Perfume by Daniel Suskind

We experience our world through our senses – be it a noisy evening rush hour, or a serene walk in the forest. Watching a movie (say, Last of the Mohicans) is a visual and phonic delight; while exploring a yarn store is a tactile & optical adventure that never ceases to amaze me. Tasting chocolate always stops me in my tracks, and the light, sweet decadence of tiramisu pushes me right over into a PG-13 rating.

But scent. Smell is one of those senses that we just take for granted. Sure, it’s great to walk by a bakery in the morning, or wince at those unfortunate elevator smells you come across occasionally. But to actually think about smell, and how you are inundated with scents throughout the day…and most of the time, you never even notice it.

German author Patrick Suskind wrote Das Perfume (Perfume) in 1985; an exploration of scent and how it connects to our emotions and ultimately, our humanity. But, in spite of the potential murkiness of deep thought – Perfume is an engaging read. Learning about making perfume was fascinating – the various methods of capturing and preserving the scents and the science behind building harmonic essences was eye opening to say the least. And, it’s a ripping good, although disquieting, tale of a murderer. (Think Dexter, but without the redeeming qualities.)

This book has also been incorporated into American mainstream – most recently in the form of a movie starring Alan Rickman & Dustin Hoffman (Don’t go there…that way lies disaster. At least read the book first!) I’ve recommended this book to many friends, and I have to say, it’s a love-hate thing. But even those who didn’t care for Suskind’s Perfume, all agree that the imagery and writing is phenomenal.

A delight to the senses, disturbing serial killer, must read!