What do you think?
Rate this book
Heart of Dankness: Underground Botanists, Outlaw Farmers, and the Race for the Cannabis Cup
Reporting on Amsterdam’s famous Cannabis Cup competition for the Los Angeles Times, novelist Mark Haskell Smith sampled a variety of marijuana that was unlike anything he’d experienced. It wasn’t anything like typical stoner weed—in fact it didn’t get you stoned. This cannabis possessed an ephemeral quality known to aficionados as “dankness.”
Armed with a State of California Medical Marijuana recommendation, he begins a journey into the international underground where super-high-grade marijuana is developed, and tracks down the ragtag community of underground botanists, outlaw farmers, and renegade strain hunters who pursue excellence and diversity in marijuana, defying the law to find new flavors, tastes, and effects. This unrelenting pursuit of dankness climaxes at the Super Bowl/Mardi Gras of the marijuana world, the international blind tasting competition held annually in Amsterdam known as the Cannabis Cup, an event that determines the market value of the world's largest cash crop.
Armed with a State of California Medical Marijuana recommendation, he begins a journey into the international underground where super-high-grade marijuana is developed, and tracks down the ragtag community of underground botanists, outlaw farmers, and renegade strain hunters who pursue excellence and diversity in marijuana, defying the law to find new flavors, tastes, and effects. This unrelenting pursuit of dankness climaxes at the Super Bowl/Mardi Gras of the marijuana world, the international blind tasting competition held annually in Amsterdam known as the Cannabis Cup, an event that determines the market value of the world's largest cash crop.
- GenresNonfictionTravelDrugs
233 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
32 people are currently reading
535 people want to read
About the author
Mark Haskell Smith
19 books196 followersMark Haskell Smith is the author of seven novels with one word titles, most recently Blown and Memoires, and three nonfiction books including Rude Talk in Athens and Naked at Lunch.
He lives in Los Angeles. He likes Mexican food.
He lives in Los Angeles. He likes Mexican food.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
April 24, 2012
This book is pretty much precisely what I want from a nonfiction book. It's got a lot of information, and I left it knowing more about the subject than when I began it. But more importantly, it's really, really fun. It could serve as a travelogue about Amsterdam (indeed, it prompted me to realize I've actually read quite a few books about Amsterdam, a city I've never even been to), and it's a great look at the bizarre state of American marijuana legislation, where you can be on sure legal footing with your state but still an outlaw in the eyes of the feds. But mostly, this is a great book about being a connoisseur, something I think we all are from time to time.
I wrote a more structured review of this for The Millions, so do check that out, but here are some rather unstructured thoughts about Dankness:
I live just off Pico Boulevard, and with the exception of a very fine single-origin coffee shop (you know, one of those joints where they make each cup individually and where all of the caramels have sea salt?), my neighbors are mostly auto-body shops and medical marijuana pharmacies. How did it happen that Pico and Fairfax became the Dank District? Was it by city council fiat?
One of my favorite moments in Dankness comes when Smith attends the Cannabis Cup at the end of the book. He comes upon one of the two members of DNA, the seed company comprised of two LA guys living in Amsterdam making the dankest of the dank pot, rolling on a couch muttering and crying. "I'm so fucking high, man." He'd smoked some sort of THC essential oil, if I recall correctly, and it had thoroughly destroyed him.
I also enjoyed the scene where Smith talks about the rift between the younger cannabis people and the old guard, exemplified by High Times Magazine. Nowhere did the rift materialize more than in the music selection. While the Cup featured old school hip hop, some people wanted more reggae (ugh) or worse. As Smith puts it, "Somebody actually said to me, 'I wish Quicksilver were here, man.'"
This book made me crave the things I love in life -- great coffee, good beer (at various points, I would've killed many people for a Dogfishhead 90 minute IPA), and bourbon. I suspect it will do the same to you. Read it!
I wrote a more structured review of this for The Millions, so do check that out, but here are some rather unstructured thoughts about Dankness:
I live just off Pico Boulevard, and with the exception of a very fine single-origin coffee shop (you know, one of those joints where they make each cup individually and where all of the caramels have sea salt?), my neighbors are mostly auto-body shops and medical marijuana pharmacies. How did it happen that Pico and Fairfax became the Dank District? Was it by city council fiat?
