Perfumes: The A-Z Guide
by Luca Turin, Tania Sanchez
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Book Summary Information
Author: Luca Turin, Tania SanchezEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-10-27
ISBN: 0143115014
Number of pages: 640
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Book Reviews of Perfumes: The A-Z Guide
Book Review: Thoroughly Enjoyable
Summary: 4 Stars
A friend of mine began telling me about this book months ago -- he said it was funny, entertaining, cleverly written and that it completely changed his perception of perfume (in this review, by the way, I'm using the words "perfume," "cologne" and "scent" interchangeably.) In fact, after reading this book, my friend went online and purchased several of the five-star perfumes so that he could smell them (and wear them) himself.
"What could be so fascinating about perfume?" I wondered, so I got a copy of the book myself. I began casually flipping through it at first, looking up old favorite and the two fragrances I currently own (gifts from friends). An hour passed. And then another. I couldn't put the book down! When I finally did close the pages, I went to my tiny collection of cologne, put on a bit of my favorite (Gucci pour Homme), and enjoyed the fragrance with completely new appreciation. Turin described it as a "liturgical frangrance" and I realized it was a pitch-perfect description -- smoky and incense-like. I could practically see the thurifer swinging the thurible (okay, so I exaggerate, but you gotta love that liturgical-speak).
I can see why the reviews for this book are mixed -- I suppose perfume is like anything else, personal taste varies wildly from person to person. I haven't yet found a personal favorite of mine that hasn't been favorably reviewed in this book, but I wouldn't take it personally if I loved a cologne and the authors hated it. I'm also impressed by the fact that some of the most favorably reviewed perfumes are among the least expensive brands.
This book laid to rest some of my own questions about the colognes I'd like to buy: Does perfume expire? Is it always gender-specific? How should it be stored?
I have one mild quibble with the book -- the authors compare other, lesser, scents to Baldessarini by Hugo Boss no less than three times. Eager to read about this apparently wonderful scent (after all, they think so highly of it that they use is as the basis of comparison) I pored through the book looking for that review. It's not reviewed!! I kept thinking I was missing it, but alas, I can only infer from their secondhand praise that this is a scent worth checking out. C'mon, don't tease me, review Baldessarini already!
All in all, I've really learned a lot from this book, and truly enjoy the writing style. I'm buying a couple of copies to give to my hard-to-buy-for friends for Christmas. Maybe when they give me cologne gifts in the future, they'll reference this guide.
Summary of Perfumes: The A-Z Guide
Pompous names, bizarre ads, hundreds of new scents a year?the multibillion-dollar business of fragrance has long resisted understanding. At last the first critical?and critically acclaimed?guide to perfume illuminates the mysteries of this secretive industry. Lifelong perfume fanatics Luca Turin (best known as the subject of Chandler Burr?s The Emperor of Scent) and Tania Sanchez exalt, wisecrack, and scold through their reviews with passion, eloquence, and erudition, making this book a must-have for anyone looking for a brilliant fragrance?or just a brilliant read.
The first book of its kind: a definitive guide to the world of perfume
Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez are experts in the world of scent. Turin, a renowned scientist, and Sanchez, a longtime perfume critic, have spent years sniffing the world's most elegant and beautiful--as well as some truly terrible--perfumes. In Perfumes: The Guide, they combine their talents and experience to review more than twelve hundred fragrances, separating the divine from the good from the monumentally awful. Through witty, irreverent, and illuminating prose, the reviews in Perfumes not only provide consumers with an essential guide to shopping for fragrance, but also make for a unique reading experience.
Perfumes features introductions to women's and men's fragrances and an informative "frequently asked questions" section including:
? What is the difference between eau de toilette and perfume?
? How long can I keep perfume before it goes bad?
? What's better: splash bottles or spray atomizers?
? What are perfumes made of?
? Should I change my fragrance each season?
Perfumes: The Guide is an authoritative, one-of-a-kind book that will do for fragrance what Robert Parker's books have done for wine. Beautifully designed and elegantly illustrated, this book will be the perfect gift for collectors and anyone who's ever had an interest in the fascinating subject of perfume.
Picking a Perfect Perfume
For Perfumes: The Guide, Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez tested nearly 1,500 fragrances--some glorious, some foul. Here they offer some humble advice on finding something worth loving among the stinkers.
1. Smell top to bottom
Perfumes usually unfold in three (often very different) stages: the sparkling first few minutes are the fragrance's top note, followed by its true personality, known as the heart note, and ending with the base note, aka the drydown, hours later. Something you love at the counter you may loathe by the parking lot. We recommend top-to-bottom tests on skin and on paper, since some scents that disappoint on the heat of skin may shine on your shirtsleeve.
2. Write it down
Bring a pen to write names on paper test strips, so you're not in anguish hours later, trying to recall which is the third scent from the left that transports you to Shangri-La. Keep a cheap, possibly extremely trashy paperback on hand, so you can store strips between pages to keep them separate.
3. Rest your nose
Noses tune out, which is why you can smell your friends' homes but not your own. Smell no more than five scents per day on paper strips and try on only the best one or two, to keep your nose reliable.
4. Check the radiance
To get a good sense of how the perfume will smell to other people as you walk past, try spraying a test strip and leaving it in the room while you step out for a bit. Come back fifteen minutes later and breathe in: that's the radiance.
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