Rating: 
Summary: essential
Review: I have read and reread this book. I have bought it for friends, given my copies to strangers on the trian who have asked about it, and suggested it to just about everyone i know, from my grandmother to my boyfriend. I truely believe that if everyone on earth read this book that the world would be a better place. Bell Hooks is "hardcore" about her stance on what is and what isn't love. She gives it definition and makes it actually possible to consider a future, or even a present, with love in our lives when we live in a time when love is looked at as impossible by most of us. She attacks our ideas about love. I personally came away from the book with an idea of how to actually go about being a more loving person. I have standards now that I didn't have before. Unlike a previous reviewer said, Bell Hooks bases her ideas of love on responsibility and respect.
I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Very liberating!
Review: I LOVE this book...read through it very quickly and look forward to reading it again. It did more for me than any "self-help" book I've picked up because she explores the issues surrounding love and why we are unable to love ourself. And there is no pressure to "practice" certain healing methods. The book is thought provoking and inspirational. I've struggled with the issue of lovelessness all my life and was on the verge of destroying a very wonderful relationship because of my inability to love myself first. I am better able now to understand where those feelings are coming from and how to deal with them and let them go. This book has helped to liberate me. And now I can learn to love myself and my partner on a much deeper level. Upon finishing the book, I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and renewed with a new way of looking at love and how we love. From time to time, we do find ourselves discouraged and question whether we will find love in our lives without realizing that love exists in all of us and around us. Bell Hooks is a great writer; I admire her ability to express her thoughts on the issue of love and to be able to share it with the rest of world. She speaks to you in this book. Thank you, Bell Hooks!
Rating:
Summary: Very liberating!
Review: I LOVE this book...read through it very quickly and look forward to reading it again. It did more for me than any "self-help" book I've picked up because she explores the issues surrounding love and why we are unable to love ourself. And there is no pressure to "practice" certain healing methods. The book is thought provoking and inspirational. I've struggled with the issue of lovelessness all my life and was on the verge of destroying a very wonderful relationship because of my inability to love myself first. I am better able now to understand where those feelings are coming from and how to deal with them and let them go. This book has helped to liberate me. And now I can learn to love myself and my partner on a much deeper level. Upon finishing the book, I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and renewed with a new way of looking at love and how we love. From time to time, we do find ourselves discouraged and question whether we will find love in our lives without realizing that love exists in all of us and around us. Bell Hooks is a great writer; I admire her ability to express her thoughts on the issue of love and to be able to share it with the rest of world. She speaks to you in this book. Thank you, Bell Hooks!
Rating:
Summary: Very liberating!
Review: I LOVE this book...read through it very quickly and look forward to reading it again. It did more for me than any "self-help" book I've picked up because she explores the issues surrounding love and why we are unable to love ourself. And there is no pressure to "practice" certain healing methods. The book is thought provoking and inspirational. I've struggled with the issue of lovelessness all my life and was on the verge of destroying a very wonderful relationship because of my inability to love myself first. I am better able now to understand where those feelings are coming from and how to deal with them and let them go. This book has helped to liberate me. And now I can learn to love myself and my partner on a much deeper level. Upon finishing the book, I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and renewed with a new way of looking at love and how we love. From time to time, we do find ourselves discouraged and question whether we will find love in our lives without realizing that love exists in all of us and around us. Bell Hooks is a great writer; I admire her ability to express her thoughts on the issue of love and to be able to share it with the rest of world. She speaks to you in this book. Thank you, Bell Hooks!
Rating: 
Summary: Too Much
Review: I never finished this book, although I intend to. It was just too much. Once again, bell has hit deeply on a personal level. Unfortunately, I took it a little too personally. The first thing I did after finishing a few chapters is told my wife that I finished the book and then gave it to her to read. She never did, and so I got angry.It's not much of a surprise to me that hooks would write a book such as this. Knowing her and Cornel West as a reader, I expect them to deal with essential questions of love. I'm not sure that I agree with their approach, however. And quite honestly, I much prefer the way such ethical issues are handled by two other great writers, the Dalai Lama and Stephen L. Carter. Nevertheless, hooks is quite instructive in her own provocative way, and if nothing else, does justice to my own gut revulsion against 'Mars & Venus'. hooks gets a little too referential, quoting this author and giving credit to that article. It spares her from writing a bit more fluidly and expansively, but that's better than footnotes. I'll keep the book on the shelf and maybe come back around to it after a while, but I won't use it as a primary source, and I certainly won't push it on other folks, especially not the wife.
