May E. (May Elizabeth) Southworth

May Elizabeth Southworth was an American author whose surviving books show two clear sides to her work: brisk, highly usable cookbooks and a handful of literary pieces. Catalogs and library records connect her with titles such as One Hundred and One Chafing-Dish Recipes, One Hundred and One Salads, One Hundred and One Beverages, One Hundred & One Mexican Dishes, and The Great Small Cat, and Others: Seven Tales.

Much of her publishing activity appears to have centered in San Francisco in the early 1900s, especially through Paul Elder and Company. A contemporary obituary record identifies her as one of San Francisco's distinguished authors, and public-domain library records indicate that she died in 1936.

Because so little easily verified biographical detail survives online, her books do much of the talking for her. They suggest a writer with a gift for concise instruction, variety, and approachable style—someone equally at home compiling elegant household recipes and writing imaginative short fiction.