Chandler Burr’s Emperor of Scent gets the thumbs-up from the Herald. The book is the result of a chance meeting between US journalist Burr and Luca Turin, an Italian-French scientist: “By the time they arrived in London, Turin's home, Burr knew he had a story - a piece for The Atlantic, he thought. But after several years of tracking Turin, he knew he had much more: a book, and a terrific one at that, not only the story of a fascinating, bawdy, arrogant free-thinker, but a much broader tale of what happens when scientific discovery meets scientific orthodoxy.”

Also noted: Raja Shehadeh’s When the Bulbul Stopped Singing. According to reviewer Kapka Kassabova, “This slim book is well worth reading, not only as an infuriating document of a political and moral breakdown, but as an intelligent, intimate reflection on human resilience, Palestinian character, and hope against hope.”