Does anyone out there have fond memories of stealing their Dad's Playboy magazines and then hiding them under their bed until such time as they would surreptitiously pull them out and look at the… articles? [Ahem!] All of you cigar-smoking men who, when you were boys, hid dog-eared copies of Playboy magazines under your beds, will be glad to know that there is a new book that embraces all those fond memories: Playboy: The Book of Cigars.

Finally, there is a cigar book that weds the wit, wisdom, sex and style of Playboy, with one of life's greatest pleasures, cigar smoking. Written by Smoke magazine founder Aaron Sigmond along with Nick Kolakowski, this is a coffee table, hardcover book, replete with high quality color photos of… cigars. [The crowd jeers] Okay, not to disappoint, there are some racy photos of unclad women. And, what Playboy publication would be complete without the quintessential centerfold? Playboy: The Book of Cigars has it all.

Another stroke of class is the Foreward written by Playboy emissary and writer LeRoy Neiman and Afterword written by actor Joe Mantagna. But the bulk of the book is devoted to a survey treatment of cigars. Content includes: a brief history of cigars, cigar fundamentals, Playboy cigar archives, cigar countries of the world, cigars and stars, cigar quotes, smokes and drinks, selected cigar shops around the world, and selected cigar brands by country.

Cigar neophytes will find this book both educational and entertaining, but cigar veterans may find the information a bit cursory. It appears that the original design for this book may have intended a more exhaustive treatment. In the Introduction, Sigmond refers to the book, "Playboy: The Complete Guide to Cigars." This may have been an earlier book, or an earlier version of the book, but the current version definitely falls short of being a complete guide. Instead, this is a survey book that touches briefly on many aspects of the industry. The beauty of a survey book, however, is that it covers a lot of ground.

Speaking of beauty, the photos in the book, taken by Ian Spanier, are first-rate and artistically illustrate the content of the book. However, I found that the font size was way too small for my now wearied eyes; certainly too small for a coffee-table-style book.

My two favorite parts of the book are the Playboy Archives and Ads sections. The Archives display classic centerfolds, cartoons and photos from the past. The Ads section shows Playboy advertising from the 1950's to the present, all of which clearly demonstrate the contribution of Playboy to the cigar culture.

Playboy: The Book of Cigars is a classic and classy book about cigars. While clearly not appropriate for everyone's coffee table, the book will be a great addition to the collection of every cigar enthusiast.

Playboy: The Book of Cigars

Skyhorse Publishing Inc. NY

157 pages

Retail: $35 USD