Recommended Reading
See the G&S book reviews listed on this page
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Gray & Seddon's reviews cover new and old publications on tea and tea-related subjects. Find books on porcelain art, tea pottery, teapot collecting, tea connoisseurship, the tea industry, tea science and very many more. If you can't find what you're looking for, or are searching a special publication in Chinese or Japanese then e-mail us, we may be able to help.

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Teapot Collections
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TEA BASICS:
A QUICK AND EASY GUIDE
TEA BASICS: A QUICK AND EASY GUIDE, John Wiley & Sons, November 1998. This book by Wendy Rasmussen & Ric Rhinehart is a basic, no nonsense general introduction to the world of tea and is targetted at the general reader and "tea beginners" who would like a basic all round introduction to the topic.

GREEN GOLD
Green Gold - The Political Economy of China's Post 1949 Tea Industry. Although this book is now a little out of date (it was published in 1993), it nevertheless is an authoritative, detailed and well written account of the biggest modern story of tea. As the Foreword to the book says:

" China's tea is a big story.  Tea played a large role in the nineteenth-century opening up of China to Western imperialism.  It changed world wide consumer habits and social patterns.  It contributed a significant proportion of exports and agricultural output over long periods in mainland China and Taiwan.  It remains a significant element in the rural economy of many Chinese provinces, and remains important in Chinese consumption patterns as incomes rise in the process of economic growth." 

This book is, so far as I am aware the most comprehensive account in the English language of the modern China tea industry.  Although it contains a wealth of facts and figures, it is written in a lively and engaging style, which makes it a pleasure to read. China's turbulent & exciting Tea story, well and thoroughly told!

JAPANESE WAY OF TEA
Japanese Way of Tea - From Its Origins in China to Sen Rikyu; by Sen Soshitsu XV; University of Hawai'i Press 1998 This scholarly work first examines the discovery & establishment of tea & tea culture in China, in particular the profound influence of Lu Yu in developing a Chinese tea tradition.  The remainder of the book is devoted to explaining the development of the peculiarly Japanese tea culture which grew from Chinese beginnings following tea's introduction to Japan from China during the Tang Dynasty.  The book is well illustrated with some superb full colour plates, and a number of black & white photographs.The author is the fifteenth generation tea-master entrusted with preserving the history and practising the art of the Japanese tea traditions."The definitive modern work on the Japanese Tea Tradition"

CHINESE ART OF TEA
The Chinese Art of Tea by John Blofeld; Shambhala, Boston 1997. This is a wonderfully eccentric book, which fondly examines Chinese contributions to the development of tea, not only as a beverage but as the inspiration for poetry and prose works, and customs associated with tea. The author writes:

"Throughout my life I seem to have enjoyed almost every one of the benefits of tea...I have been ill now and then, but not with any ailment that tea is believed to prevent, except for a fungoid infection between the toes of my left foot. Having only recently discovered in a Chinese tea book that bathing them daily in strong tea might clear up the infection, I have still to put that remedy to the test."

TEA COMPANION
Tea Companion - A Connoisseur's Guide by Jane Pettigrew MacMillan USA 1997. A sumptuous, 192 page hard-cover book, which is a "must have" for anyone interested in tea. It has superb illustrations of the dry tea leaf of many different teas, as well as pictures of the beverages these leaves produce. For good measure the book is also illustrated with pictures of various tea plantations and tea-wares. This book, first published in 1997, is divided into two parts. The first, The Story of Tea, briefly examines it's history and production, as well as tea equipage and tea appreciation. The second part of the book reviews the various tea producing countries, and has a very useful and informative Guide to the Teas of the World and maps showing the major areas of tea production. This book also contains tips on how to select good tea, and provides accurate information on how to prepare different types of tea. Unlike Rasmussen & Rhinehart's book,Tea Basics, is more of a tea reference manual rather than a literary work. A sumptuous 'must have' book for anyone interested in tea.