I haven't read as much C.S. Lewis as I'd like. He always sounds like he's talking to himself, and then he zaps you with something so profound that you never forget it. This book is no exception, and says many things that made me feel quite uncomfortable. CSL explores various degrees of love: affection, friendship, Eros, and charity. It's by no means an exhaustive list, but it's a great place to start thinking about the role of love in your own life and in society. ( )

As someone else stated, the book can be tedious to read. I likewise found myself rereading passages and double checking my progress. With that said, the book is fantastic and worth the read. It is uplifting and will help shape the biblical concept of love. I always find Lewis to be humble and refreshing. Worth the read! ( )

Good thoughts, as always, but I felt he didn’t go deep enough. ( )

An amazing book with excellent insight into the topic of love. This is one to add to your 'read yearly' list. I can't recommend it enough! ( )

Lewis' genius in all his writings shows forth as piercing insight in warm and delightful prose, and he brilliantly succeeds in this book. There has been more written on love than perhaps any other topic, but the vast majority is mindless drivel or hormone driven blindness or sentimental fluff or philosphical madness. Lewis will have none of that: he sets forth the nature and varieties of human and divine love, and through his keen insight allows us to see ourselves, others, and God better.

His basic franework for the book is looking at love through the four different kinds of love that the Greeks defined. He devotes chapters to the "natural" human loves of storge, the love of family affection; philia, the love of friendship; eros, the love of sexual love and romance. He looks at their characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. He also looks at love through a three fold division between need-love, gift-love, and the love of appreciation.

Lastly, he examines agape, the selfless love of charity. In some of the most beautiful passages he ever wrote Lewis describes how agape perfects our natural loves and prepares us both to truly love God and be like Him. "When we see the face of God we shall know that we have always known it."

Leading a life marked by love is not a matter of just reading a book, but understanding the nature of God and the nature of love. This book is welcome wisdom in leading such a life. ( )