2 Books Published by Ida Bell Publishing on AALBC — Book Cover Collage

There is no one movie, song, or book that will make these troubled times disappear, but "The Culinary Art Portfolio of Josephine E. Jones"—where art and food intersect—will give you welcome relief.

Wendy Jones—whose text accompanies John Turner’s color photographs—showcases the culinary art of her mother, Josephine E. Jones.

Josephine, in 1967, may have been the first African American woman in management at a Fortune 500 company, Standard Brands, now Kraft.

Neither a cookbook nor a how-to book, the portfolio’s 16 photos, printed on glossy paper, are perforated so they can be removed and framed.

The text on each facing page includes the ingredients used, the processes employed, and not only Josephine E. Jones’s comments on food presentation, but also the wisdom of her positive approach to life—despite obstacles—which she overcame.

The photographs will give you the pleasure derived from any art book.

The text will inspire you to create your own culinary art.

And framing your favorite photos will give you, your family, and your friends enjoyment for many years to come.

This is the biography of my mother, a South Carolina sharecropper’s daughter, born in 1920, who journeys to New York in 1946 to work as a cook in private homes. By 1967, she is not only a Harlem activist, but also the first black woman in management at a Fortune 500 company, Standard Brands, now KraftHeinz.

Josephine’s voice is the heart of the book with my voice adding historical context at the beginning of each chapter. Also included is an appendix describing how my mother nurtured my education.

I am looking forward to your response to this compelling story. As you will find when you visit the website, www.idabellpublishing.com, you can contact me at idabellpub@gmail.com.

Josephine Jones, born in 1920, the daughter of a South Carolina sharecropper, became, in the sixties a Harlem activists as well as the first black woman in management at a Fortune 500 company.As a single parent, she worked on three jobs to send her daughter to private schools.The importance of education runs through Josephine’s life like a golden thread. Josephine’s life was directly affected by the Great Migration, the civil rights movement, the women’s movement, the gentrification of Harlem, and the AIDS epidemic. An Extraordinary Life: Josephine E. Jones is an American story, a Great Migration story, a New York story, a black family’s story, a mother-daughter story, and the story of a woman’s fight for creativity in the workplace.

Praise for An Extraordinary Life: Josephine E. Jones

“An Extraordinary Life: Josephine E. Jones is an empowering book that lifts the level of every reader’s thought pattern. Most admirable, is her love for young people and her drive to help them find ways to lift themselves above the stereotypes embedded in a system that always seems bent on keeping them down. She stands up to authority and fights for principle and fairness at a time in America’s history when doing so was not without great risk. This book forces us to accept the fact that we have no excuse for inaction.”
—Gretna Wilkinson, Geraldine R. Dodge Poet and founder of theravensperch.com, an international literary magazine.

“An Extraordinary Life: Josephine E. Jones, a twentieth-century black woman and the daughter of sharecroppers, who dedicated herself to hard work and single motherhood (the man she married turned out to have a weak work ethic, and she quickly divorced him for it).

In the course of her life she rose from domestic cook to temp work to becoming the first black woman in management of a Fortune 500 company. She was also a Harlem activist, and worked multiple jobs to ensure that her daughter would have the best education and the best life possible. Penned by Josephine’s daughter Wendy Jones, An Extraordinary Life: Josephine E. Jones is also a testament to the bonds that connect mother and daughter, as well as to human courage and motivation. Highly recommended.”
—B. Cox, Managing Editor, The Midwest Book Review