title: PERFUME.
author:  Patrick Suskind 
description: Penguin's unabridged production of this international best seller is a thoroughly captivating production. Suskind's demented protagonist, Jean-Baptist Grenouille, is a "gifted abomination" whose highly developed sense of smell could easily make him the greatest perfumer of all time. Given the general stench of 18th-century cities, good perfumers were held in high regard. However, Grenouille the misfit, scorned by society throughout his life, hasn't the heart to create pretty perfumes for society's elite. When he finally does earn the adoration of the masses through his twisted genius, he decides that he would much prefer to "exterminate all these stupid, stinking people from the earth." Reader Sean Barrett does not overdramatize the often sensational events here but instead relates them with a measured, detached air that perfectly captures Suskind's cool tone. Also, his reserved narrative style allows listeners to appreciate Suskind's expert use of language (passages from this novel can be found in dictionaries of similes). This extraordinary production is highly recommended for all serious fiction collections.?Beth Farrell, Portage Cty. Dist. Lib., Ohio<BR>Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
  						    	
  						        	--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
zlib_text: Acclaim for
  PATRICK SÜSKIND’S
  Perfume
  “Perfume gives off a rare, sinfully addictive chill of pure evil.
  Süskind has seductive power as a storyteller.”
  —Connoisseur
  “Mr. Süskind himself is a perfumer of language.… A
  remarkable debut.”
  —The New York Times Book Review
  “Beautifully researched … brilliant.”
  —John Updike, The New Yorker
  “Immensely seductive … storytelling at its best.”
  —The Kansas City Star
  “Mesmerizing from first page to last … a highly
  sophisticated horror tale.”
  —The Plain Dealer (Cleveland)
  “An 
  ingenious 
  story 
  … 
  about 
  a 
  most 
  exotic
  monster … Suspense builds up steadily.”
  —Los Angeles Times
  
  PATRICK SÜSKIND
  Perfume
  Patrick Süskind was born in Ambach, near Munich, in 1949.
  He studied medieval and modern history at the University of
  Munich. His first play, The Double Bass, written in 1980,
  became an international success: performed in Germany, in
  Switzerland, at the Edinburgh Festival, in London, and at the
  New Theatre in Brooklyn. His first novel, Perfume, became
  an