Today’s poll topic was suggested by our host, Haunani, who wants everyone to…
….recommend a great book to add to our summer reading lists, and…
…tell us what fragrance we should wear while reading it.
If you haven’t met Haunani, please say hello…
CB I Hate Perfume M4 A Room with a View ~ fragrance review
E. M. Forster’s A Room with a View (1908) is one of my favorite novels, and its Merchant-Ivory film adaptation (1985) is one of my favorite movies. I’m also a longtime admirer of CB I Hate Perfume, so it’s strange that I only recently realized that this niche perfumery offers a scent inspired by a scene from the novel. Christopher Brosius created M4, or A Room with a View, for CB I Hate Perfume’s Metamorphosis Series and designed it to evoke “the moment when one simple beautiful gesture can transform an entire life”…
Reading the Scent Trail: Margaret Atwood
Quick reminder: join me for an online book club in October. We’ll be talking about Remembering Smell by Bonnie Blodgett.
Between my usual work commute, and an unusual amount of travel, I’m finding it difficult to curl up with a book these days. But I haven’t cut back on my reading. All of this road and plane time has led me back to one of my favorite indulgences — audio books, and to one of my favorite authors — Margaret Atwood.
I heard Atwood speak last April at a nearby university. She was promoting her newest book, The Year of the Flood (2009), a novel about environmental catastrophe, mass extinction, genetic engineering, world hunger, exploitation, the end of literacy, and the future of humanity. You will understand that although I was eager, I refrained during the Q&A from voicing my one burning query: “What perfume do you wear?”
This question isn’t quite as gratuitous as it sounds. As Atwood spoke, my mind filled with half-memories of her novels, many of which I’d read over a decade ago. While the details had blurred over time, I was still haunted by the olfactory ghosts of each and every one of them. There is a passage in Bodily Harm (1998) that I just can’t shake — only a sentence I think — where changes in a Lora’s bodily odors lead to a disturbing revelation. Early in Alias Grace (1997), the protagonist describes the word “murderess” as having the musky, oppressive smell of dead flowers in a vase. Later, Simon Jordon is distracted by Grace’s scent of skin, smoke, laundry soap, mushrooms, ferns, crushed fruit, and unwashed scalp. She in turn has detected his odor of lavender, leather and ears…
Unwashed teenage boy with a whiff of owl droppings
Will we one day be able to sniff appreciatively and ask "is that the new Salman Rushdie you're wearing? I'm getting hints of post colonialism ..." What might a JK Rowling smell like? Unwashed teenage boy, perhaps, with a whiff of owl droppings. Ian Fleming would be suave, sophisticated – sandalwood, maybe, with topnotes of gunfire. I don't think I'd want to smell what they'd come up with for Irvine Welsh.
— From Making scents out of novels at The Guardian, an article that wonders what might ensue if others follow in the novel-as-perfume footsteps of Floris Madonna of the Almonds. Many thanks to Nancy for the link!
Floris Madonna of the Almonds, Tova Signature Platinum ~ new fragrances
Floris has launched Madonna of the Almonds (shown above left), a limited edition perfume for women. The scent is being introduced in conjunction with the novel of the same name by author Marina Fiorato — “an unforgettable story of love and art set against the backdrop of the Italian wars”.
Fresh zesty citrus notes of bergamot and lemon, so redolent of Italy, mingle with the delicate floral accord…