My Fine Fellow: Chapters 12–15

by Jennieke Cohen
In this twist on the musical My Fair Lady that was inspired by George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion, Helena Higgins and Penelope Pickering, students at 19th-century London's Royal Academy of Culinaria Artisticus, disagree on whether transforming street vendor Elijah Little into a gentleman chef is a worthwhile project.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–3, Chapters 4–7, Chapters 8–11, Chapters 12–15, Chapter 16–Epilogue
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. stipulation
    a restriction insisted upon as a condition for an agreement
    Helena had made confidentiality a stipulation of his employment.
  2. haphazard
    marked by great carelessness
    Down the aisle to their left, clashing plates drew his attention as one of his gentlemen competitors, decked out in an immaculate brown coat and trousers, set about unloading his food onto his table in a haphazard manner.
  3. saucy
    improperly forward or bold
    Now, all you need remember is that saucy charm you had when we met at the night market.
  4. countenance
    the appearance conveyed by a person's face
    The sourness of the tomatoes almost made her cheeks pucker, but she kept her countenance admirably, if she did say so herself.
  5. venerate
    regard with feelings of respect and reverence
    “I quite enjoyed that level of sourness. It reminds me of something I’ve come across in Philippine cooking or even in Persian dishes. In both cultures, sour elements are venerated.”
  6. proclivity
    a natural inclination
    I confess, I’ve not had any dishes from the Philippine Islands, but I was aware of the Persian proclivity for sour foods.
  7. impudence
    the trait of being rude and impertinent
    “I beg your pardon, quite familiar. Have we met before?”
    Helena forced herself not to roll her eyes at his impudence, but Penelope’s face lit up.
  8. lark
    any carefree episode
    Some gentlemen competed for the lark of it, while some did it to attract a wealthy or well-positioned lady with her own professional prospects.
  9. cohort
    a company of companions or supporters
    Some gentlemen competed for the lark of it, while some did it to attract a wealthy or well-positioned lady with her own professional prospects. This Freddie Eynsford-Hill very much struck Helena as part of the latter cohort.
  10. tincture
    a medicine consisting of an extract in an alcohol solution
    “Do avail yourself of my propolis-and-elderberry tincture in the stillroom for your throat.”
  11. penchant
    a strong liking or preference
    The queen and the princesses may ask a gentleman to dance—usually through an intermediary—but I happen to know that the Goo—that is, Princess Adelaide has a particular penchant for waltzes.
  12. unseemly
    not in keeping with accepted standards of what is proper
    “Beg your pardon, my lady.” Pierce’s voice rang out from the doorway, and Elijah stopped short, causing Penelope to collide with his chest in what he imagined Pierce would consider an unseemly manner.
  13. staunch
    firm and dependable especially in loyalty
    Elijah started guiding Penelope around the room once more, staunchly refusing to look her in the eye.
  14. impart
    bestow a quality on
    Helena had told him the first-place winner received a knighthood and the queen's Royal Seal of Patronage, which was similar to a Royal Warrant of Appointment, but imparted more prestige.
  15. consort
    the spouse or companion of a reigning monarch
    The second-prize winner would be awarded the Order of British Culinary Artists and another Royal Seal of Patronage, this time awarded by the Princess of Wales, and the third prize would be a Royal Seal from the prince consort.
  16. smattering
    a small number or amount
    Thankfully, the weather seemed ready to comply with royal wishes, for the sun peeked out from behind a smattering of white clouds.
  17. ignominy
    a state of dishonor
    If Penelope wasn’t careful, she’d end up falling short of her usual second place in the class come graduation. She could even end up below Mabel Pilkington, what with the new opportunities Lady Rutland had given her. And how would Penelope ever be able to live down such ignominy?
  18. placate
    cause to be more favorably inclined
    “There was some confusion about which tent was mine. A count from Liechtenstein seemed to want it, but they placated him with a tent closer to the palace.”
  19. protege
    a person who receives support from an influential patron
    “Besides, Mr. Little must appear to be a gentleman chef like any other in Britain. We cannot help what foreign princes and nobility do, but if anyone thinks Mr. Little to be the protégé of a Culinarian who hasn’t technically graduated yet, he’ll have a smaller chance of succeeding.”
