{moszoomthumb imgid=259 itemid=74 style_m=2}The Electrical League of Cleveland, 1931

Ok, so this isn’t really a book, but it’s a whole lot of fun.

From the introduction:

Living electrically is a modern art. It contributes at once to the convenience and comfort, the pride and pleasure, the health and happiness of the home and the family. It is an art in which every woman should be well versed.
The woman who understands the Art of Living Electrically can become truly a queen of the home, with the equal of an army of well-trained servants at her command.

The booklet then goes on to describe the uses and value of 59 essential electrical appliances in quaint, sexist terminology, with recipes.

But the really weird thing about this book from 1931 is that, once you strip out the a-woman’s-place-is-in-the-home paradigm, the stuff about the appliances is all still true. Of the entire list, there is not a single appliance that is not still in common use (with the possible exception of the immersion heater, page 91). From waffle iron to hair dryer, from clock to water heater, the Electrical League of Cleveland had the future nailed down tight more than 70 years ago.

Uncanny.