Purple. How One Man Invented a Color That Changed the World

By telling the story of Perkin and documenting his life and work, Garfield has done a service to history. — Chicago Tribune This book is fascinating as it draws parallels with the modern world. — New York Times The color mauve — is a multitude of unsaturated shades of purple. It is immensely popular: in medicine, perfumery, textiles, food, the chemical industry, fashion, and the beauty industry. How did this color gain such popularity? And who is its creator? Simon Garfield presents a witty, deeply analyzed, and entertaining Esquire story about one of the most curious cases in the history of science and technology — the invention by William Perkin of the first synthetic dye. In his account of this story, the author highlights Perkin's resourcefulness, persistence, and extraordinary ability to go beyond the obvious, to not be afraid, and to take risks. The author moves so deftly back and forth in time that you will feel comfortable both in the Victorian past and in the wonderful new world of petrochemistry and biochemistry.