Is that a cigarette you're reading?

This being the summer travel season, I thought these "books" might make for some, well, interesting beach reading. (all the more so, if the beach prohibits smoking of any kind) Cory Doctorow of Boing Boing points to these TankBooks, which are classic novels printed to look exactly like packs of cigarettes. They are the same size as a pack of smokes, are packaged in flip-top cartons with silver foil wrapping and are sealed in cellophane:

"TankBooks pay homage to this monumentally successful piece of packaging design by employing it in the service of great literature. Cigarette packs are iconic objects, familiar, tried and tested, and over time TankBooks will become iconic objects in their own right. The launch titles are by authors of great stature – classic stories presented in classic packaging; objects desirable for both their literary merit and their unique design."

Anyway, somewhat ironically, these TankBooks are being marketed as "books to take your breath away." (cigarettes -- breath -- get it?) Being a Russian literature fan myself, my pick would be either of the two works by Leo Tolstoy available as a cigarette-book. I'm particularly partial to The Death of Ivan Ilyich.

[image: Cigarette Books]