Perfumes – The 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.
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?
When I purchased this book; that it would have more details to the perfumes that are out there.
Rating: 1 / 5
These authors inspired me to buy some cologne that they gave 5 stars and I was disappointed. They gave Azzaro Pour Home 5 stars and called it an “all-time great.” I am a fan of Azzaro Chrome, which they oddly gave a 2 star rating to, so I went ahead and purchased a 3.4 oz bottle of the original Azzaro. I hated it. It is for older men and these experts did not mention that. They also did not include any Banana Republic colognes which is ridiculous. Slate is one the best colognes I have ever smelled and while it is new, it still should have been listed. So for anyone out there, do not take their word and buy cologne or perfume. Test them out first.
Rating: 2 / 5
I enjoyed this book very much, but of course immediately looked for the ones that I wear, and couldn’t find Armani’s “Gio” nor “Acqua di Gio” (although I did find “Acqua di Gio pour Homme”.
It would be nice if the authors could bring out an small annual “Update” volume, for those of us who have bought the original book.
Rating: 4 / 5
Perfume is the “unknown art”, very expensive, and very mysterious.
People want to buy it, and to use it, but are not really interested
in what goes on back stage. This is an excellent introduction to that
world, but of greatest value in giving a kind of “buyer’s guide” to
the range of both men’s and women’s fragrances.
Rating: 4 / 5
This book has a couple of interesting chapters in the beginning but the bulk of it is just perfume reviews. I can go online and find thousands of perfume reviews for free by people who love and wear perfume so I don’t see the point in paying for the opinions of 1 or 2 people. But I suppose if you want to know what the authors think of your favorite scent you might like this. Although your favorite scent might not even be in the book.
Rating: 2 / 5