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543 reviews for:
Modern Love, Revised and Updated: True Stories of Love, Loss, and Redemption
Daniel Jones
4.11 AVERAGE
543 reviews for:
Modern Love, Revised and Updated: True Stories of Love, Loss, and Redemption
Daniel Jones
4.11 AVERAGE
I've been an irregular reader of the Modern Love column, so I enjoyed reading this compilation of essays. Some essays made me laugh, others left me crying- the way good love stories should. I would have actually liked to read more essays. I felt that most of the essays selected fell into the heteronormative category, it would be nice to see a more diverse selection in future editions or collections.
I think I went into this book as a hopeless romantic, expecting it to be cutesy stories about couples married for 50+ years and tales of their growing old together. Instead, Modern Love is, well, more modern. A majority of the stories do not have a happily ever after and some of the articles were depressingly realistic and did not leave me feeling hopeful about modern day romance. However, there were inspiring stories too about couples who overcame the circumstances and forged a relationship.
The book is divided into four different sections allowing for essays with similar topics to be grouped together. While this worked for the most part in terms of organization, in hindsight, I would have considered reading one essay a day until I finished it rather than barreling through a variety of emotions and storytelling.
There’s no question Modern Romance was an interesting read and kudos to all these writers for wearing their hearts on their sleeves and sharing intimate and private moments of their lives and relationships with The New York Times readers. Because these were true stories the writing felt more honest and relatable and I’m sure connected with individuals who may be going through their own personal modern romances.
This was a tricky one to rate because there were some essays which completely moved me to tears and left me feeling emotional but others that I felt didn’t quite hit the mark or I’m not at a point in my own relationship where I can relate to marriage or parental struggles. Overall, I think it’s an interesting idea to put this column into book form and allow readers who may not have come across the newspaper article to explore how our society defines romance and that many of us still believe in a true, modern love. (GR)
The book is divided into four different sections allowing for essays with similar topics to be grouped together. While this worked for the most part in terms of organization, in hindsight, I would have considered reading one essay a day until I finished it rather than barreling through a variety of emotions and storytelling.
There’s no question Modern Romance was an interesting read and kudos to all these writers for wearing their hearts on their sleeves and sharing intimate and private moments of their lives and relationships with The New York Times readers. Because these were true stories the writing felt more honest and relatable and I’m sure connected with individuals who may be going through their own personal modern romances.
This was a tricky one to rate because there were some essays which completely moved me to tears and left me feeling emotional but others that I felt didn’t quite hit the mark or I’m not at a point in my own relationship where I can relate to marriage or parental struggles. Overall, I think it’s an interesting idea to put this column into book form and allow readers who may not have come across the newspaper article to explore how our society defines romance and that many of us still believe in a true, modern love. (GR)
While some of us (myself included!) probably don't like to admit it, I think we all secretly love love. If that description suits you, then this collection of essays, which originally appeared in the NY Times' Modern Love column, is for you. Even if you actually don't love love, then I still think there are things to be learned from this anthology.
What I love most about Modern Love is how all-encompassing it is. It isn't just about romantic love - it includes friendship, parent/child relationships, quirky flings, nights of passion, and even kindness expressed by near-strangers. I found myself laughing, tearing up, and reminiscing on my own life experiences, as I read these adeptly told first-person narratives. Each story is written by a different person - some may be professional writers, but many are just regular people, no different than you or me. The most important gift this story gave me was greater empathy, which I think we could all use a little more of these days.
What I love most about Modern Love is how all-encompassing it is. It isn't just about romantic love - it includes friendship, parent/child relationships, quirky flings, nights of passion, and even kindness expressed by near-strangers. I found myself laughing, tearing up, and reminiscing on my own life experiences, as I read these adeptly told first-person narratives. Each story is written by a different person - some may be professional writers, but many are just regular people, no different than you or me. The most important gift this story gave me was greater empathy, which I think we could all use a little more of these days.
There are a lot of essays in this collection. A LOT. Unfortunately, many were average and not very memorable. If you ask me about this in a week’s time I am pretty sure these few lines will be all I have as proof that I even read Modern Love. A handful of stories were touching (usually the ones that involved death), some read like self help (grrrr) and some could be skipped altogether. I’d recommend this collection be read in short bits, lest repetition and boredom may seep in.
Overall impression: Borrow. Divert money funds elsewhere.
Overall impression: Borrow. Divert money funds elsewhere.
Some really cute stories! I loved them all. They vary from family love stories to more personal ones. I love the variety.