One of my favorite moments in Dankness comes when Smith attends the Cannabis Cup at the end of the book. He comes upon one of the two members of DNA, the seed company comprised of two LA guys living in Amsterdam making the dankest of the dank pot, rolling on a couch muttering and crying. "I'm so fucking high, man." He'd smoked some sort of THC essential oil, if I recall correctly, and it had thoroughly destroyed him.
I also enjoyed the scene where Smith talks about the rift between the younger cannabis people and the old guard, exemplified by High Times Magazine. Nowhere did the rift materialize more than in the music selection. While the Cup featured old school hip hop, some people wanted more reggae (ugh) or worse. As Smith puts it, "Somebody actually said to me, 'I wish Quicksilver were here, man.'"
This book made me crave the things I love in life -- great coffee, good beer (at various points, I would've killed many people for a Dogfishhead 90 minute IPA), and bourbon. I suspect it will do the same to you. Read it!
March 22, 2023
4.5!
Genuinely such an engaging nonfiction book for me (which I struggle with outside of memoir)! It was silly but also very interesting and I appreciate the journalistic effort. Learned lots about Amsterdam marijuana laws, cannabis activism in the US, strain hunting, and the cannabis economy/market. Which is all stuff I am very into!
felt so seen while reading this in such a silly way.
“In what kind did world do we prefer the innocuous and banal word ‘damp’ over the fecund and somewhat spiky word ‘dank’?”
Very glad I found this on the “drugs, etc.” shelf of a Seattle used bookstore.
.5 star off only because there are moments where you can tell the author is a man
Genuinely such an engaging nonfiction book for me (which I struggle with outside of memoir)! It was silly but also very interesting and I appreciate the journalistic effort. Learned lots about Amsterdam marijuana laws, cannabis activism in the US, strain hunting, and the cannabis economy/market. Which is all stuff I am very into!
felt so seen while reading this in such a silly way.
“In what kind did world do we prefer the innocuous and banal word ‘damp’ over the fecund and somewhat spiky word ‘dank’?”
Very glad I found this on the “drugs, etc.” shelf of a Seattle used bookstore.
.5 star off only because there are moments where you can tell the author is a man
June 25, 2012
Heart of Dankness is up there with the best of the best of non-fiction. It’s the kind of writing that grips you even if you start out with no interest in the topic (think Jon Krakauer on fundamentalist Mormons or Lauren Hillenbrand on horses). Right up front, I will admit that I have a bias – Mark Haskell Smith is a mentor of mine, and as a writer, I buy the books of people I know out of solidarity. But I’ll also admit that I planned to drag my feet on reading this one (sorry Mark) because I have no inherent interest in using or reading about marijuana. I expected Heart of Dankness to be a niche book for stoners, but it turned out to be one of the best examples of travel writing that I’ve read in years.
July 7, 2012
I'll admit that I'm a fan of Smith's novels. What that says about me and my sense of humor, well, I'll let you be the judge...
But the biggest thing a reader would have to wonder how someone that primarily writes fiction would do in the non-fiction realm. For Mark, he's made the transition amazingly well.
This book has his trademark, no-holds-barred sense of humor, while not only presenting us with some wonderful and colorful folk, but it also is quite informative on the Cannibus Cup, the legalization movement, and even manages to slip in some philosophical ideas on what it means to be "Dank."
Seriously, I can't recommend this book enough. And, no, it's not just for "stoners." It's a thoughtful and insightful book that's written for the intelligent reader that has a sense of humor and wants to know a bit more about Cannibus culture. Sure, stoners will like it, too, but to mistake this book as one for pot heads, then you're doing yourself a disservice.
But the biggest thing a reader would have to wonder how someone that primarily writes fiction would do in the non-fiction realm. For Mark, he's made the transition amazingly well.
This book has his trademark, no-holds-barred sense of humor, while not only presenting us with some wonderful and colorful folk, but it also is quite informative on the Cannibus Cup, the legalization movement, and even manages to slip in some philosophical ideas on what it means to be "Dank."
