Words of Love: Quotations from the HeartAllen Klein
Page Count: 140
Release Date: 11 December 2012
Publisher: Viva Editions
Source: Won from publisher for Valentine's Day contest
Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
what makes the world go 'round?
Words of Love is filled with best things ever said on matters of the heart. A veritable book of love, this collection of over 500 bons mots features the wit, wisdom, and insight of everyone from Sophocles ("One word frees us of all the weight and pain in life: That words is love") to Cher ("If grass can grow through cement, love can find you at every time in your life.")
Allen Klein's volume of tender quotes and upbeat witticisms reminds us daily of our most powerful emotion. With quotes from sages Maya Angelou and marcus Aurelius to doyennes Drew Barrymore and Sophia Loren, these words will touch your heart, bring a smile to your face, and make you want to share the love!
Perfect for Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, birthdays, or just days to say "I love you," which really is any day, this collection of quotes—some tender, some hilarious, and some just spot-on—is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. I love how the quotes aren't saccharine and try too hard to make love look like a beautiful, ethereal thing; Words of Love shows the ugly and the difficult—often in sardonic and humorous ways—which strengthens the value and worthiness of love all the more. The negative light shined on foolish first loves and on marriage is amusing—it doesn't deceive us further into thinking everything about love is wondrous, and it keeps the book grounded.
There are way too many analogies that I tired of after a while. It seems like people have a penchant for comparing love to random things, e.g. "Love doesn't just sit there, like a stone; it has to be made, like bread, remade all the time, made new." If we're comparing loves to stones and bread, we might as well compare it to pencils ("Love is like a pencil; it always has to be sharpened and used") or bookshelves ("Love is like a bookshelf; it has to be filled or else your life will feel hollow and empty") or kiwis ("Love is as sweet and as sour as kiwifruit"). Some of them were just ridiculous.
I can't say I was highly touched by this book, but skimming through the quotes with a loved one is definitely a fun, meaningful way to spend time.
Pros
Vast array of different kinds of quotes // Witty, touching, and inspiring all at once // Doesn't idealize love // Well-organized into different categories, such as First Love, Romantic Love, and A Mother's Love that make it easy to find quotes
Cons
Some repetitive quotes // Overdone on analogies
Well, this is a book of quotes... here are my favorites:
Love
Well, this is a book of quotes... here are my favorites:
Love is but the discovery of ourselves in others, and the delight in the recognition.
Alexander Smith
Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit.
Peter Ustinov
Love is like an hourglass, with the heart filling up as the brain empties.
Jules Renard
Love is an infusion of intense feeling, a fine madness that makes you drunk, and when one is in love, life can be a succession of free falls while working without a net.
Merle Shain
Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.
Joan Crawford
A first sigh of love is the last of wisdom.
Antoin Bret
When a young man complains that a young lady has no heart, it is pretty certain that she has his.
George Dennison Prentice
A kiss can be a comma, a question mark, or an explamation point. That's basic spelling that every woman ought to know.
Mistinguett
There isn't anyone you couldn't love once you've heard their story.
Mary Lou Kownacki
Verdict
As wise at it is wonderful, Allen Klein's pocket-sized Words of Love will capture your heart and bring you back to your first kiss, first touch, and first time. This eclectic compilation of quotes on every type of love—defining love, falling in love, first love, romantic love, loving couples, motherly love, self-love, physical affection, the overbearing power of love, and unconditional love—is perfect for gift-giving or just to keep close for inspiration. Add this one to your bookshelf! 
