The Perfect Scent: A Year Inside the Perfume Industry in Paris and New York
by Chandler Burr
List Price:
Our Price: $2.10
You Save: $22.90 (92%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.32 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Chandler BurrBrand: Chandler Burr
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-01-22
ISBN: 0805080376
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Book Reviews of The Perfect Scent: A Year Inside the Perfume Industry in Paris and New York
Book Review: A Fascinating Journey Into The World of Luxury Fragrance
Summary: 4 Stars
I enjoyed this book tremendously. It was definitely not a page-turner for me. Rather, I savored it steadily over several weeks. Still, rest assured that this will remain one of my favorite books. By the time I was done with it, I had a huge admiration for both the author and his subjects - both American and French. I attribute this to the skillful writing and crystal-clear honesty of the author. I thought it was wonderful to see discussions end with complete candor when things went "off-record", as well as full disclosure when sensitive topics and "hot" documents were discussed. I admire Burr's journalistic integrity, which is unfortunately an increasingly rare thing these days.
Before reading this book, I was, I will admit, a bit of a Francophobe, with no particular desire to ever set foot there again. Not even finished with the book, my wife and I began planning a family trip there. This is purely a product of the author's sensitive but unforced treatment of his French subjects. As noted in other reviews, he takes pains to provide complete yet flowing translations of French dialogue, which actually makes for a wonderful, engaging read. Many authors would toss out the French with an air of linguistic superiority and force the reader to sink or swim. Instead, Burr clearly wants everybody to get on board the train before it leaves, and it works. Whether it was the author or the editor or both, my hat is off to them.
The book teaches - almost unbeknownst to the reader - an enormous amount about fragrances. As a scientist, I can assure you that he does a marvelous job with the scientific aspects, and that he made even the "old hat" science interesting to me. The history, economics, marketing, and politics of fragrances - about which I know far less - was even more fascinating, and - I have no doubt - just as accurate. And the really neat thing is that he made it so damn interesting. I could almost feel the starched lab coats and smell the test strips, and I wanted to be there.
To my fellow fragranauts (or "fragra-nuts"), I offer this. Before reading this book, I knew next to nothing about the Hermès line of fragrances ("Hermès? The scarf people? You mean, they do fragrances?"). By the time I was done, I was *positive* that I would take a liking to "Terre d'Hermès". Sure enough, when I tested about a dozen newer fragrances in Sephora, I walked out with Terre d'Hermès. If you're a fragrance fetishist like me, this book will talk to you.
Industries & Professions Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Industries & Professions Books
The Last Days of Haute Cuisine: The Coming of Age of American Restaurantsby Patric Kuh
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2002-02-26; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.92
Price in other shops:
Smartest Guys in the Roomby Peter Elkind
Penguin Books; Published: 2004-09-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.08
Marketing for Hospitality and Tourism (2nd Edition)by Philip Kotler
Prentice Hall; Published: 1998-07-27; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $18.88
Price in other shops:
Management Information Systems (11th Edition)by Ken Laudon, Jane Laudon
Prentice Hall; Published: 2009-01-09; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $50.00
Price in other shops:
The Compensation Handbookby Lance Berger, Dorothy Berger
McGraw-Hill; Published: 2008-05-19; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $52.65
Price in other shops:
Rigged LP: The True Story of an Ivy League Kid Who Changed the World of Oil, from Wall Street to Dubaiby Ben Mezrich
HarperLuxe; Published: 2007-10-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.70
Price in other shops:
Rigged: The True Story of an Ivy League Kid Who Changed the World of Oil, from Wall Street to Dubaiby Ben Mezrich
William Morrow; Published: 2007-10-23; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $3.25
Price in other shops:
Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Mealby Eric Schlosser
PBS; Harper Perennial; Published: 2005-07-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.99
Price in other shops:
Financial Institutions Markets and Money (The Dryden Press series in finance)by David S. Kidwell
Harcourt College Pub; Published: 1996-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.00
Price in other shops:
Gung Ho! (The One Minute Manager)by Kenneth Blanchard
Harpercollins; Published: 1998-06-15; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.81
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
Perfume: The Art and Science of Scentby Cathy Newman
National Geographic; Published: 1998-10-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.53
Price in other shops:
The Scent Trail: How One Woman's Quest for the Perfect Perfume Took Her Around the Worldby Celia Lyttelton
NAL Trade; Published: 2009-02-03; Paperback; Book
Best price: $6.71
Price in other shops:
The Emperor of Scent: A True Story of Perfume and Obsessionby Chandler Burr
Random House Trade Paperbacks; Published: 2004-02-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.69
Price in other shops:
Perfumes: The Guideby Luca Turin, Tania Sanchez
Viking Adult; Published: 2008-04-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $4.90
Price in other shops:
The Secret of Scent: Adventures in Perfume and the Science of Smellby Luca Turin
Ecco; Published: 2006-11-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $9.89
Price in other shops:
The Emperor of Scent: A Story of Perfume, Obsession, and the Last Mystery of the Sensesby Chandler Burr
Random House; Published: 2003-01-21; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $17.77
Price in other shops:
Perfume: The Alchemy of Scentby Jean-Claude Ellena
Arcade Publishing; Published: 2011-11-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.03
Price in other shops:
Essence and Alchemy: A Natural History of Perfumeby Mandy Aftel
Gibbs Smith; Published: 2004-10-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.43
Price in other shops:
The Secret of Scent: Adventures in Perfume and the Science of Smellby Luca Turin
Harper Perennial; Published: 2007-10-23; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.66
Price in other shops:
Perfumes: The A-Z Guideby Luca Turin, Tania Sanchez
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 2009-10-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $11.35
Price in other shops: