Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind

[Scheherazade]

Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind

When I first became aware of this book, I was at university. A friend of mine who had been reading the book at the time said it was "weird and scary". Since that day, I, if not consciouly avoid, did not make an attempt to read the book myself. However, a few months ago, after reading some comments made on the Forum, I decided to take the plunge.

The story opens with the birth of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, who is orphaned soon afterwards. He has been brought by a foster family but Jean-Baptiste fails to establish a real connection with the people around him and is shunned by almost everyone, which is, as it revealed later on, due to the fact that he lacks body odour. Ironically, he has a very heightened sense of smell himself, which sends him in search of the 'perfect' smell first around Paris and then France. His obsession with his search reaches to such extremes that he ends up committing murder to capture them... repeatedly.

The novel is rich with descriptions of 18th century Paris as well. Through Jean-Baptiste's journey on trail of smells, the author paints a picture, which is far from pretty: A garbage ridden squalid place, accommodating equally dirty people.

This was a breathtaking read; a captivating page-turner. Even though Jean-Baptiste's merciless 'captures' make a chilling read, Suskind achieves his goal without resorting to shocking and unnecessary sensational details. Still, he manages to leave his readers sniffing more often than they used to or should! :p

9/10 KitKats!

[Zippy]

Saw the film recently and have to say it was brilliant. Can't wait to read the book.

[Niamh]

wow, sounds good! better add that to my reading list.

[Niamh]

finished reading this. It really is wonderful.
9/10:thumbs_up

[papayahed]

It's the same old story of someone coveting what they can't have but this time it's told in a refreshingly new way.

8.5/10

[Psychosis]

I loved it. 8/10

[bazarov]

Really great description of poor Jean Baptiste. I was really surprised with novel, I expected some bestseller garbage...

[crystalmoonshin]

I didn't know the movie was based from a novel! I love the film. I have to read the book!!!!

[Alyoshka]

My feelings towards this novel are really ambivalent. On the one hand I found it hard to finish and even boring, but then again, it's one year since I read it, and I still picture Jean-Baptiste in stinking Paris and in the deserted mountains in his escape from smells. The novel is weird, and it's so different from everything I've ever read. I'm glad I've read it, but to say it was a pleasant read would be a lie. I guess it's fair to add that I read the novel in German, which is a good thing as it's the language in which Süsskind wrote it, but as it's my third language, it made the reading slower, and it could have affected my view of the book.

Now for my question to those of you who have seen the movie: is it any good?

[reiayanamijack]

Frankly speaking, the film is not comparable with the book, although it's not a bad one.

[Helga]

I agree with reiayanamijack the film was not nearly as good as the book, I read the book a few years ago and saw the movie when it came out and I was not very happy about it. the actor selection was great but they totally skipped the middle part of the book and that was my favourite.
being alone on the mountain and not a scent of a human within reach... I missed that .

but I think it's always the same when they turn books into movies, they lack something, some soul or an inner core you get from the book that you can't get from the movie, not saying that movies can't be great but it's just not the same...

[Seraphina]

I wanted to watch the movie, so I got the book first. Enjoyed the book a great deal, though I think it went on a bit unnecessarily in places. I greatly enjoyed the descriptions of France, and the way he described smell as a sense in a way I hadn't really thought of.
The film, I didn't hate, but I wasn't impressed at all. I think it missed the point when it tried to humanise the girl he ultimately works towards; she wasn't humanised in the book because she wasn't human to him, she was a smell he wanted.

[Remarkable]

I didn't like the book. I don't remeber it very well, since it's been a long time since I read it but I remember the feelings it left me with afterwards. Not pleasant at all. Not because of the scary parts but because the way human beings are treated in that book: as trivial and immoral as possible. Jean-Baptiste is a person thoroughly hated or absurdely ignored. His victims are helpless creatures, valuable only because of their smell. Everyone the central character encounters, certainly including him himself, is a filthy human being, full of immorality of every kind and disrespect for other humans. In the end Susskind gives us an accurate description of mass frenzy, certainly exxagerated, but a good illustration. We are so easily influenced by whoever is more beautiful, looks smarter or has more charisma then us. And then we have those hectic moments of mass meetings.

