The Secret of Chanel No. 5

The Intimate History of the World's Most Famous Perfume

By: Tilar J. Mazzeo

Narrated by: Liz de Nesnera

“Who knew that such a tiny bottle housed so many secrets?” —Michael Tonello, author of Bringing Home the Birkin

Tilar J. Mazzeo, author of the New York Times bestseller The Widow Clicquot (an Amazon Best of the Month book in October 2008) returns with a captivating history of the world’s most famous, seductive, and popular perfume: Chanel No. 5. Mazzeo’s sweeping story of the iconic scent (known as “le monstre” in the fragrance industry) stretches from Coco Chanel’s early success to the rise of the seminal fragrance during the 1950s to the confirmation of its bestseller status in today’s crowded perfume market.

“Here is the life of one of the 20th century’s most interesting and deeply complicated women, a fascinating cultural history, and the story of an extraordinary perfume.” —Chandler Burr, New York Times scent critic and author of The Perfect Scent

Amazing read - passionate storytelling

Great history that touched on world events bigger than fashion. Complicated story during one of the most complicated times in world history

Interesting, not life changing

Kept my attention and got me curious enough about chanel no 5 to track down a sniff of it.
No regrets listening - a good break from some heavy listens.

Informational, not thrillingly so

A good overview of the perfume’s history, but told somewhat flatly. I was more interested in the creation of the perfume than the business squabbling, so I enjoyed the first half more.

Fascinating story with poor presentation at times

Most of the first hour of this book borders on smut. After that, it's worth listening to for the intricate history of this famous fragrance.

The story of Chanel No. 5 involves the Romonovs, tales of industrial espionage, international incidents, political intrigues, celebrities, and marketing ploys that were, at times, pure genious and, at other times, pure folly.

I found the story, itself, to be enchanting. The presentation of the story, however, suffered from too much emphasis on sexual themes, occassional profanity (once or twice, but too much, in my opinion), and, mostly due to the meanderings into subjective opinions about the sensuality of the fragrance, a lack of cohesion. Thus the reduction of two stars from the Overall score.

The narrator, Liz de Nesnera, did a good job with the material. She wasn't stellar, but she wasn't bad. I listened at a speed of 3x.

If you're interested in the life of Coco Chanel, the history of the Chanel company, Chanel No. 5, or in the perfume industry, in general, this book is worth the money or the credit.

Fascinating behind the scenes story of an icon

I liked the story and was intrigued by how much impact one "little perfume" had. I found myself curious to know more about the Chanel firm - beyond Number 5 that is. Does a very good story of placing the story against cultural and historical background. I was not too keen on the narrator. Somewhat annoying voice, and her pronunciation of Coco sounded like Cuckoo, which got a bit wearing. I think she should stick to regular pronunciation for that word, and some of the other "foreign" words.

All in all a great book, and recommended for anyone wanting to know more about Chanel and the incredible importance of this product to the company.