Rating: 
Summary: Review of all about love New Visions
Review: I wanted to read this book because I noticed some quotes
from people I love, such as Teresa of Avila. I skimmed
before purchasing and should have skimmed closer. Although,
bell hooks has some very beautiful and some true thoughts
on love, it seems that true love is not still a part of
what she is trying to teach us. One example being is I
still see alot of selfishness mentioned when it comes to
bearing children. In the sense that if one does become
pregnant (even though the father will not or is not involved,
that we should not desire to give the child life and do our
best. If one become pregnant for whatever reason and then
decides not to give life, then love is rejected at the
tiniest moment when the child needs love the most from
whomever has the child with them. This is the greatest love
of all. If I were to read a book that would help me to love
more and find new ways to love better, this particular book
would not give complete truth to me. Although she has some
beautiful thoughts, it still seems we are trying to find
love without carrying out responsibilities. I am quite
sure there are many good things within this book, so I
wish to state that as well.
Rating:
Summary: Review of all about love New Visions
Review: I wanted to read this book because I noticed some quotes
from people I love, such as Teresa of Avila. I skimmed
before purchasing and should have skimmed closer. Although,
bell hooks has some very beautiful and some true thoughts
on love, it seems that true love is not still a part of
what she is trying to teach us. One example being is I
still see alot of selfishness mentioned when it comes to
bearing children. In the sense that if one does become
pregnant (even though the father will not or is not involved,
that we should not desire to give the child life and do our
best. If one become pregnant for whatever reason and then
decides not to give life, then love is rejected at the
tiniest moment when the child needs love the most from
whomever has the child with them. This is the greatest love
of all. If I were to read a book that would help me to love
more and find new ways to love better, this particular book
would not give complete truth to me. Although she has some
beautiful thoughts, it still seems we are trying to find
love without carrying out responsibilities. I am quite
sure there are many good things within this book, so I
wish to state that as well.
Rating:
Summary: A memorable journey
Review: I was moved by this book and I enjoyed the read. hooks' approach is straight forward, feminist yet her voice is affirming and gentle, especially in the latter chapters about love and healing and spirituality. She is a gifted writer who makes you wonder why society's overt messages are so hostile to loving, then shows you the way to find your own way. She joyfully relies on Erich Fromm's Art of Loving and Scott Peck's The Road Less Traveled, and other insightful authors. If you are thinking about re-reading The Road Less Traveled, read this first. You'll enjoy them both. You will grow. Cynicism, begone!
Rating:
Summary: A memorable journey
Review: I was moved by this book and I enjoyed the read. hooks' approach is straight forward, feminist yet her voice is affirming and gentle, especially in the latter chapters about love and healing and spirituality. She is a gifted writer who makes you wonder why society's overt messages are so hostile to loving, then shows you the way to find your own way. She joyfully relies on Erich Fromm's Art of Loving and Scott Peck's The Road Less Traveled, and other insightful authors. If you are thinking about re-reading The Road Less Traveled, read this first. You'll enjoy them both. You will grow. Cynicism, begone!
Rating:
Summary: All About Everyone
Review: If you're looking for a self-help book that offers all the answers to questions you have about love this isn't it. "All About Love" is a cultural examination of what love is and what it means in our society. I love bell hooks because she doesn't pretend to have all the answers, or any for that matter. That's what makes her a good philosopher. This book makes you reflect on how you have been taught to love and how you define it. One point hooks talks about is that people assume they know real love because they've always loved a certain way. Is it working for you? For some people-yes, for some people it isn't. This book is a starting point toward answering that question.(well, it was for me anyway.)Interestingly, several people I know (scholars none the less) have scoffed at the idea of this book of love. If your mindset going into reading this is is "who does bell hooks think she is telling me about love, I already know love" then save your time reading this because you aren't ready for the lesson.
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