This is maybe my favorite perfume book—as reflected in its beat-up condition—primarily because of the analyses it contains of the great perfumes of the 20th century. I found this information invaluable as I was composing my own fragrances. The authors not only discuss what goes into these perfumes and how these ingredients function, it also relates fragrances and shows how they’ve developed, over decades, into families. The book’s a wreck—acceptable—with the spine reinforced with Scotch tape.