

Reilly commented: “Marie is a true storyteller, and in Kin she traces the breadth and history of Caribbean cooking with spirit and warmth. This cookbook is a much-needed addition to our shelves and I could not be more delighted that Marie's work has found a home with Richard Atkinson at Penguin Press.”