Seriously, I can't recommend this book enough. And, no, it's not just for "stoners." It's a thoughtful and insightful book that's written for the intelligent reader that has a sense of humor and wants to know a bit more about Cannibus culture. Sure, stoners will like it, too, but to mistake this book as one for pot heads, then you're doing yourself a disservice.
March 2, 2013
I originally bought Heart of Dankness because I know Mark Haskell Smith and I like him. But I'm so glad that I read it, because it's a really fascinating look at a world I hadn't seen before, as well as an entertaining exploration of places I haven't been. Plus ever since I read it I've been thinking about the "dankness" of various things I encounter.
April 28, 2013
*Disclaimer: received a free copy through Goodreads' giveaway section.*
I'm not a smoker or pro-legalization advocate, but this book was awesome. It's a scientific look at what makes pot "dank," as the author puts it. For the most part, this amounts to what gives it those positive attributes people enjoy?
Part travelogue, part behind-the-scenes peak at an underground culture, this was a great read and I hope the author continues down the non-fiction path.
I'm not a smoker or pro-legalization advocate, but this book was awesome. It's a scientific look at what makes pot "dank," as the author puts it. For the most part, this amounts to what gives it those positive attributes people enjoy?
Part travelogue, part behind-the-scenes peak at an underground culture, this was a great read and I hope the author continues down the non-fiction path.
July 13, 2014
I know this subject pretty well. And this book is pretty clueless. DO NOT WASTE MONEY! But if you pick it up at sale/used bookstore/yardsale -its a goofy read. Do not mistake it for serious work.
April 24, 2012
An exhaustively researched, thoroughly entertaining, and politically insightful romp through the world of cannabis growth, production, and consumption. This book is dank.
December 3, 2012
Gonzo journalism at its dankest!
November 24, 2012
I loved it. :)
September 10, 2021
Like many libraries, my main room is poorly lit except for the reading chairs and desk. Thus when I perused the to-be-read shelves, I saw 'Heart of Darkness" and decided that reading Conrad was a good idea. Ooops. When I sat down with the book I discovered it was "DaNkness" and was about dope, as we used to call it back in the 60s, in the apartment I shared with several stoners who graciously put up with my refusal to smoke anything other than cigarettes. Not virtue, merely insensitivity to the stuff.
The knowledge which surrounds cannabis has exploded since those ancient days, and this book explains loads of stuff without seeming to be the jottings of a drug-crazed ink slinger. The author starts off in Amsterdam, adventures around the U.S., drifts into Canada and winds up back in Amsterdam for the Cannabis Cup, a cross between a wine tasting and the Academy Awards. The people we meet, the names of varieties of pot, the bits of history and science we nab along the way, make for a delightful trip. (Did I just say 'trip'? The wrong word for this stuff, isn't it?) This very small joke reminds me to mention that Mark Smith is a very funny guy who wields his wicked wand frequently.
And while I have loved and admired Joseph Conrad for uncounted decades, I am not one bit sorry for my error.
Recommended.
The knowledge which surrounds cannabis has exploded since those ancient days, and this book explains loads of stuff without seeming to be the jottings of a drug-crazed ink slinger. The author starts off in Amsterdam, adventures around the U.S., drifts into Canada and winds up back in Amsterdam for the Cannabis Cup, a cross between a wine tasting and the Academy Awards. The people we meet, the names of varieties of pot, the bits of history and science we nab along the way, make for a delightful trip. (Did I just say 'trip'? The wrong word for this stuff, isn't it?) This very small joke reminds me to mention that Mark Smith is a very funny guy who wields his wicked wand frequently.
And while I have loved and admired Joseph Conrad for uncounted decades, I am not one bit sorry for my error.
Recommended.
February 9, 2022
I know NOTHING about this world but this book was a wild ride and I loved it.
September 24, 2022
A brief window to the cannabis culture of the early 2010s, from bloodshot eyes that saw beauty and dankness in growing, processing, sharing, ingesting, and presenting cannabis.
August 11, 2017
An interesting look at the modern world of cannabis cultivation and the author's quest to define the elusive quality of "dankness". This is not an exhaustive overview of the history of cannabis or how it is grown or the conflicting state and federal laws concerning its possession and cultivation. I put it into a category of books that I find fascinating--that of people with obsessive interests.