Great collection ! Much diverse ! Love can grow in so many places ! If you want a cheat sheet, here's a list of my favorite essays from the collection that you can look up and listen to on the Modern Love podcast for F R E E:
1. At the Hospital, An Interlude of Clarity
2. The Five Stages of Ghosting Grief
3. No? No? No? Let Me Read Between the Lines
4. When Cupid Is a Prying Journalist
5. The Race Grows Sweeter Near Its Final Lap
6. When Eve and Eve Bit the Apple
7. You May Want to Marry My Husband
8. Now I Need a Place to Hide Away
9. Two Decembers: Loss and Redemption
10. When the Doorman is Your Main Man
1. At the Hospital, An Interlude of Clarity
2. The Five Stages of Ghosting Grief
3. No? No? No? Let Me Read Between the Lines
4. When Cupid Is a Prying Journalist
5. The Race Grows Sweeter Near Its Final Lap
6. When Eve and Eve Bit the Apple
7. You May Want to Marry My Husband
8. Now I Need a Place to Hide Away
9. Two Decembers: Loss and Redemption
10. When the Doorman is Your Main Man
Modern Love was exactly the kind of essay collection that I needed- so relatable! There are many different kinds of love and I thought that these stories did a great job at reflecting that. I appreciate that it focused more than on just romantic love. I wish I had known about The New York Times “Modern Love” column earlier because I love getting a look into the other people’s lives in this way.
This essay collection made me feel a spectrum of emotions- everything from angry to grief. There were articles that were so relatable and I think most people would have experienced something similar. And there were also essays that downright broke my heart. One in particular titled You May Want to Marry My Husband was so devastating but also insanely sweet. Amy had a terminal illness and her essay was written like a dating ad for her husband. Just think about it makes me so emotional. There were a lot of other touching essays. Another one that stands out was written by a woman who brought her husband for a gender-reassignment surgery and explains how it felt for her to now have a wife- so powerful.
I think that my only grip with the collection is that I wanted more. I could have done with more essays, especially more current ones. It seemed as though the majority of the essays were from around 2005 and in some ways felt a little dated. A lot has happened in the last fifteen years, and I think included more recent articles would have helped to reflect that. I guess that means I will just have to start reading the Modern Love column.
I also want to mention that there is a TV series adaptation on Amazon Prime that I plan on watching! If you are interesting, I will write a review for that as well.
This essay collection made me feel a spectrum of emotions- everything from angry to grief. There were articles that were so relatable and I think most people would have experienced something similar. And there were also essays that downright broke my heart. One in particular titled You May Want to Marry My Husband was so devastating but also insanely sweet. Amy had a terminal illness and her essay was written like a dating ad for her husband. Just think about it makes me so emotional. There were a lot of other touching essays. Another one that stands out was written by a woman who brought her husband for a gender-reassignment surgery and explains how it felt for her to now have a wife- so powerful.
I think that my only grip with the collection is that I wanted more. I could have done with more essays, especially more current ones. It seemed as though the majority of the essays were from around 2005 and in some ways felt a little dated. A lot has happened in the last fifteen years, and I think included more recent articles would have helped to reflect that. I guess that means I will just have to start reading the Modern Love column.
I also want to mention that there is a TV series adaptation on Amazon Prime that I plan on watching! If you are interesting, I will write a review for that as well.
I knew after watching the first season of the Amazon Prime series “Modern Love” that they would be filming a second season, so I dove into this non-fiction story collection with the mindset of predicting which stories would be turned into episodes for Season 2. This was fun for the first half of the book, but soon became somewhat exhausting as the stories started to blur together in my mind.
To be completely honest, there were some stories in this collection that were extremely forgettable, while certain others left an indelible mark on me. The two stories that impacted me the most both revolve around children, not romantic love. I wonder if other people felt the same way!
Two stories in this collection feature incredibly cruel main characters— one of the stories was so upsetting and preposterous that I seriously wonder why the editor chose to include it in this collection. The other story was just so devastatingly heartless that it left me feeling very numb.
All in all, this book definitely covers a wide range of love related topics, but there is a heavy helping of difficult topics. Trigger warning: a lot of death. A lot of illness.
For my personal taste I would have appreciated a bit more variety in terms of tone— I found myself more often than not extremely saddened at the end of a story rather than hopeful. I feel like a book such as this one could benefit from a bit more optimism and positivity, rather than SO much sadness and darkness.
To be completely honest, there were some stories in this collection that were extremely forgettable, while certain others left an indelible mark on me. The two stories that impacted me the most both revolve around children, not romantic love. I wonder if other people felt the same way!
Two stories in this collection feature incredibly cruel main characters— one of the stories was so upsetting and preposterous that I seriously wonder why the editor chose to include it in this collection. The other story was just so devastatingly heartless that it left me feeling very numb.
All in all, this book definitely covers a wide range of love related topics, but there is a heavy helping of difficult topics. Trigger warning: a lot of death. A lot of illness.
For my personal taste I would have appreciated a bit more variety in terms of tone— I found myself more often than not extremely saddened at the end of a story rather than hopeful. I feel like a book such as this one could benefit from a bit more optimism and positivity, rather than SO much sadness and darkness.
I’d give this 4.5 stars because it was REALLY good, but I reserve 5 stars for only my absolute favorites. I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of heartfelt, bite-sized stories because they’re not just lovey-dovey romance stories. They tackle dating, death, divorce, disabilities, and more. I truly didn’t think there was a bad story in the bunch!