Luca Turin

In 2008, Turin and Sanchez up-ended the world of fragrance with their critically acclaimed Perfumes: The A–Z Guide, one of Amazon’s best books of the year, described by John Lanchester in the New Yorker as “ravishingly entertaining,” by India Knight in the Sunday Times (UK) as “one of the best books I have ever read,” by Hilary Mantel as “opinionated, knowledgeable, sharply written and surprisingly comprehensive … a purely enjoyable book,” and by Philip Hensher as "a work of the highest criticism, one which elevates writing about perfume to the best sort of writing about wine or rock music." Ten years later they bring their inimitably passionate, erudite perspective back to the hugely changed world of fragrance, to sort out which of over 1,200 new individual perfumes deserves celebration (and which condemnation). The 2018 guide includes all new content, including - “Ten Years Later,” looking back on the last decade of fragrance - “The Shifting Shape of Fragrance 1918–2018” - all new FAQ - over 1,200 individual reviews: masculine and feminine, mainstream and arcane, from the latest Guerlains to a 5-star masterpiece by a small Malaysian firm - an expanded glossary - top 10 lists, this time including not just masculines and feminines but introverts and extroverts, the best retro, citrus, oud, and more

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.Read Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez's posts on the Penguin Blog.

“A rich sensory trip . . . this indispensable guide to all things smelly is as good as it gets.”—Sunday Telegraph One man's passion for perfume leads him to explore one of the most intriguing scientific What makes one molecule smell of garlic while another smells of rose? In this witty, engrossing, and wildly original volume, author Luca Turin explores the two competing theories of smell. Is scent determined by molecular shape or molecular vibrations? Turin describes in fascinating detail the science, the evidence, and the often contentious debate—from the beginnings of organic chemistry to the present day—and pays homage to the scientists who went before. With its uniquely accessible and captivating approach to science via art, The Secret of Scent will appeal to anyone who has ever wondered about the most mysterious of the five senses.

The quintessential guide to the one hundred most glorious perfumes in the world. When Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez published The Guide in 2008, it was hailed as "ravishingly entertaining" by John Lanchester in The New Yorker, "witty and knowledgeable" on Style.com, and "provocative and hugely entertaining" by the Times Literary Supplement . The Little Book of Perfumes focuses on just one hundred masterpieces of ninety-six five-star perfumes from the original book, as well as four "museum" perfumes-legendary scents that are preserved in the Versailles Osmothèque. This stunningly produced petite volume offers lovers of perfume the best of the best-a perfect gift book for anyone looking either for a brilliant fragrance or an intelligent, witty read.

From 2003 to 2014, scientist and perfume critic Luca Turin (The Secret of Scent, the A-Z Guide) wrote two widely admired columns for distinguished Swiss magazine NZZ Folio. First in the "Duftnote" he discussed all things smellable, from Blue Stratos to Mitsouko and the fragrance of a particular Air France jet. Afterward in "Either/Or" he helped readers examine the relative merits of such as heels vs. flats, trains vs. trams, or Captain Nemo vs. Captain Haddock. Written in Turin's inimitable and highly quotable style, full of passionately held opinions on subjects major and minor, pulling on culture high and low, Old World and New, aesthetic and scientific, these essays were some of the best loved parts of the magazine. However, the columns were only intermittently available in English. This is the first time many of these writings have been published in the original. Included are four feature articles also published in NZZ Folio, plus a foreword written by his co-author of the A-Z Guide, Tania Sanchez.

"Turin confirms his right to be classed alongside Proust or Patrick Suskind as a poet of smell." —Lara Feigel, ObserverIn 1992, Luca Turin wrote the first truly critical guide to perfume, Parfums le guide. It has been out of print until now.This new edition includes both the original French and the first authorized English translation, plus a new, highly personal foreword by Turin. LUCA TURIN wrote the first critical guide to perfume. He is a biophysicist, popular lecturer, and author of several books on science, perfume, and culture.TANIA SANCHEZ is a writer with an interest in perfume, aesthetics, and culture. She is the co-author with Luca Turin of The A–Z Guide and The Little Book of Perfumes.

1st Printing

Warum öffnet sich der Himmel über uns, wenn wir unser Lieblingsparfum auflegen? Was hat Glockengeläut am Ostermorgen mit einer Kreation von Estée Lauder zu tun? Und weshalb können wir manche Leute einfach nicht riechen?Das kleine Buch der großen Parfums präsentiert einhundert legendäre Klassiker und ist eine fundierte Einführung in die Welt der Parfümerie. Von Angel bis Vol de Nuit, vom scheuen Blumenduft über das männliche Urparfum bis hin zu den großen Düften der Geschichte, die im Versailler Parfummuseum Alles ist so sinnlich-nuanciert beschrieben, dass die Lektüre zum Erlebnis wird. Nach der Lektüre gibt es nur auf zur nächsten Parfümerie!