The author looks not at large scale pot farming but at people who spend inordinate amounts of effort at producing the highest quality strains to be found on the planet. These are not people growing a few plants in a closet; these are people who know a lot about genetics and farming and how to coax specific qualities from the hybridization process.
I had a hard time with the first 10% of the book as I was drowning in Smith's overuse of similes and metaphors. But after that he settled down and the book became quite engaging. This is Smith's first non-fiction book and I'm curious to check out one of his novels. He has a sense of humor that I appreciate. It makes me smile that I'm adding this book to a shelf that includes books about Jane Austen fans, birders, and rose growers.
The author looks not at large scale pot farming but at people who spend inordinate amounts of effort at producing the highest quality strains to be found on the planet. These are not people growing a few plants in a closet; these are people who know a lot about genetics and farming and how to coax specific qualities from the hybridization process.
I had a hard time with the first 10% of the book as I was drowning in Smith's overuse of similes and metaphors. But after that he settled down and the book became quite engaging. This is Smith's first non-fiction book and I'm curious to check out one of his novels. He has a sense of humor that I appreciate. It makes me smile that I'm adding this book to a shelf that includes books about Jane Austen fans, birders, and rose growers.
May 29, 2012
MHS wrote a non-fict about weed. It's framed well, exploring the mosaic-rainbow of characters of the now-global cannabis culture.
Highlights:
*MHS discussing his need for weed with a CA pot doc.
*Talks to a high-end dispensary owner in MHS's neighborhood in Los Angeles, where the owner entrusts Mark with the knowledge that most mood-altering drugs abscesses the function of risk in the human brain and that the American Gov't knew this stat before the economic meltdown in 2008.
*Talks to many of the world renowned seed/variety producers in the country, most whom participate in the annual Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam. (boy, that non specific)
But the real story is defining "dank." Smith is obsessed with this thread. I think he lost sleep pondering it, the strawberry cough he had before bed--feeding his brain nonsense, finding the thoughts had become blood and leaked down-ventricle, into the pangful heart.
The Heart of Dankness...
Highlights:
*MHS discussing his need for weed with a CA pot doc.
*Talks to a high-end dispensary owner in MHS's neighborhood in Los Angeles, where the owner entrusts Mark with the knowledge that most mood-altering drugs abscesses the function of risk in the human brain and that the American Gov't knew this stat before the economic meltdown in 2008.
*Talks to many of the world renowned seed/variety producers in the country, most whom participate in the annual Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam. (boy, that non specific)
But the real story is defining "dank." Smith is obsessed with this thread. I think he lost sleep pondering it, the strawberry cough he had before bed--feeding his brain nonsense, finding the thoughts had become blood and leaked down-ventricle, into the pangful heart.
The Heart of Dankness...
July 6, 2012
A rollicking romp through the world of cannabis cultivation and agricultural celebrity. Using the annual Cannabis Cup awards, the Oscars of hempdom, which can turn a pot seed geneticist into a millionaire overnight, author Mark Haskell Smith follows the sweet smell of success from the hidden pot farms of Mendocino to the boutique seed cultivators of Amsterdam in search of the elusive definition of dankness. This is the first nonfiction offering I've seen from MHS, but the dark humor of his novels comes through loud and clear in the crisp, hilarious style.
His comic-crime novel "Baked," grew out of the research he did for "Heart of Dankness." It's amazing that he was able to salvage so much delightful detail from his research, considering what the requisite cannabis consumption must have done to his consciousness.
His comic-crime novel "Baked," grew out of the research he did for "Heart of Dankness." It's amazing that he was able to salvage so much delightful detail from his research, considering what the requisite cannabis consumption must have done to his consciousness.
February 23, 2014
In the movie Pineapple Express, Pot dealer James Franco is explaining the family tree of his great new weed to a customer. His description is a page straight out of this book. It's an education in the care and breeding of marijuana and of the annual international competition held in Amsterdam that judges the world's best pot. This world is seen through the eyes of those the author considers the best growers in the U.S. and Europe. After a few chapters you start regarding high grade weed as something akin to rare vintages of wine. It's a good look into the science and marketing of pot. Yes, they all sample their wares but many of them take it very seriously and there is an interesting case made by one subject for permitting more scientific exploration of the potential medicinal applications of cannabis.
