This perfume stinks. Hahaha I'm so witty.

It's hard for me to put into words how much I loved this story. The pacing, the characters, the overall plot - everything was perfection. However, the most amazing thing for me was the writing style. So much eloquence and beauty, without ever being over the top. I've seen some people complaining about how "simple" some of the heavy plot points were treated. I do understand and respect those opinions, but I especially liked that aspect.
Yes, this is a book about a murderer, but it isn't a crime novel. It's much more than that. To me, it was a wonderful exploration of a man I loved to hate and hated to love.

Vaau kokia tai buvo kvapų kelionė!
Be galo gražus rašymo stilius, skaičiau kaip pasaką. Vaikas gimęs su neįtikėtina uosle, patyręs begalę sunkumų, ir tik vienintelė jo aistra - kvapas, drąsiai vedė jį per gyvenimą. Žavi tai, su kokiu užsidegimu jis 'rinko' tuos kvapus, visus, nebuvo jam nei gerų nei blogų kvapų, visi jam vienodai svarbūs. Kai užuodė jaunos merginos kvapą, kuris buvo visiškai kitoks nei iki šiol sutikti kvapai, jis visiškai pameta galvą.. Netikėtai randasi vienintelis jo tikslas - išsaugoti tą kvapą. Jis stropus, sunkiai mokėsi ir visas žinias tiesiog siurbė į save, ir jam to buvo maža.. atlikinėjo įvairiausius bandymus, kaip išgauti kuo įvairesnius kvapus, stipriai išgyveno nesėkmes.. Tai ką jis darė baisu, jis - žudikas, bet iš to kaip autorius aprašo jo jausmus, mintis, lyg norisi suprasti jį, pateisinti, jis tiesiog negalėjo kitaip elgtis. Fanatizmas ir talentas - viskas kartu.

Man patiko, kad autorius aprašė kiekvieno personažo likimą. Lyg prie kiekvieno įvykio skrupulingai sudėlioti taškai. Pabaiga tikras triumfas, tikslas kurio taip siekė.. Man ši knyga atradimas, mėgavausi kiekvienu puslapiu ir skaityčiau dar kartą

I enjoyed the weirdness of this novel, and the author's willingness to follow through on what is a strange, but very original premise. Through immersion in scent, Süskind is able to create entirely new, evocative landscapes and unique perspectives. But he seems to have plundered and exhausted this rich seam fairly early on, and rather than developing the story and characters in a meaningful way, he unfortunately favours repetition and increasingly ridiculous plots.

Perfume is a memorable novel, and there were many elements I enjoyed. But I wish the protagonist were a more substantial character, and I would have liked to see a bit more depth to the story, rather than a sequence of disposable characters and predictable events culminating in an absurd, meaningless ending.

(I also found the writing style very grating, though with a translation you can never tell whose fault that is.)

I feel strangely about this book because it's hard for me to enjoy a narrative that centers such an abhorrent, disgusting character. And for the most part, I had no interest in Grenouille's journey nor any other part of the plot. But the writing - oh, the writing. I love reading perfume reviews in my spare time and I love the art of smelling. And because of Suskind's truly delicious descriptions of all the scents that Grenouille's talented nose could pick out, I have to give this a solid 4/5.

رواية استثنائية بمعنى الكلمه ... الفكرة والأحداث مجنونه تماما
كمحبة للروايات البوليسية أقدر أقول إني انخدعت في العنوان وافتكرت إنها بتتكلم عن محقق بيدور على قاتل... لكن الموضوع كان واضح إن البطل هو نفسه القاتل.. مش عارفه ازاي أسأت فهم العنوان
والرواية بتتكلم عن الرضيع جان باتيست غرونوي والي حاولت والدته تتخلص منه إلا إن أمرها ينكشف بعد سماع الناس صراخه فيتم انقاذ حياته واعدام الأم .... مشكلته إن ما عندوش رائحة ودا الي خلى الناس تنفر منه فيعيش في دار للأيتام ويكبر وهو عنده هدف واحد إنه يصنع رائحة خاصة له.

المزايا
1- فكرة مجنونه جديده
2- تحتوي على معلومات مفيدة تخص صناعة العطور
3- السرد ممتع
4- الوصف هايل بتحس كإنك بتشم الرواية مش بتقراها هههه
5- شخصية رئيسيه محيره... متعرفش تتعاطف معه ولا تكرهه ودي تحسب للكاتب
6- نهاية مجنونه وغير متوقعه

العيوب:
1- ممله أوي في بعض الأحيان

Original story, well-written, a bit creepy, a lot silly, morality turned on its head for sex and drugs, it put me in mind that it was the Pied Piper in reverse. Not an exact analogy, just what it put in my mind.

