My Modest Pipe/Tobacco Library

[rmbittner]

I’m constantly amazed at how often certain questions arise on this forum. Or how often we see “School Me on _________” demands, when the answers are readily available for anyone interested in educating themselves. It sometimes feels as if folks aren’t aware of the wealth of published resources available to them.

So: here’s a list of the books on pipes, tobacco, and smoking that I’ve managed to collect in my own library. Some are great; some aren’t. But if you’re looking to broaden your pipe/tobacco knowledge, it’s not a bad list to launch from.

I’d love it if folks could mention any of their own favorites that don’t appear here; I’m always happy to add more books to the shelves! (And, for the record, these are all print editions; I excluded digital-only publications from this list.)

All About Tobacco, Milton M. Sherman
The Book of Pipes & Tobacco, Carl Ehwa
Carl Weber’s The Pleasures of Pipe Smoking, Carl Weber
The Christmas Pipe, Richard Carleton Hacker
The Connoisseur’s Book of the Cigar, Z. Davidoff
The Gentle Art of Smoking, Alfred Dunhill
Holy Smoke, G. Cabrera Infante
How to Get More Fun Out of Smoking, Sidney P. Ram
In Search of Pipe Dreams, Rick Newcombe
My Lady Nicotine, J. M. Barrie
Pipe and Pouch: The Smoker’s Own Book of Poetry, Joseph Knight
The Pipe Book, Alfred Dunhill
The Pipe, Georges Herment
The Pleasures of Cigar Smoking, J. B. Back
Stokkebye: The Life & Good Times of a Tobacco Man, Peter Stokkebye
Sublime Tobacco, Compton Mackenzie
Trial by Fire, William Serad
The Ultimate Cigar Book, Richard Carleton Hacker
The Ultimate Pipe Book, Richard Carleton Hacker
Weber’s Guide to Pipes and Pipe Smoking, Carl Weber

 

[Simplicity]

I would add An Intimate History Of The Tobacco Industry, 1850–1920 by Ben Rapaport to this list.

 

[Elric]

Also, Tobacco: The Story of how Tobacco Seduced the World by Iain Gately and The Social History of Smoking by George Latimer Apperson.

 

[rmbittner]

Also, Tobacco: The Story of how Tobacco Seduced the World by Iain Gately and The Social History of Smoking by George Latimer Apperson.

I actually own the former! Now I’m going to have to go find the pile it must be buried under, because it’s not with the rest of the library…

 

[chilllucky]

"Making tobacco bright" by Barbara Hahn. An economic historian's perspective on our beloved leaf, focusing on America from colonization to WW1.

 

[fireground_piper]

Tobacco Harvest: An Elegy by Wendell Berry and James Baker Hall

The Illustrated History of the Pipe by Alexis Liebaert and Alain Maya

Even though is very short, I really enjoyed Tobacco Harvest just for its quick glimpse into a disappearing world.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I’m constantly amazed at how often certain questions arise on this forum. Or how often we see “School Me on _________” demands, when the answers are readily available for anyone interested in educating themselves. It sometimes feels as if folks aren’t aware of the wealth of published resources available to them.

Some would rather communicate interests with others rather than peruse vintage tomes otherwise forums like this wouldn't exist. While novel and collectible, a lot of the terminology and techniques in those texts has either been debunked or improved upon since their original printing and discussing with others be it online or in person expands the knowledge and makes it less foreboding to new smokers.

 

[sablebrush52]

This is an excellent list. I have most , if not all, of these.

 

[rmbittner]

Some would rather communicate interests with others rather than peruse vintage tomes otherwise forums like this wouldn't exist. While novel and collectible, a lot of the terminology and techniques in those texts has either been debunked or improved upon since their original printing and discussing with others be it online or in person expands the knowledge and makes it less foreboding to new smokers.

I can see some historical habits falling out of favor over the years, especially if by “vintage tomes” you’re referring to books well over 100 years old. But I can’t tell you how many questions that frequently arise here are absolutely well addressed in Carl Ehwa’s book, Sherman’s book on tobaccos, and Weber’s “Pleasures.” And even though Rick Hacker has gained his detractors, I found his “Ultimate Pipe Book” — from the 80s, which is hardly vintage where books are concerned — an incredible resource on just about all aspects of the hobby.

But, then, I’m a full-time writer and former book editor, so…definitely a “book person” by nature.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I can see some historical habits falling out of favor over the years, especially if by “vintage tomes” you’re referring to books well over 100 years old. But I can’t tell you how many questions that frequently arise here are absolutely well addressed in Carl Ehwa’s book, Sherman’s book on tobaccos, and Weber’s “Pleasures.” And even though Rick Hacker has gained his detractors, I found his “Ultimate Pipe Book” — from the 80s, which is hardly vintage where books are concerned — an incredible resource on just about all aspects of the hobby.

But, then, I’m a full-time writer and former book editor, so…definitely a “book person” by nature.

Yes but some prefer the social interaction. You could just as easily Google the information but text doesn't have the same effect as a conversation. In Ehwa's book it still, as I do, calls latakia and orientals aromatic tobaccos, apparently that's blasphemous to newer smokers. Much has changed since the era when those books were written.

 

[rmbittner]

Yes but some prefer the social interaction.

It isn’t that I don’t understand that…or share it. Some of my life’s greatest moments of joy have come while standing around a pipe shop, just listening to the guys talk. And I’ve certainly posted my share here! It’s just that, while a set of Encyclopedia Britannica may include outdated facts, there’s still a wealth of information and knowledge and experience to be found there. And unlike here—or a pipe shop or even a pipe show—books from the past are the only way to hear firsthand from (and learn from) pipe lovers from 100 years ago or more. (Unless I’m selling someone short here!)

 

[kcghost]

Very good list of books you have. Rick Newcombe also has second book out called, "Still in Search of Pipe Dreams".

 

[Chasing Embers]

It isn’t that I don’t understand that…or share it. Some of my life’s greatest moments of joy have come while standing around a pipe shop, just listening to the guys talk. And I’ve certainly posted my share here! It’s just that, while a set of Encyclopedia Britannica may include outdated facts, there’s still a wealth of information and knowledge and experience to be found there. And unlike here—or a pipe shop or even a pipe show—books from the past are the only way to hear firsthand from (and learn from) pipe lovers from 100 years ago or more. (Unless I’m selling someone short here!)

I was mainly responding to your first comment about constantly being amazed when there are books on it. Many would rather have an open dialog about an interest rather than reading about it where they can ask for clarification where a static text has none. The forum itself is an open book where asking the question opens the chapters to more varying knowledge than a single author can supply.

 

[rmbittner]

Very good list of books you have. Rick Newcombe also has second book out called, "Still in Search of Pipe Dreams".

Thanks! I passed on Newcombe’s second book, since my memory of his first was that he was focused entirely on details/stories involving high-grade artisan pipes, an area of pipe collecting that holds no interest for me.

 

[leonardbill1]

For an extensive list, take a look at Ben Rapaport's bibliography. There is a link to it in the Introduction to the Books/Publications page on Pipedia. The link to the bibliography (along with links to several articles that Ben has written) is also on the Ben Rapaport page on Pipedia (I had to search Rapaport on Pipedia to find the link to that page) .

 

[J. B. Deller]

Richard Carleton Hacker’s Rare Smoke: The Ultimate Guide to Pipe Collecting is a good one.

 

[jerry]

“The Pipe Smoker: Being An Entertaining & Scientific Treatise on Pipes & Tobaccos With Wholly New Revelations About The Pipe Smoker“ is, in fact quite entertaining!