Amazon.com (ISBN 0395892554, Paperback)

The point of entertaining is simply to feed people and be relaxed. In Help, My Apartment Has a Dining Room, Kevin and Nancy Mills, the son-and-mother team who wrote Help, My Apartment Has a Kitchen, apply their wit and wisdom to just that. Targeted to students and newly independent twentysomethings, this user-friendly cookbook offers tips and menus to help the novice host weather nerves and wobbly cooking. First, cook ahead as much as possible. And make several dishes--the variety helps please everyone, avoid disaster from inevitable kitchen failures, and cope with vegetarians and individual allergies. Beginners can follow recommended menus (for example, Creamy Mushroom Soup, Chicken Kiev, Gingery Carrots, and Chocolate Fondue) or compose their own from recipes rated Very Easy (Thousand Island Dressing: three ingredients, five minutes) to Not So Easy (Beef Bourguignon). The authors explain everything, even how to hold a knife to chop nuts. The Mom Tips and Mom Warnings that follow recipes add more reassurance, like what stew meat and wine to buy for the Bourguignon.

Helpful to the last detail, the Millses explain how to make coffee and tea, and how to set the table, suggesting you use one rather than assembling around the sofa. A perfect shower gift, this book can save parents a fortune on phone bills and help your friends (or you) survive entertaining without emotional meltdown. --Dana Jacobi