May 18, 2012
Mark Haskell Smith has a dark sense of humor and it excels here as he reports and immerses himself in the Cannabis culture.
I have utterly enjoyed his novels over the years because his voice is so strong, they are plot drive and read more like literary fiction.
With Heart of Dankness, Smith has honed his skills as an excellent story teller from the fiction side of things to put together a compelling and fun read on the pot scene.
He pulls no punches when dealing with hipsters and those who are too cool for school. He's a bit like a Larry David mixed with Samuel L. Jackson.
This is a must read, not only for armchair exploration of the world of pot, but also for the fun Smith tosses in here and there.
I have utterly enjoyed his novels over the years because his voice is so strong, they are plot drive and read more like literary fiction.
With Heart of Dankness, Smith has honed his skills as an excellent story teller from the fiction side of things to put together a compelling and fun read on the pot scene.
He pulls no punches when dealing with hipsters and those who are too cool for school. He's a bit like a Larry David mixed with Samuel L. Jackson.
This is a must read, not only for armchair exploration of the world of pot, but also for the fun Smith tosses in here and there.
May 30, 2013
This was a Goodreads Giveaway.
I don't have a personal investment or interest in the subject of cannabis but I really enjoyed this book. It is part travelogue, part portrait of quirky, likable people and part scientific history of marijuana. It was extremely well written and very humorous at times. I am not sure that I still understand the point of the search for "dankness" but the run-up to and results of the Cannabis Cup were entertaining.
Overall, this is not a book that I really would have picked up on my own so I am very grateful to the Goodreads First Reads program for being selected to read it.
I don't have a personal investment or interest in the subject of cannabis but I really enjoyed this book. It is part travelogue, part portrait of quirky, likable people and part scientific history of marijuana. It was extremely well written and very humorous at times. I am not sure that I still understand the point of the search for "dankness" but the run-up to and results of the Cannabis Cup were entertaining.
Overall, this is not a book that I really would have picked up on my own so I am very grateful to the Goodreads First Reads program for being selected to read it.
May 3, 2013
I was hoping for a lot more from Smith. I'd hoped that reporting on the Cannabis Cup would allow him to educate us about marijuana's history, power, and current controversies. Instead, the focus was exclusively on efforts to develop new hybrids. True, some of the characters who are working on that are diverting. But I felt I really had the appetite for maybe a long article on the subject, rather than a whole (if slim) book.
June 29, 2014
"Heart of Dankness" is that perfect kind of book for me. It's short, but not too much and the pace is quick. The humor is genuinely funny and it makes the story even better than it already is. The only thing I felt needed a bit of polishing was the author's quest to define the term "dank." I think that the story is good enough by itself and that it doesn't need anything more. That being said, this book is definitely dank!
September 23, 2012
I thought this book was well written, funny and witty. I also thought it really provided some interesting arguments and points of a conversation that needs to be had. One of the most interesting ideas was that getting "stoned" was a SIDE EFFECT of smoking pot. Interesting idea, the thought that there is way more to pot than being stoned.
August 30, 2012
Probably a very interesting book if you smoke dope, yearn for the personal freedoms of Amsterdam, or are interested in the different strains of pot that have been developed over the years. That has never been my thing, so I found the book a little too boring.
May 16, 2014
Heart of Dankness is a fascinating. Haskel-Smith applies brilliant travel and adventure writing style and takes what was once a subcultural phenomenon and delivers a truly entertaining read, that’s not just for “potheads"
Want to read
March 21, 2013I enjoyed this book.
May 18, 2012
Some nice sections but not super in-depth. Author could have done some further research.
Light and frivolous. Probably good beach reading.
Light and frivolous. Probably good beach reading.
May 7, 2013
Interesting characters, great topic, and some truly lovely writing. I'm a big fan of Mark Haskell Smith's fiction, and found lots to love in this too.
Read
November 5, 2012Kewl.
Read
March 22, 2013for what
April 14, 2013
Interesting subject matter, presented in a rambling, not-edited-enough manner. I find this author to be a better writer of fiction than non-fiction.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews