Some of the year’s best cookbooks for giving

Basic Training

“The New Making of a Cook,” by Madeline Kamman (William Morrow, $40)

The new revision of “Joy of Cooking,” by Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker (Scribner, $30)

“CookWise: The Hows & Whys of Successful Cooking,” by Shirley Corriher (William Morrow, $28.50)

“The Essential Cookbook,” by Caroline and Terence Conran and Simon Hopkinson (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, $39.95 until Jan. 1; $50 after)

Restaurant Specials

“72 Market St. Dishes It Out!” by Roland Gibert with Robert Lia (Wave Publishing, $32.50)

“The Food of Campanile,” by Mark Peel and Nancy Silverton with Ian Smith (Villard, $35)

“Rockenwagner,” by Hans Rockenwagner with Brigit Legere Binns (Ten Speed Press, $29.95)

“Alfred Portale’s Gotham Bar and Grill Cookbook,” by Alfred Portale with Andrew Friedman (Doubleday, $45)

“The Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant Complete Seafood Cookbook” by Mark Abrahamson (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, $27.50)

“Emeril’s Creole Christmas,” by Emeril Lagasse with Marcelle Bienvenu (William Morrow, $23)

“Norman’s New World Cuisine,” by Norman Van Aken with John Harrisson (Random House, $50)

Classics, Old and New

“Marcella Cucina,” by Marcella Hazan (HarperCollins, $35)

Reissues from the Cook’s Classic Library from Lyons & Burford, including “An Omelette and a Glass of Wine” by Elizabeth David and “An Unprejudiced Palate” by Angelo Pellegrini.

“Maida Heatter’s Pies & Tarts” (Cader Books, $19.95), “Maida Heatter’s Cookies” (Cader Books, $21.95) and “Maida Heatter’s Cakes” (Cader Books, $22.95)

World Food

“Easy Family Recipes From a Chinese-American Childhood,” by Ken Hom (Knopf, $27.50)

“In Nonna’s Kitchen,” by Carol Field (HarperCollins, $30)

“Latin Cooking Across the U.S.A.,” by Himilce Novas and Rosemary Silva (Knopf, $27.50)

“The Flavors of Puglia” by Nancy Harmon Jenkins (Broadway Books, $25)

“Fiesta! A Celebration of Latin Hospitality,” by Anya Von Bremzen (Doubleday, $29.95)

“The Chinese Way,” by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo (Macmillan, $25)

“Classic Turkish Cooking” by Ghillie Besan (St. Martin’s, $29.95)

“The African-American Kitchen,” by Angela Shelf Medearis (Plume, $14.95)

“Recipes From Paradise: Life and Food on the Italian Riviera,” by Fred Plotkin (Little, Brown, $32.50)

Splendid Excess

“Steak Lover’s Cookbook” by William Rice (Workman, $13.95)

“The Fearless Frying Cookbook,” by Hoppin’ John Martin Taylor (Workman, $10.95)

Vegetarian

“Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone,” by Deborah Madison (Broadway Books, $35)

“French Vegetarian Cooking,” by Paola Gavin (M. Evans, $14.95)

“Meatless Mexican Home Cooking,” by Nancy Zaslavsky (St. Martin’s Press, $25.95)

Singular Sensations

“Cheese Primer” by Steven Jenkins (Workman, $16.95)

“Flavored Breads,” by Mark Miller and Andrew MacLauchlan with John Harrisson (Ten Speed Press, $19.95)

“Olive Oil: From Tree to Table,” by Peggy Knickerbocker (Chronicle Books, $19.95)

Good Read

“The Man Who Ate Everything,” by Jeffrey Steingarten (Knopf, $27.50)