The Classic of Tea, by Lu Yu
Translated by Francis Ross Carpenter
The Ecco Press, 1974
I must admit I wanted to like The Classic of Tea much more than I actually did. In part, the long introduction by Francis Ross Carpenter (fifty pages half as long as the actual book translation that follows it!) ruined this book for me.
The Classic of Tea was actually written by Lu Yu nearly one thousand years before tea was even known to the West. It is the original treatise on the beginnings of tea, its tools and manufacture, and the brewing and drinking of this important elixir.
Carpenter, though, in an over-abundance of enthusiasm for historic research, drags the introduction and incorporates much of the information that is contained in The Classic of Tea's sections on "The Beginnings of Tea" and "Tea-Producing Areas." It would have been much better for me as a reader if Carpenter had given an introduction to The Classic of Tea that focused on the book itself, and then provided in Epilogue the historical filler on tea itself.
As it stands, The Classic of Tea is most definitely a worthwhile and fascinating look at this historic brew, with details on the many varied tools used in an official tea ceremony. My only advice is to read the book translation BEFORE you read the introduction if you truly want to appreciate it.
