Why not call a library or bookstore. They'd probably have an answer for you. Or -- call a university library or archive library, where they deal w/old books a lot. I know baking soda is supposed to get rid of practically any odor; but not sure if you can use it on books. Just thought of something -- go to the Martha Stewart website -- there's probably an answer lurking there somewhere; or, at least, you could post the question there.

Good luck ... and let us know what kind of advice they give you, in case any of us here ever has that problem -- then we'll know just what to do !

The problem of smelly books came up once before and the suggestion then was to put the books in cat litter. I don't know if that worked but could be worth a try.
I once had some paperwork sent to me by a heavy smoker and had to peg the papers onto a washing line to air out. The smell had pervaded my home but I needed to keep the documents. The combination of sun and fresh air worked well.
Your description of the smell suggests fumigation.

A night out of doors seems to have done the trick. I was able to bring the books inside this morning. Annpan, I never thought of fumigation but it makes sense.

Cat litter works well if you buy the cheap, non-perfumed, non-clumping stuff. I don't know why baking soda wouldn't work as well. But since you put the book in a container, standing with the pages spread out, and pour the medium in and among the pages until it is all but submerged, cat litter is probably a more economical choice.
And I would never do home-cures on a valuable book. Just stinky used books that I want to read.

Thanks for explaining the kitty litter idea. I might try it next time.

What I thought was strange was that I never noticed how bad the books smelled before I bought them. I have family members who are horrified by second hand stores or charity shops. They refuse to even go inside one because they are convinced every item is crawling with germs.

Baking soda or talcum powder, I should think.

Timallan: Do these people not use public libraries? After all the handling the books get, they also could be 'crawling with germs'!
The charity shops I regularly trawl are very clean and often have new items as well as used donated ones. I mainly buy children's books and bric- a- brac like vases, ornaments etc. which I wash and polish if necessary. Tip from a jeweller friend is to use metholated spirits on glass and crystal, works a treat!

Annpan, a woman once told me that she would never use a public library because of the germs. I'm afraid I gave her a rather disgusted look.

Carolyn,
I had a student once whose mother did not allow her to go along on our "walking field trip" to the public library to get their library cards for the same reason. I think I gave her the same look!

I suppose library books would have germs on them but I understand that it would be impossible normally to live in a germ-free world. I must admit to a well-ingrained habit of washing my hands after reading library books in bed and I wipe sticky book covers. I suppose this comes from years of working in the repairs section of a library and seeing what people can do!

Newspaper will also absorb smells.
I suggest wadding several pages and putting them into a plastic bag with the book open. Seal the bag and let it work for a week. Throw in some charcoal ( not the dirty kind from your fireplace !) for greater effect.
I have found that leaving books outside in the heat of the sun usually warps the book as it dries out ( apparently there was some undetectable moisture).

As far as germs inside books go ---

1.) What about all those muffin crumbs lurking in Barnes & Nobles' books... and they're all brand new !?

2.) What about all those books that are returned and put back on the shelves at new bookstores ? Hmmm? Hmmm?

I was surprised at previous mentions of books being returned to bookshops in the US. I did not know this could be done anywhere, although I did get a swap on a guidebook once when I bought one for Barcelona and was told shortly after this purchase we were actually being sent to Madrid! (My husband and I did courier deliveries during a working holiday.) As I had hardly left the shop and had a timed receipt I had no trouble making the changeover.
Kath, is this done in Australian bookshops at all?

Not so much a stinky book as a disgusting one.
There I was, tucked up in bed with a mug of hot milk and the latest library book. As I turned the page a revolting mess of something (not unlike a hairball) fell from the book into the mug. Yuk and double yuk. That was the end of the milk . . . and the book. The thought of it still turns my stomach over.

I used to volunteer at the local library and we could always tell when a certain person had read a book because of the smell it had when returned. Some people didn't like it at all, but I rather the scent -- sort of a incense. I always wondered how a book would absorb something like that in a fairly short time.

That is a problem I hadn't considered....how do libraries handle loaning books to smokers?
Of all the odors in a book, I find the smell of stale smoke to be absolutely disgusting.
I cannot open a book that has been read by a smoker.
Many have been tossed in the garbage because of this...and I felt it was a service to future readers to dispose of the offender as quickly as possible.

I can imagine that there is little as relaxing for a smoker than opening a good book and lighting up while reading.

YUKKY stench !!!!

Veer, your recent experience...yuck! It made me almost queasy to read it.

Annpan, at least one chain allows returns if the book was bought as a gift and has had a special bookmark (with the book's details noted on it by the salesperson) tucked into it.
I have a book which I originally borrowed from the library; it must have had a smell my cat objected to most strongly as he peed on it (the only time in his 19 year life he did such a thing). I paid for the book and kept it as it was a good book, in desperation dumping most of a large container of baby powder between the pages. After a while I shook out the powder and there was no smell at all.
When I was at school I thought new textbooks smelled like cheese.