Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful
Review: All About Love is an important and moving work by a brilliant writer. I first heard about this book when I heard an interview with bell hooks - a few days later, I bought the book, and I read it rather quickly. hooks has so many important things to say - she addresses the importance of honesty, the need for a "love ethic," and, above all else, the necessity of beleiving in and searching for "true love."Some people seem to object to the fact that hooks uses her personal life as a way to explore love, but I really don't understand why that's a problem. What would you rather she do - use statistics and sociological data? Maybe then her analysis would be more objective, but the fact is, love is, by its very nature, entirely subjective, so I much prefer hooks's personal approach.
Rating: 
Summary: A thoughtful, intriguing, and truly enjoyable book
Review: bell hooks is one of the most gifted intellectuals of our time and this book is one of her best books. Before reading this book, I was only familiar with bell hooks in the context of her role as a social critic and scholar in terms of her writings on issues such as race, gender, and class; but what this book does is allow people to think critically about a subject so thought provoking but commonly explored and discussed within the commercial confines of popular culture. This book allows the reader to transcend thinking of love in terms of romantic love and love for our families, but also envision love as an emotion of compassion and a foundation for ethics and social change in terms of love for self, humanity, and the environment.
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: 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: 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.
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.
Rating: 
Summary: Surface Love
Review: Love is one of the most widely topics spoken on or about in any language. I saw hooks'title claiming to have a new vision on it, and was rather pleased. In total, however, this book is no different than most of the others I have read. According to hooks in the introduction: be it through practice or theory, we know very little of love. And I was expecting her to at least attempt to give us a working definition. None was provided. Nonetheless, chapter 3 is titled: Be True to Love. And this is only one of the countless wrong steps she took. Since, not only did chapter 1 not set any sort of formidable foundation, but so was two in inconsistency and shallowness. Bell hooks obviously did a lot of research, but it was more in quantity than quality in presentation. I felt like I was reading her droolings. She obviously bit off more than she could chew here. The last three to four chapters are the best ones. She started to get warm then. My grade is D+ bordering on a C-.
Rating:
Summary: Brave
Review: Thankfully, bell hooks is always brave enough to tell it like it is. Love is a verb not a feeling. There is an obvious connection between love as experienced within families and abusive romantic relationships. Read and begin to think critically about these core survival issues. Her observations are wise. Her grasp of history is absolute. Her ideas stimulate intelligent and loving thought, conversation, and action. Read this book.
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