In Search of Pipe Dreams, Rick Newcombe’s chronicles of his journey as a pipe collector has recently been released in China in an sumptuous, full-color hardback edition. Translated and published by Leslie Ng - Gloredo’s founder - the book is nothing short of a visual feast. It is enough to make one declare an intention to learn to read Chinese.

When I first opened the book, I found myself at my desk with my original English edition on my left and the LNG Series Chinese edition on the right. I re-read chapters in English while looking at the pictures in the Chinese edition. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the photographs add enormous value to Newcombe’s book. Rick is a good writer and inspires much interest in the pipes he writes about. Still, the evocative Tom Wolfe, himself, couldn’t do justice to these pipes with words alone. Sometimes only photographs will suffice. And, oh what a photographer created these images!

Bob Gardner’s photos are fine-arts-gallery quality. Not only are they beautiful, they are honest and revealing. As I have often written here, to capture an artisan’s compositional strategy, to reveal the scale of a pipe without other objects in the frame as a size reference, and to use reflections to signal executional perfection – these are no small feats. Gardner is more than up to the task.

As is the case with the English edition, there are pictures of the artisans that Newcombe writes about but in the Chinese edition there are quite a few more. For those people who want to see a face with the names, this edition will sate their desire.

I intend no criticism of the current available edition, but anyone who peruses this new Chinese edition is going to find themselves wishing for an English language edition that is this comprehensive and this beautiful. It is inevitable.

I’ve had this book awhile, re-reading the original edition while perusing this new one. I have been trying to imagine the impact of this book upon experienced and novice Chinese collectors. I can’t imagine that Newcombe’s passion and knowledge won’t fuel considerable interest in the artisans featured in his book. This book can’t help but create a new cadre of artisan-grade collectors who find themselves in pursuit of their own pipe dreams.

To acquire a copy of the book, you can contact Mr. Leslie Ng by clicking this link.. As of my last inquiry, there were no American booksellers who had the book.

The peripatetic Mr. Newcombe is already an international figure in the pipe world. His personal presence, his active participation in the pipe community, his support and encouragement of other collectors, and his sunny, optimistic personality combine to extend and amplify his impact.  This Chinese edition cannot help but reinforce what is already true.

Rick Newcombe is the pipe world’s Marco Polo. I, for one, look forward to seeing what transpires as a result of his work for and with us.