• The Four Loves

  • By: C. S. Lewis
  • Narrated by: C. S. Lewis
  • Length: 2 hrs and 7 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (2,632 ratings)

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The Four Loves  By  cover art

The Four Loves

By: C. S. Lewis
Narrated by: C. S. Lewis
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Publisher's summary

A remarkable audio edition of C.S. Lewis' beloved classic - the only existing recording of Lewis reading his own work.

C.S. Lewis - the great British writer, scholar, theologian, broadcaster, Christian apologist, and bestselling author of Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce, The Chronicles of Narnia, and many other beloved classics - explores the essence of love and how it works in our daily lives in one of his most famous works of nonfiction based on his series of radio talks from 1958.

With penetrating logic and charming wit, Lewis explores the four aspects of love: affection, the most basic form; friendship, the rarest and perhaps most insightful; Eros, passionate love; and charity, the greatest and least selfish.

Lewis exposes the pitfalls in our loves, leading us to the agape love that God has for humankind and the type of love we must develop to nurture our relationships. Throughout this compassionate and methodical study, he encourages readers to open themselves to all forms of love - the key to understanding that brings us closer to God.

  • Features vintage BBC narration by C.S. Lewis
  • New introduction and commentary by Charles Colson
  • Discussion questions available in the audiobook companion PDF download

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©1960 C. S. Lewis (P)1970, 1982, 1994, 2004 The Episcopal Media Center

Critic reviews

"The chapter on charity (love of God) may be the best thing Lewis ever wrote about Christianity." (Amazon.com)

Featured Article: 95+ C.S. Lewis Quotes About Love, Life, Faith, Bravery, and Friendship


Born in Belfast, Ireland, in 1898, C.S. Lewis is perhaps one of the most esteemed and beloved authors of all time. His acclaimed classics range from The Chronicles of Narnia fantasy series to the theologically-specific Mere Christianity. As one of the world’s most respected authors, Lewis’s words of wisdom continue to inspire countless readers and listeners. Here are our favorite quotes from C.S. Lewis about friendship, love, life, and faith.

What listeners say about The Four Loves

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

It about put me to sleep

I rely heavily on reviews from other readers before I make a purchase. I can't believe that this book has such a high rating. I about fell asleep, it is dreadfully dull.

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Without Charles Colson this would be five stars

Complete annoyance to have Charles Colson talking in this. No introduction is needed and his is stupid and uninsightful, adding nothing to the experience but minutes of useless blabbering.

The book and its content are well presented and it is fun to listen to CS Lewis.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

Very Technical

This is a very technical discussion about love. That, in and of itself, would not keep me from liking it. My rating of this book probably had more to do with my expectation.

I thought this was going to be a discussion about what the Bible says about love. Instead, it is more about what the intellectual elite would say about love. Lewis does make some interesting points and gives some good food for thought. And if that is all you want/expect, then you may enjoy the book. But I would warn against going into the book expecting a Biblical explanation of love. He uses the Bible some, but it is very clear that the Bible is not the basis of his conclusions. He does talk about how his conclusions affect love in relation to God. But it feels more like using man’s wisdom to try to explain God’s ways. However, if you are interested in a book about love by an intelligent man with a Christian world view, then this book might do quite well.

This brings me to a small annoyance of the book. Lewis comes across as quite arrogant in parts of the book. That may have turned me off to what he was saying.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Not the actual book!

Totally got dubbed...was fully expecting the actual audio book to find out these are lectures. Great for what they are, but NOT AN AUDIO BOOK!

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Superfluous Commentary

It's glorious to hear the great man himself reading his own work. However, the commentary provided by Coulson was insipid and not needed in the slightest. C.S. Lewis is not hard to understand by even the most limited of minds nor is his line of reasoning hard to follow. Therefore the inclusion of worthless summations and platitudes reminiscent of most shallow of Evangelicals is tantamount to the abomination known as "modern" language Shakespeare. Let Lewis speak for himself. No other voice is needed or wanted.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating

I had to listen to this more than once to get all the nuances of Lewis speaking. That said, it is very applicable to everyday life. A clear understanding of the concepts of love and how they are portrayed in daily life

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Not His Best Book, But Great Hearing Lewis' Voice

What made the experience of listening to The Four Loves the most enjoyable?

Hearing Lewis read the book himself!

What other book might you compare The Four Loves to and why?

I really can't think of one at the moment.

What does C.S. Lewis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Again, hearing Lewis read the book himself.

What did you learn from The Four Loves that you would use in your daily life?

Finding different ways to love.

Any additional comments?

As a Classical Greek minor, I was a little disappointed that Lewis (a Greek scholar himself) only discussed four words for love in Greek. There are at least seven that I'm aware of. Despite this flaw, however, I highly recommend this audiobook, even though I'm an Atheist. :)

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

I feel I am deceived

I bought this audio book because it says it is an unabridged version. But it is not true. It is different from the original book. I am very disappointed about the wrong description.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing book

I would recommend this book to anyone that is wanting to see what true love is from God himself. We need to take the Christian viewpoint. Jesus sacrificed everything for us, we should be willing to do the same. Overall great book. I really like that it was narrated by Luis himself.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

The Four Loves

This book is wonderful. It is so nice to be able to listen to the voice of C.S. Lewis as he takes about the four loves on mankind.

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