Scent, the Mysterious and Essential Powers of Smell: The Mysterious and Essential Powers of Smell (Kodansha Globe) [Paperback]

Annick Le Guerer (Author), Philip Turner (Editor), Richard Miller (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Kodansha Globe | Publication Date: April 1994

"All my genius resides in my nostrils, " claimed Friedrich Nietzsche. Now comes a splendid new voice to bear him out - Annick Le Guerer. In this enchanting, erudite, and highly readable exploration of all things olfactory, she investigates the uses and properties of scent through the ages in relation to magic, myth, religion, sex, discrimination, philosophy, and medicine. From the perfumed rituals of ancient religions to the saintly "odor of sanctity"; from the aromatic cures of the Middle Ages to the black market for spiceladen mummies; from Proust's tea-dipped madeleine to our contemporary "odorphobia, " Le Guerer explains and documents the mysterious and essential powers of smell: to attract or repel; call up deep memory; induce lust, love, hunger, even trance. Recalling by turns Patrick Suskind's Perfume and Diane Ackerman's A Natural History of the Senses, Scent is an enchanting melange of storytelling and scholarship, a sensual journey across boundaries of time and culture that touches on universal myths and intimate desires.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Kodansha America (April 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156836024X
• ISBN-13: 978-1568360249
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,129,466 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing, thought-provoking, and universal!, March 29, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Scent (Hardcover)

This book provides much intriguing and fascinating information on the role of scent and smell over history. It's captivating to find the emphasis past cultures and time periods had on scent and smells - and how much of that we have lost. Particularly interesting are the sections on scent as it relates to seduction and magic. A bit "scholarly" but understandable and educational!