Esther K Smith wrote How to Make Books published November '07 by Potter Craft, an imprint of Random House. At Purgatory Pie Press in New York City, she makes limited editions and artist books with letterpress printer Dikko Faust and other artists and writers. They designed much of How to Make Books, hand-setting antique wood type.

Purgatory Pie Press has had solo exhibitions at the Victoria & Albert Museum, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Harvard University and Smith College. Purgatory Pie Press editions are also in the rare book collections of Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum, The National Gallery of Art, the Corcoran, the Tate, San Francisco MoMA, and the Walker Museum.

Esther K Smith has curated artist book exhibitions and has taught Artist Books at Cooper Union since 1992. She and Faust also present lectures and workshops as visiting artists, train interns at Purgatory Pie Press in New York City, and design, letterpress print and hand-bind commissions for clients. Purgatory Pie Press has won design awards from The American Institute of Graphic Arts.

Esther K Smith is working on a new book for Random House, Magic Books & Paper Toys.