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All About Love
All About Love: New Visions | bell hooks
"The word "love" is most often defined as a noun, yet...we would all love to better if we used it as a verb," writes bell hooks as she comes out fighting and on fire in All About Love. Here, at her most provacative and intensely personel, the renowned scholar, cultural critic, and feminist skewers our view of love as romance. In its place she offers a proactive new ethic for a people and a society bereft with lovelessness.As bell hooks uses her incisive mind and razor-sharp pen to explode th question "What is love?" her answers strike at both the mind and heart. In thirteen concise chapters, hooks examines her own search for emotional connection and society's failure to provide a model for learning to love. Razing the cultural paradigm that the ideal love is infused with sex and desire, she provides a new path to love that is sacred, redemptive, and healing for the individuals and for a nation. The Utne Reader declared bell hooks one of the "100 Visionaries Who Can Change Your Life." All About Love is a powerful affirmation of just how profoundly she can.
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TheSpineView
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Eggs Perfect 😍 2w
51 likes2 comments
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JuniperWilde
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Rereading this gem. There is a lot that works with my experience of love and some that doesn‘t. I guess that‘s part of the magic of reading 💗

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rachelk
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Words of wisdom from two beautiful souls that are no longer with us — another hard choice. #2023readingbracket #nonfiction

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rachelk
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Pickpick

I remember studying, ‘Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center‘ in college and thinking I had a sense of bell hooks. She was a thought provoking writer, cultural critic, intellectual, feminist icon and activist…but maybe I didn‘t understand her as well as I thought I did because I was surprised by how spiritual and personal this is. Though I didn‘t agree with everything hooks said, I found it very inspirational.

44 likes2 stack adds
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rachelk
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“To know love we have to tell the truth to ourselves and others.” — bell hooks

Truth. What I‘m reading on my 21st wedding anniversary.❤️❤️❤️

DivineDiana Happy Anniversary! Sounds like a great choice! 👏🏻❤️🎉 7mo
rachelk @DivineDiana Thank you!! So far this book is rating pretty highly for me. 7mo
35 likes2 comments
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Tkimsal
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Book club today. Good people I am lucky to call my friends. Even when the book isn‘t everyone‘s favorite, the conversation is still good. #FirstSaturdayReaders

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Tkimsal
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Book club day is always a good day. #FirstSaturdayReaders

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Tkimsal
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Just finished (and not particularly impressed by) this for book club. #FirstSaturdayReaders

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steph_phanie
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Mehso-so

Unsure how to rate this. Large portions of this book fueled me, challenged me, and inspired me to be a more loving human in both my personal and public life, but several chapters REALLY bored me.

I do think I will flip back through it from time to time, especially to the sections discussing capitalism and consumerism as conflicts to love, and to the sections on embracing your fear and living in the present. Glad I read it. Hard to recommend it.

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steph_phanie
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This one is taking longer to get through than I thought it would. Some sections really resonate with me, but others I find myself struggling to get through without zoning out.

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christhelesbian
Pickpick

the space of lack is also our space of possibility
lovelessness is a wound

2 likes1 stack add
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RaeLovesToRead
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And finally (sorry for all the spam!) here is my friend Kirsty's book haul 😁

You can definitely see the Rae influence here 😅💕

dabbe A book haul could NEVER be SPAM on Litsy! ❣️🤣❣️ 13mo
DaveGreen7777 Hee hee, you are clearly a good influence on her! 😁📚 13mo
RaeLovesToRead @dabbe Haha... soooo many bookish things happened today! (Plus some pancakes thrown in for good measure 😁) 13mo
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RaeLovesToRead @DaveGreen7777 I like to think so 😇 13mo
Branwen PRIORY! 😱🥰 13mo
RaeLovesToRead @Branwen So good!!! 🥰 13mo
75 likes6 comments
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ChaoticMissAdventures
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#BlackHistoryMonth Recommendations Day 14 Nonfiction

"The word love is most often defined as a noun, yet we would all love better if we used it as a verb."

The incomparable bell hooks takes on the question what is love? Sharp and thought provoking writing and such a great read.