I've just downloaded the film. It will be interesting to see how much humanity is allowed Grenouille.

In 18th Century France a baby is born who lacks any scent. He does, however, have a deep and strong survival urge. Although he is treated as a pariah by many for his condition, he possesses a parallel condition, a heightened sensitivity to aroma. It is his quest to experience life through smell, and he does so. He is also a cold-hearted sociopath who seizes opportunities where he can to advance his particular desires. It ends badly for him, but that is a good thing.


The author

This is a very interesting book. I was rapt. Until I was done it was an unhappy thing to have to put it down unfinished, due to interruptions like work, sleep and eating. Thankfully I was able to complete it. Perfume is an odd story, perhaps, but also very interesting, providing some payload in depictions of 18th Century Europe and information about aroma in general and perfumery in particular. Much recommended but not for all tastes...or olfactory receptors.

n  nn  nn  nn  n

(You can see my video review here: https://youtu.be/vnorkpB_Lnk )

Life is cheap in Patrick Süskind's Perfume. From the very first page, newborn babies are dumped among heaps of rotten fish while the mother who birthed them is unrepentant as she faces execution in front of an angry mob.

And why shouldn't she be?

All she's ever known is a squalid, miserable world that would sooner walk over her than lend a helping hand. However, it would be wrong to say that the meanness Süskind draws in his characters is rooted in poverty.

Regardless of social class, nearly everybody we meet in Perfume is only interested in their own success: whether their vice be money, sex, social status or power, they pursue their petty goals under the same misguided belief that it is they who are the smart ones, that they are the protagonists of a tale that by mere fact of existence deserves a happy end. How wrong they are. Rarely does Süskind let a member of his despicable cast depart the novel without facing an absurd, ironic or just downright wretched death. It's almost sentimental in how much attention is paid to their Willy Wonka styled exits and, taken together, the larger picture of a meaningless universe as a whole. Through it all though, there is one man who seems to be on the trail of something divine.

Much has been said of the aromatic prose that Süskind leverages to portray our hero's sense of smell: Scents are everything to Jean-Baptiste Grenouille. As his singular passion, their descriptions are given all the care and flourish required to convince you that he's in touch with something beautiful and true. It all amounts to shit of course, and Jean-Baptiste's sacred hunt turns out to be just as foolish as anybody else's as they tumble toward their mutual dooms.

In Perfume, no pillar of society is left undemolished. Religion, government, science, and even brotherly love are all perverted by story's end. It would be a tough read that a lot of people would have a hard time getting through if only for how damn well Süskind can describe the smell of a rotting corpse, an easterly wind, or the wisp of a young red-headed woman's hair.

(Don't forget to check out my video review: https://youtu.be/vnorkpB_Lnk )

Imagine if Grenouille had lost his sense of smell to corona... Would he have become a decent person instead of a monster?

Just a random thought as I am reflecting on the fact that I miss the days when I could smell coffee in the entire house. These days I have to get very, very close... The world is full of strange things that we do not notice until they are gone.

reading vlog: https://youtu.be/EbcWXp-a50M

weird FUCKED UP and i loved it!! 3rd quarter got a lil boring but loved the atmosphere of the first half and the craziness of the ending

قرأتها و شاهدتها فيلما ..

كاتب متميز فكر خارج الصندوق و أنتج فكرة عجيبه لا أدري من أي مكان جاء بها من تلك الوديان البعيده التي يأتي للشعراء و الكتاب جميعا منها الإلهام ..

A master piece ..

لطالما احببت الأعمال الفنية اللتي تترك في فمك مذاقا ما ..
التي لا تعود الحياة بعدها كما كانت , منها العطر ..

رأيت أثناء قرائتي البطل طفلا يشم كل شئ في جشع
أشفقت عليه طفلا بالرغم من نفور جميع من حوله منه..
و هو يقوم بخلط العطور بدون قواعد .. رأيته و هو يري الفتاه قتيلته الأولي في منامه .. يتذكر شذاها , يحاول الإمساك به الإحتفاظ به للأبد و من ثم يراه كالزئبق ينسل من بين يديه ... فيصرخ
و يستيقظ

رأيت ذلك الجنون في عينيه و هو يستخلص مكونات سحره , العطر ..

انتهيت من قرائتها و من ثم شاهدتها فيلما , كان أفضل مما توقعت من الأفلام ألا تكون بمستوي الروايات دوما ..

النهايه رائعه ..

عمل لن أمل من إعادة قرائته , و رؤيته علي الشاشه ..



العطر ..
أنصح بها بشدة , علي مسئوليتي الشخصية :))