What does Paris smell like? If you thought Gauloises or diesel, you should read The Essence, a new book about fragrance. It’s just one from a sackful of new titles that are a treat for the senses.

Paris smells of butter, of course. Apparently Napoleon and his wife Josephine demanded a weekly consignment of 1.8 litres of violet cologne, plus 60 bottles of jasmine every month – fed up with the smell of Paris’s croissants?