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GatheringBooks
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks ❤️❤️❤️ 14mo
Eggs 🥰👏🏻🤗 14mo
47 likes2 comments
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ChaoticMissAdventures
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Starting late on this game! #lettergame #letterA
A gorgeous bell hooks book.
She is a must read author if you have not yet, this one is a great place to start!
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

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andioop
Pickpick

“Pick” doesn‘t feel strong enough because I actually consider this a foundational text for understanding how to love and be loved in a U.S. culture which is so anti-love and anti-community. This is one I will revisit a lot, I think.

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broughtyoubooks
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Mehso-so

The first few chapters were excellent and something I needed to read and can relate to, but the further I got the less I could focus? It still brings up important points but they were somewhat lost with the interspersal of a lot of religious anecdotes and mentions that ultimately distracted from the message.

KatieDid927 Agreed. 2y
77 likes1 comment
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KatieDid927
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Mehso-so

There were some great sections of this book, but other sections left me scratching my head. The chapter on spirituality was thinly veiled Christian sermonizing with no critique of that particular patriarchal structure. I was also deeply uncomfortable with the victim blaming of Nicole Brown Simpson & slut shaming of Monica Lewinsky. There were a lot of inaccurate and judgmental views on poor folks as well. I missed the “love” in those sections.

nanuska_153 I agree, the treatment of both Simpson and Lewinsky is disgusting. Lewinsky has made a career out of her experience with the backlash after the afair,trying to raise awareness against bullying. I'm surprised not only of her words against her (and after mentioning the ill effect of the patriarchal society in relationships and the power dynamics and difference of age) but also that she hasn't bother to rectify it with an afterword as years went by. 2y
KatieDid927 @nanuska_153 Yeah it was shocking. With Nicole Brown Simpson she was literally like, people call it victim blaming, but she shouldn‘t have stayed. The only reason she did was because she liked all the stuff. Then later talks about being stuck in her own abusive relationship. Like, what? SOOO much judgment based on gross generalizations and zero research to back any of it up. Also drenched in the superiority complex certain Christians have. 2y
nanuska_153 Yes, the Nicole Simpson didn't deserve to die but stayed because of the money was SO bad. The "all about love" is basically "my way of loving as a Christian is the only way of loving". She leaves all the rest out as people who can't really love. You could think the implication was an accident if it wasn't because of the nasty comments about Nicole Simpson and Lewinsky 2y
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KatieDid927 Yeah and I hated the comments about poor folks as well and making really judgmental assumptions. Is she really in a place to critique someone else‘s materialism if she “needs” multiple homes? I found it all very hypocritical and as a former Christian, that specific flavor of hypocrisy is a little triggering for me. 2y
nanuska_153 Exactly, I think her insistence criticising others assumed materialism reflects her own materialism. She really doesn't do Christians any favours by putting herself on a pedestal to preach against everyone 2y
37 likes6 comments
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BookBosomed1
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Yesterday, my lady surprised me with a new reading journal and listened to an audiobook with me as we cooked dinner. I‘m a sucker for journals, and she isn‘t a reader. I hope wherever you are in the world someone (anyone!) makes you feel special and loved just as you are. ❤️ is ❤️. Happy Tuesday! ❤️ 💐 🏳️‍🌈 ✍️ 📚

Riveted_Reader_Melissa That‘s wonderful! Happy Valentines Day! 2y
22 likes1 comment
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Karisa
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“Young people are cynical about love. Ultimately,
cynicism is the great mask of the disappointed and betrayed heart.”

Could there be a more perfect book to read this weekend? 💗

JamieArc Perfect read ❤️ 2y
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JulieAly
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Pickpick

This put a lot of things into perspective for me. I enjoyed this a lot. RIP, bell hooks

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Afua
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‘Understanding all the ways fear stands in the way of our knowing love challenges us.Fearful that believing in love‘s truths and letting them guide our lives will lead to further betrayal,we hold back from love when our hearts are full of longing.Being loving does not mean we will not be betrayed.Love helps us face betrayal without losing heart.And it renews our spirit so we can love again‘

A big 2021 life lesson.
Thank you for being our Angel🕊

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Augustdana
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Attempting this for the second time and oh dear I‘ve still got two books to finish my reading challenge.

