From Per

My name is Per A. Borglund. I was born in 1961 and am a retired journalist and editor. My great hobby and passion is collecting cookbooks, and today I have the world's largest registered collection of this type of literature.

The collection of books about food and drink was started in 1996, and my first cookbook was about Chinese food. Today the large collection comprises nearly 15,000 books, a mix of Norwegian, Scandinavian, and books from all over the world. The oldest are from the 18th century, the newest was published last week.

The books come from bookshops, flea markets, second-hand markets, publishers (I have reviewed cookbooks in newspapers and magazines for more than 25 years), and large and small donations.

The most exciting books are the antiquarian ones, often with recipes that today seem incomprehensible. Modern cookbooks are colourful and full of pictures; sometimes they are also full of knowledge about people, geography, and exotic ingredients.

Here you can now browse and enjoy a collection that in the real world stretches over several hundred metres of bookshelves in two different buildings.

Every Monday you can enjoy a selected cookbook that I think you should get to know. It might be brand new or 200 years old. Does it deal with new Norwegian food or traditional dishes from Sri Lanka?

Stay tuned! Bon appétit! The best food and the best drinks come from an interesting person who once sat down to write a book.