A Singular Achievement

Perfume became a worldwide bestseller and spent years on lists across Europe. The 2006 film by Tom Tykwer faced the seemingly impossible task of putting smell on screen and met it through lavish visual beauty that mirrors the novel's sensory excess.

The book is a thriller, a historical novel, and a philosophical allegory all at once. Kurt Cobain named it his favorite book, and critics compared Suskind to Kafka and Grass. Yet Suskind became a near-recluse after publication — a withdrawal that echoes his protagonist's disconnection from human society.