Synopses & Reviews
Born of a laboratory accident, this odd shade of purple revolutionized fashion, industry, and the practice of science.
Mauve is the story of a man who accidentally invented a color, and in the process transformed the world around him. Before 1856, the color in our livesthe reds, blues, and blacks of clothing, paint, printcame from insects or mollusks, roots or leaves, and dyeing was painstaking and expensive. But in 1856 eighteen-year-old English chemist William Perkin accidentally discovered a way to mass-produce color in a factory.
Working on a treatment for malaria in his London home laboratory, Perkin found mauve by chance. His experiments failed to result in artificial quinine as he had hoped, but produced instead a dark oily sludge that happened to turn silk a beautiful light purple. Mauve became the most desirable shade in the fashion houses of Paris and London, and quickly led to crimsons, violets, blues, and greens, earning its inventor a fortune. But its importance extends far beyond ballgowns.
Before mauve, chemistry was largely a theoretical science. Perkin's discovery sparked new interest in industrial applications of chemistry research, which later brought about the development of explosives, perfume, photography, modern medicine, and today's plastics industry.
Perkin is honored with the odd plaque and bust in colleges and chemistry clubs, but is otherwise a forgotten man. With great wit, scientific savvy, and historical scope, Simon Garfield delivers a fascinating tale of how this accidental genius set in motion an extraordinary scientific leap.
Review
"A book about science which also happens to be a miniature work of art." Hugh Massingberd, Daily Telegraph
Review
"Thoroughly researched and beautifully written, the book is more than just a biography of Perkin...Making chemistry appealing is a challenge at the best of times, but Garfield rises to it." Ben Crystall, New Scientist
Synopsis
In 1856 eighteen-year-old English chemist William Perkin accidentally discovered a way to mass-produce color. In a witty, erudite, and entertaining (Esquire) style, Simon Garfield explains how the experimental mishap that produced an odd shade of purple revolutionized fashion, as well as industrial applications of chemistry research. Occasionally honored in certain colleges and chemistry clubs, Perkin until now has been a forgotten man. By bringing Perkin into the open and documenting his life and work, Garfield has done a service to history. Chicago Tribune A]n inviting cocktail of Perkin biography, account of the dye industry and where it led, and social and cultural history up to the present. American Scientist Garfield leaps gracefully back and forth in time, as comfortable in the Victorian past as he is in the brave new world of petrochemicals and biochemistry. Kirkus Reviews starred review. T]he delight of this book is seeing parallels to present-day trends. New York Times Book Review
About the Author
Simon Garfield is the author of several acclaimed books, including The End of the Innocence: Britain in the Time of AIDS, winner of the Somerset Maugham Award. He lives in London.