Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Meredith Mileti

Quote by Meredith Mileti

“The sight of my mother's handwriting on the slips of paper and in the margins of the book causes me to inhale sharply, and for a moment I smell licorice, as if the mere sight of her heavily styled penmanship has produced an olfactory hallucination. It's a delicate smell, more like anise or fresh tarragon than the sugary smell of a licorice pastille. Smell, I remember my mother once telling me, is the most powerful of the senses. Without it, there is no taste. Long ago I lost the memory of her face, the sound of her voice, the touch of her fingers. But I can still remember her smell, in the aroma of a sherry reduction, the perfume, delicate and faint, that lingers on your hands after you've run them through a hedge of rosemary, the pungent assault of a Gauloises cigarette. Any of a thousand smells are enough to conjure her memory.”

Quote by Meredith Mileti

Work

Aftertaste: A Novel in Five Courses

Browse quotes and source details for this work. more

Author

Meredith Mileti

Browse famous quotes and profile details for Meredith Mileti. more

You May Also Like

“Again Polly remembered all the notes in this perfume from the event earlier, and enjoyed waiting for each one to register in the olfactory bulb in the front of her brain, while her imagination did its own thing. The neroli, jasmine and sandalwood transported her to a summer night in the south of France, wearing a crisp white shirt- this was a much fresher chypre than the first one. Then she remembered she'd sprayed this one on her wrist during the event earlier and lifted it to her nose to see how it developed since then. Suddenly, out of nowhere: David. Her eyes snapped open. Coal tar? "Has this got guaiac wood in it?" she asked Lucien, not caring if it interfered with his testing of Guy. Lucien smiled broadly. "Yes," he said, "but very, very deep inside, it's a base note, as you would know. Your nose is very good, Polly." Guy grasped her wrist and brought it to his nose. "It's just under the bergamot and before the honeysuckle," he said, opening his eyes.”

“Like others who had once enjoyed an elite lifestyle, Lucy craved its return and whenever opportunity arrived, attempted to recreate it...By then no one questioned Lucy's role as the reigning hostess of celebrations, a role she continued to hold in public celebrations during the early Federal period.”