Scratch 'n Sniff Publishing

Hey y'all,

Did you hear about the garlic-infused book? Or, I should say, the garlic mayo scented ink book? New York Times best selling author Jennifer L. Armentrout's new book, The Primal of Blood and Bone will be available as a limited edition hardcover co-branded by Hellmann's Mayonnaise, that uses garlic mayo-, I'm sorry, aioli-, scented infused ink on the pages. So, a garlic scented book, just in time for spooky season. They call it "Craven Proof" which I assume is the name of a/the vampire(s) in the book, but I cannot confirm that information from the book's blurb and that's all the time I have to invest in such pursuit today. But that's not the point. The point is the garlic.

This book supposedly smells like garlic. Probably just a little, because I assume the involvement of the Hellmann's people means there was money for focus groups and testing and stuff and they are not stupid enough to print a bunch of copies and see how they turned out. It is important to note, too, that this is a limited edition book only available for sale through the author's independent bookstore in Charles Town, West Virginia, Miss Willa's Bookshop. I've asked bookseller friends if they are able to order this special edition through normal trade channels, and it doesn't look like they can. Rest assured, there's no chance other books at your local indie are going to come out smelling like garlic knots due to proximity. How many copies are there for purchase? I have no idea, but I bet Publisher's Lunch finds out sooner or later. My guess is in the low four figures–a couple thousand. The retail price is pretty reasonable for a special edition: only $31.99. The special edition of R.F. Kuang's best-selling KATABASIS, unscented, is $35.

Is this the end of publishing as we know it? Is this the death knell of art, the last gasp of literature, the point at which the industry is totally cooked?