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kspenmoll
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So sad to hear of her death. Her life and writing an inspiration. #bellhooks

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/15/books/bell-hooks-dead.html?smid=em-share

Julsmarshall Such a loss 😢 2y
68 likes1 comment
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Lesliereads
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Thank you bell hooks - born Gloria Jean Watkins - thank you for everything you‘ve given us! Your life‘s work, your body of writing- all of it rooted in Love. 🙏🏾💗
bell hooks (1952 - 2021)
#bellhooks

batsy ❤️ 2y
27 likes1 comment
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kspenmoll
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#weeklyreport
#Victorianpoliceprocedural #Dublin #sophiesworld #philosophy #audiomystery #sundaybuddyread #memoir #musician #literarycrew #agathachristie #missmarple #Norfolkmystery #literati #memoir #love
Finished all but Brandi,Belgravia,Miss Marple(slow cruise, just 3 short stories per wk),started One Lost Soul today on the train,Minor Feelings,took a quick break but restarting, All About Love did not get to.Bailed on These Violent Delights.

Karisa I bailed on These Violent Delights too. Just could not get into it 😢 2y
Cinfhen Oh, I‘m kind of glad I didn‘t buy this one - I wasn‘t 💯 it would be my thing 2y
TheBookHippie No worries! I am powering through 😂🤷🏻‍♀️ 2y
TheBookHippie @Karisa it is not what I thought 😂🤷🏻‍♀️ still intrigued to see where it goes. 2y
kspenmoll @TheBookHippie Good for you!!! 2y
62 likes5 comments
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kspenmoll
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#weeklyreport
Read the top row of books this week. The 2nd row I am in various stages of reading.

58 likes1 comment
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kspenmoll
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59 likes1 stack add
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nanuska_153
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Panpan

bell hooks had a childhood of abuse,where as a woman was told that speaking out was not feminine,she is also deeply religious.With each page the author becomes less of a philosopher/ sociologist and more of a preacher, her way of love and redemption is the ONLY way. She even turns to victim shaming: Nicole Simpson didn't deserve to die,however she chose to remain in an abusive home because of her love of luxury. Excuse me the: WHAT THE FUCK?!👇👇

nanuska_153 Very early in the book I realised at most it'd be a So-So for me:in my family your opinion worth as much as anyone's and viceversa was the way;my father texts me every 8th of March to congratulate me for being an independent woman.I don't hate religion,but I'm not a religious person,volunteer work was however part of my upbringing.I,like many others had my share of abusive relationships, from which I healed,but I'm not represented in this book. 👇 3y
nanuska_153 The reason why it's a pan is because the author excludes the possibility of anyone like me being capable of love, bell hooks' way is the only way. If you are a religious person or you come from an abusive home,you might however find something useful in this book,but as much as I kept reading trying to find any knowledge I only found exclusion and worst: judgement for those who are not like the author. All about love, is all about bell hooks 3y
52 likes1 stack add2 comments
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nanuska_153
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Starts with"When our president exploits his power and consensually seduces a young woman in the government employ..."to then follow with this characterization of Lewinsky.THIS,in a book about how a patriarchy affects our capacity to love.How can anyone feel entitled to say if what a person felt in a private relationship was love or not;and to say "wants to be seen as a victim"in a situation where abuse of power could be a part of the equation...?

KVanRead Yah that‘s harsh. Wonder if she would still see it that way today. 3y
nanuska_153 @KVanRead I'm not sure to be honest, Lewinsky has turned now her experiences into a career of teaching about bullying and it consequences that no doubt bell hooks, who is still alive, must have heard. This book is meant to be a about love, forgiveness, redemption and honesty, so you'd think if she changed her mind she'd bother to at least make a footnote or an afterword acknowledging her mistake even if it's just out of professional pride 3y
36 likes2 comments
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nanuska_153

"The wounded child inside many males is a boy who, when we first spoke hid truths, was silenced by paternal sadism, by a patriarchal world that did not want him to claim his true feelings. The wounded child inside many females is a girl who was taught from early childhood on that she must become something other than herself, deny her true feelings, in order to attract and please others."

