Dr Johnson never said that when a man is tired of supper he is tired of life, but he suggested exactly that when, in a moment of depression, he described supper as a turnpike through which he had to pass in order to get to bed. 

An appetite for food is an appetite for life. Reading cookery books, therefore, is not merely about making meals but also about the pursuit of mental health. As a physician, allow me to prescribe you these three books. They summon thoughts of satisfying dishes and the company and conversation that are their accompaniments. We read books in order to feed our imaginations, and what cookery books make us imagine is usually happiness.

In Classic German Cooking: The Very Best Recipes for Traditional Favorites, from Semmelknödel to Sauerbraten (Ten Speed Press 272pp £30), Luisa Weiss paints a wonderful picture of German food – and hence of German life. Food can open the door to culture and history, and Weiss provides a primer on