Sweet tooth recommendations of a literary kind

Jane Grigson: Jane Grigson's Fruit Book
The companion to "Vegetable Book", this is an alphabetical guide to fruit, from apple, apricot and arbutus to sorb apple, strawberry and water-melon. The author adds fragments of history or poetry, and explains the 'why' as well as the 'how' of cookery.

Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers: The River Cafe Cookbook
The River Cafe Cook Book is one of the most influential cookbooks to have been published this decade and is the winner of both the Glenfiddich Food Book of the Year and BCA Illustrated Book of the Year awards. Acclaimed for their innovative re-interpretation of Italian farmhouse cooking - Cucina Rustica - at the River Cafe restaurant, Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers have produced an outstanding selection of recipes with an emphasis on uncomplicated food which is vibrant with flavour. Beautifully illustrated, "The River Cafe Cook Book" is a wonderful guide to this approachable and exciting form of Italian cooking and a celebration of a great restaurant.

David Everitt-Matthias: Dessert
Following on from David Everitt-Matthias' critically acclaimed debut, Essence, this stunning second book, with a foreword by Heston Blumenthal, explores the world, and pushes the boundaries of the dessert chef's art. With no specific dessert chef training, David approaches the idea of dessert free from doctrine, and instead, is able to instruct with precision and passion. A great originator of recipes, David has created a book that is singular in its content, style and astonishing originality. Comprising sections on Chocolate and Nut; Fruit; Vegetable; Roots, Pods, Seeds and Bark; and Wild, Dessert is destined to become a classic.