Books For Pipers

[KafkaStoleMyBike]

For non-fiction, check out Tobacco: A Cultural History of How an Exotic Plant Seduced Civilization by Iain Gately. It’s pretty good, though it becomes a bit Euro-centric once it covers the origins of the plant in the Americas.

For fiction, I second anything by Hemingway. I’m particularly fond of The Sun Also Rises, and The Snows of Kilimanjaro (typically packaged with any of his “greatest“ short story compendiums) always makes me think of pipe smoking.

For fantasy, the Wheel of Times series by Robert Jordan is also one that makes me think of smoking a pipe. One of the main crops of rural homes of the farming-kids-turned-protagonists in this series is ’tabac’; it doesn’t feature prominently, but this massive 14 book series is phenomenal for any Tolkien fan.

A fair number of fiction books about solitary characters always makes me think of pipe tobacco, but that may not translate to others. The Silo series by Hugh Howey and the Culture series by Iain Banks are particular favorites for me to read while smoking, which may bleed into my perceptions of the stories.

 

[dino]

I wholeheartedly agree with some of the previous posts that urge you to read Georges Simenon's Maigret mysteries, and those by Regis McCafferty. These are wonderful novels and short stories, with much pipe smoking and engaging characters.

 

[dino]

Another good book is Mill River Smoke: Stories and Essays, by Marc Munroe Dion. Marc is a regular contributor to NASPC's The Pipe Collector. These are tales of a pipe smoking Mill River, Massachusetts newspaper reporter.

 

[Mtlpiper]

Pipes and reading are a great combo. Lately, I enjoy sitting with a John Le Carré novel under a tree.

I've recently been revisiting some very old English Angling books (pure nostalgia for me).

If you fancy a trip back in time to the early 1900s in England, some examples by H.T.Sherringham can be found on archive.org here and also here. I highly recommend J.W.Martin (pen name "The Trent Otter") who wrote some fantastic guides on Coarse Fishing. Which I find lends itself to relaxation with a pipe very well.

 

[kilroyjune6]

I'll cast another vote for Regis McCafferty. His Joshua Pitt stories are full of pipe smoking. In one instance, the main character solves a tobacco shop robbery, accepting a new pipe in lieu of payment, and in another instance he goes undercover as a tobacco shop employee, advising the new owner on what pipes and tobacco to keep in stock. It's quick, light reading, written by someone who clearly enjoys pipes.

 

[OlJawBone]

Wheel of time