  20. baroque
    having elaborate symmetrical ornamentation
    Hampton Court had to be the largest, most imposing structure he’d ever laid eyes on with its Tudor redbrick towers stretching into the sky, and its grandiose, symmetrical baroque façade spreading out on either side of Lady Rutland behind the podium.
  21. savoir-faire
    social skill
    Lady Rutland has said everything I would have said, but with far more savoir faire.
  22. livery
    a uniform, especially worn by servants and chauffeurs
    When he arrived at the tent, a footman in red-and-gold-braided livery already stood waiting.
  23. sumptuous
    rich and superior in quality
    Shards of sumptuous, crispy duck skin finished the dish.
  24. inane
    devoid of intelligence
    Her very first term at the Royal Academy, Helena had discovered that most of the girls wanted to be Culinarians, yes, but they also became distracted by the most inane things, such as the attractive undergardener, the newest fashion in mantelets, or the house party they’d be attending when the term ended.
  25. frivolous
    not serious in content, attitude, or behavior
    Helena firmly believed then, and firmly continued to believe, that one could not become one of the best Culinarians in the nation by focusing on frivolous pursuits unrelated to food.
  26. popinjay
    a vain and talkative person
    Helena’s eyes widened as the unmistakable profile of Freddie Eynsford-Hill approached Penelope while she continued to converse with the gentleman at the Sardinian tent. How had that popinjay gotten an invitation to the exhibition?
  27. passel
    a large number or amount
    “The Duchess of Audrey rarely consults anymore. All she does is raise her passel of children in the country. She gave up all her training to sit at home.”
  28. reprehensible
    bringing or deserving severe rebuke or censure
    “I still say an education—in any profession—is reprehensible to waste.”
  29. precarious
    not secure; beset with difficulties
    “But her parents’ marriage does make Penelope’s position in society rather precarious. The right husband could make all that go away, as it were. Secure her standing.”
  30. qualm
    uneasiness about the fitness of an action
    This was generally the natural state of affairs when it came to the inner workings of Helena’s mind, but on this occasion, a pinprick of doubt wended its way into her consciousness. These qualms, as unformed as they were, however, did not stop her from forging on in the same direction.
  31. genial
    diffusing warmth and friendliness
    “Excellent!” Penelope proclaimed in her genial way, and the four of them set off to sample the rest of the exhibition.
  32. rapport
    a relationship of mutual understanding between people
    Mabel and Freddie did indeed have a rapport, and at Mabel’s request, between bites he told them of his sister’s adventures at the Royal Academy of Commoditas & Design, which bored Helena to no end.
  33. brazen
    not held back by conventional ideas of behavior
    Freddie grinned at her, and Helena thought this had to be his most brazen attempt yet to exert all his (truly limited) powers of pleasing to beguile her friend.
  34. affable
    diffusing warmth and friendliness
    Penelope laughed him off and refused to meet his eyes or anyone else’s, but Helena watched Elijah’s affable smile melt away, and what’s more, she noted Mabel seeing it as well.
  35. visage
    the appearance conveyed by a person's face
    Helena held her breath as her eyes darted from the dozen other royal footmen handing out lists, to Penelope biting her lip, to Elijah’s deceptively calm visage as his eyes tracked down the row of numbers.
  36. permeate
    spread or diffuse through
    She dropped into the nearest chair, oblivious to the shock permeating the room.
  37. enigmatic
    not clear to the understanding
    She willed him to speak—to tell Helena some of what went on in that enigmatic mind of his, but she also knew from experience that he would likely say nothing more.
  38. supercilious
    having or showing arrogant superiority
    Elijah’s hand itched to hurl his glass into the fire. It would have made him feel better, but then he’d have to tidy it, and Pierce would’ve asked where the glass had gone and given him a supercilious glare when Elijah told him he’d broken it.
  39. tripe
    lining of the stomach of a cow (used as food)
    Nevermind that Elijah felt like he’d scraped himself inside and out with a knife and doused himself in salt and vinegar like he would a piece of tripe to clean off all impurities.
  40. reproach
    express criticism towards
    “I cannot believe you have the gall to reproach me when you have lied from the start about the very nature of who you are!”
Created on Wed May 03 12:57:08 EDT 2023 (updated Mon May 08 09:26:01 EDT 2023)

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