After all maybe that is what Susskind wanted to convey and I respect him for this. But I am sad for that total lack of hope that thoroughly fills the book. After all, I am just an adolescent. And adolescents are often hopeless romantics. Not like Romeo and Juliet, though...

[ariella]

I didn't like it much. I thought it was interesting at the beginning and I thought it was going to be like that the whole way through, but I just found pages upon pages describing scents and distilliation processes extremely tedious and the part where he lived in a tunnel in the mountain for 7 years went on a bit, maybe i just wasn't in the mood. It was more exciting at the end (when the murders were actually taking place) and I forced myself to read through the other dull stuff to get to it, if only more of the book had been like the end.
I actually thought some of the way it described humanity was accurate though. So that wasn't the reason i disliked it.
I'm also suprised that it's so popular and well liked. I just seemed to find it disappointing.

[Scheherazade]

but I just found pages upon pages describing scents and distilliation processes extremely tedious and the part where he lived in a tunnel in the mountain for 7 years went on a bit, maybe i just wasn't in the mood. It was only 300 pages all together.

[thereactionsite]

I thought this book was incredible. Some parts dragged on but in the end everything was just perfect. 9/10 for me!

[Gregory Samsa]

I love this book with the beautiful imagery, original plot and mild horror. This book had me up late at night anxious to read more about the obsessiveness of this character - Jean-Baptiste Grenouille. The author's style of writing is matter-of-fact, straight to the point, not a lot of emotionalism, almost as if he was writing from experience, from a murderer's mind. On the flip side he was very descriptive in detailing the obsession of this murderer and his pursuit to create the 'ultimate perfume' from the unsuspecting victims. You will find yourself experiencing the smells and sounds Suskind creates, and thinking of this novel long after putting it down. Like the part when Grenouille running away to the mountains.

[Jassy Melson]

Perfume is a unique book. It stands alone. There is not another book like it, both in its subject matter and in the style of writing.

[buddy bradley]

I thought it was excellent. The in-depth descriptions of smells and scents added a whole other level to the book, and it sure made me think more about Perfume and the process that goes into making it! 9/10

[hack]

Excellent read. I read it when it first came out
and remember being captivated by it. I recommended
it to friends and family, and it was almost unanimously
praised in my small circle. I did not see the movie as
I did not see how it could be adequately captured on
screen. I felt the same way about Saramago's "Blindness",
but when I saw that I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe
I'll order it up on Netflicks.

[wallflower5]

The film is great-beautiful film.

[Bessie11]

Hi ,
I like to read it
but i want to ask one thing that is it scary?

[Veho]

Hi ,
I like to read it
but i want to ask one thing that is it scary?

I didn't think it was scary at all. It's a weird and wonderful book though; you should definitely read it.

[PoeticPassions]

And they say that originality is dead. If for nothing else, its unique character and poetic prose make it well-worth the read.

I did find it somewhat heartbreaking though... anyone else feel that way?

[irinmisfit92]

I didn't like it much. I thought it was interesting at the beginning and I thought it was going to be like that the whole way through, but I just found pages upon pages describing scents and distilliation processes extremely tedious and the part where he lived in a tunnel in the mountain for 7 years went on a bit, maybe i just wasn't in the mood. It was more exciting at the end (when the murders were actually taking place) and I forced myself to read through the other dull stuff to get to it, if only more of the book had been like the end.
I actually thought some of the way it described humanity was accurate though. So that wasn't the reason i disliked it.
I'm also suprised that it's so popular and well liked. I just seemed to find it disappointing.

I can't agree more with you. I don't know why but there are many great books that begin very well and the story is just monotonous such that the ending becomes really boring. The description is also unnecessary - I prefer writers who write short and sweet but beautiful and captivating. I find that I feel like this to many books; such as Lolita and The Catcher in the Rye.

[dekadrachma]

This was different but now its a classic. Very widely read. Its creepy like Poe. But you know that Dumas styled justice is just around the corner.