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tholmz
Mehso-so

Interesting insight but felt outdated to me (sorry bell!!)

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TK-421
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“But many of us seek community solely to escape the fear of being alone. Knowing how to be solitary is central to the art of loving. When we can be alone, we can be with others without using them as a means of #escape.” #QuotsyJuly20

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limada
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I found this section interesting re: friend relationships. I've always found it disturbing when friends valued their romantic relationships over their sometimes long-existing friendships.

6 likes1 stack add
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limada
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I should go to sleep since I have a 5k to do tomorrow, but I just finished one book (#thesongofwraithsandruins) and feel the need to jump right into another. Here's to reading all night on the weekend!

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Emilymdxn
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Pickpick

This slow, deep look into different types of love and what they mean for us as individuals and a whole society was so original and fascinating. It veered away from being self help-y towards philosophy. I haven‘t read a book before that was so openly about love itself, not a how to guide to anything or trying to draw it in with other themes. It felt very pure and thoughtful.

Lindy Sounds like the kind of book that would be a good match for my current mood. 4y
Thndrstd Love bell hooks ❤️ 4y
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Emilymdxn
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Prayer is an exercise that strengthens the soul‘s power. Reaching for the divine always reminds me of the limitations of human thought and will. Stretching, reaching towards that which is limitless and without boundaries is an exercise that strengthens my faith and empowers my soul.

Scochrane26 bell hooks is a local author to me but one that I haven‘t read much. I didn‘t get to meet her a couple of yrs ago at our book fair because she was always busy. I have Ain‘t I a Woman, which I had to order & cost a lot, so I‘m hoping to read it soon & get into more of her books. 4y
43 likes1 comment
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Emilymdxn
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@ShyBookOwl #bookhunt #scavengersaturday

I‘ve been meaning to read this forever after loving other books by bell hooks, I‘m not sure why it took me so long to get to! I finally bought it last week and hope to start it as soon as I finish Just Mercy

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wanderinglynn
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Someone (sorry I don‘t remember who right at this moment) put out a call to support Palabras Bilingual Bookstore in Phoenix. Palabras had a Indiegogo campaign as it‘s the only bilingual bookstore in Arizona (hard to believe). So of course, I contributed. Today I received a thank you package including the tagged book, an awesome Latinx book list, the neat print, a book mark & stickers. ❤️ #bookmail

Scochrane26 bell hooks is a Ky author, but I have had a hard time finding her books. It‘s cool that bookstores in other states have her books. 5y
rather_be_reading awesome!! 5y
wanderinglynn @Scochrane26 That‘s kind of sad that you have a hard time finding her books in her own state. But I‘m looking forward to reading it. 👍🏻 5y
100 likes1 stack add3 comments
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AutumnRLS
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Reading some nonfiction while I wait for the second book in my trilogy, The Phoenix Empress, to arrive in the mail.

14 likes2 stack adds
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AutumnRLS
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Books I've bought since my book-buying spree in CT. I've got issues. #sorrynotsorry

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GatheringBooks
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#QuotsyJuly19 Day 1: #Community
I need to familiarize myself with bell hooks‘ writing.

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writeropolis
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MsLeah8417
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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MsLeah8417
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MsLeah8417
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The African American Literature Bookclub January 2019 pick.

21 likes3 stack adds
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mrozzz
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No day like the present to read more of the greats! #bookhaul

Leftcoastzen 👏👏👏👏 5y
batsy 🖤 5y
mrozzz @Leftcoastzen @batsy 💗💗💗💗💗 5y
86 likes3 comments
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TheBibliotherapist
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“We can never go back. I know that now. We can go forward. We can find the love our hearts long for, but not until we let go grief about the love we lost long ago, when we were little and had no voice to speak the heart‘s longing.” #bellhooks #love #reading #mentalhealth #bibliotherapy

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