Top books for an adult learning to cook?

[Habbibu]

Following on from moondog's "shit cooks" thread - if you were to give a book to an adult who wanted to learn to cook, and it may be the only cookery book they'd own for a while, what would you choose?

Mine - top of head:
Leith's Techniques Bible
Stephanie Alexander: Cook's Companion (but no pictures for reference, which I think can be handy for starting out)
Nigel Slater: Appetite - for getting away from being a slave to recipes

for me, nothing beats Nigella's first "How to Eat", naff title maybe, but it's a great cookbook, easily her best and good for starting off. Having said that, not particularly a fan of her other books, seem to be regurgitation of this 1st one.

Well I would still go for Delia's complete cookery course, because it tells you all the basics, as well as lots of useful recipes, and has useful advice about equipment etc. Also, all her recipes seem to work which would be encouraging for a novice cook.

Ive got a great book upstairs my mum and dad bought me when i got my first flat at 18yrs old. It has all the basics and all the proper homecooked favourites in it.

1001 recipes for beginners or something!

Good Housekeeping Step-by-Step is pretty good for beginners. It gives photo instructions for techniques or anything tricky.

Mary Berry - The New Cook

it's out of print now which is a terrible shame, but it has wonderous Dorling Kindersly photographs of every stage of the bolognese/roast chicken/apple pie/whatever