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| Image by the author of the purple one in the middle |
I know, I know, I have to stop doing this sort of thing. But I just couldn’t help myself. I was in Harrods with Madame Persolaise the other day, so naturally, I decided to pop up to the second floor to see if they had a copy of a little book with a picture of Shalimar on the cover.
I couldn’t find the ‘Perfume’ section… probably because there isn’t one, as it turns out. When I asked one of the sales assistants if they had any books about fragrance, he took me over to the fashion shelves and said, “If we do have any, they’ll probably be over here.”
He was right: the small number of usual suspects was in attendance. But no sign of Le Snob. Then another SA came up to me. “Excuse me,” she said, “I heard you asking my colleague about perfume books. We’ve also got this new one. It’s not on the shelves, because we’ve got it on special display.” And the volume she handed over to me was none other than my own labour of love.
For a moment I wondered about maintaining an air of uninvolved detachment, but of course, there was no chance of that happening. “Oh, cool!” I called out, trying desperately to stop the smile on my face from seeming too idiotic. “That’s my book. I wrote it. I just wanted to see if you have it.”
“Really?” she laughed. “How lovely. Well, we’ve got quite a few. They’re over here.” And she took me over to a table near the tills which displayed, amongst others, all the Laduree cookbooks, an illustrated guide to Downton Abbey and a very healthy-looking pile of Le Snob: Perfume.
Needless to say, photos had to be taken!
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Whilst I’m gushing about the book, please click here to be taken to Basenotes’ wonderful review of it, written by Thomas Dunckley.
And seeing as I’m in a linking mood, click here for a mention of Le Snob: Perfume on the Beauty Bible, and here for an article (in German) on Die Zeit online which name-checks Persolaise, amongst other blogs.
Persolaise.
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So happy about all the buzz about your book. What a wonderful Christmas present for you. I havent been able to keep in touch as much as I would like recently..been very busy but hope to enjoy more of your writing over the Holidays when I have time. Best wishes to you and yours for a wonderful Holiday and a great New Year.
Michelle
Michelle, thanks very much indeed. Don't worry about not keeping in touch; we're all super-busy at this time of year.
Warmest wishes to you and yours too!