Love Understood

The Science of Who, How and Why We Love

By: Laura Mucha

Narrated by: Laura Mucha

Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

Poets, philosophers and artists have been trying to explain romantic love for centuries, but it remains one of the most complex and intimidating terrains to navigate. Most people have been afraid to be open and honest about their relationships...until now.   

For Love Understood, Laura Mucha has interviewed hundreds of strangers, from the ages of 8 to 95 in more than 40 countries, asking them to share their most personal stories, feelings and insights about love. These intimate and illuminating conversations raised important questions, such as: 

• How does your upbringing influence your relationships? 
• Does love at first sight exist? Should you 'just know'? 
• What should you look for in a partner? 
• Is monogamy natural? 
• Why do people cheat? 
• How do you know when it's time to walk away?  

Drawing on psychology, philosophy, anthropology and statistics, Love Understood combines evidence, theory and everyday experience and is the perfect listen for anyone who is curious about how we think, feel and behave when it comes to love.

©2019 Laura Mucha (P)2019 Audible, Ltd

Insightful, informative, and thought provoking

It’s the kind of book that casts a whole series of different perspectives on a subject about which many of us assume we’ve ‘heard it all before’.

It causes you to stop and reassess the relationships you maintain every day, those past and those imagined. Likely very positive for anyone who isn’t a committed hermit - although the hermits among us may even benefit from the introspection too!

Wonderful book, insightful, intelligent and enjoyable

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Love Understood, I found the blend of anecdotal experiences and well researched analysis both intellectual and relatable. I came away from the book feeling like I learned new ways to think about my relationships, both past and present. I’ve now given the book to my partner as a gift and I’m looking forward to some interesting discussions when she’s finished. Thanks, Laura, for sharing your experiences and expertise!

Interesting and a bit Unexpected

Love Understood is a book filled with interview of people all over the world about love. It is enlightening how differently people and cultures around the world see love and have experienced it. Michael also gives statistics, references, & her thoughts after completing this project. I suggest listening to the audiobook so you can hear the voices of those who agreed to have their interviews audio recorded.

Life changing

A new required reading for self growth imho. Audio volume fluctuates a lot, which is the only reason for the less than perfect performance review. Great narration.

A must read for everyone wanting to better understand love

Loved this book and have learned so much about myself, love, relationships and my husband. I think everyone who wants to grow, who wants to be a better partner/spouse, and have healthy relationship should read this book

Extremely honest look at love in all its forms

Curated accounts of love and relationships with philosophy, ethics, and psychology used as a framework of analysis

Eye Opening

This book is a deep dive into all the intricacies of love, why we do what we do and why we choose who we choose, even when they may not be right, and I was surprised by how eye opening it was. Filled with research and firsthand accounts from scores of people, it’s both revealing and inspiring. So much in here made sense in a way that it hadn’t quite made sense before and it’s told in the context of your attachment style, whether anxious, avoidant or secure. Not since "Attached" have I read a book that woke me up to the fact that love isn’t just a feeling, it’s a skill -- and the more you understand your subconscious approach to it, the more you can take control of how you proceed. This book goes a long way to clarifying a lot of the mysteries and pitfalls one might be grappling with and I highly recommend it.

Encompasses pretty much every topic you want to hear about on the topic of love. Just wow.

From infidelity, monogamy and non-monogamy, physical attraction, arguing, abuse, grieving the loss of a partner, and so much more. This book is definitely for those interested in why people love the way they do, but it is not without it’s great stories for emotional impact. The author’s research was done by interviewing real people and the experiences described are very entertained. The book’s chapters follow a format of stories from interviews followed by science with further elaboration of stories and it all ties together very well. There is some SLIGHT and I mean slight repetition in the book but I think it’s done well considering how broad a topic love is. It’s almost not worth mentioning. Altogether I went away feeling more educated, compassionate, and prepared for what love has to offer. Highly recommend.

Eye opener to why people love the way they do.

Awesome book! it helps you understand why so many partners and none have been able to give the quality of love that one desires and dreams with. Sometimes is not you, is them, but they won't tell you about it, read it and you'll find out!

Wonderful approach to such an important topic

The book does an excellent job of blending science with the real world experiences of people from all over the world. Science alone could have been boring, but combining it with stories and interviews of real people really makes the book engaging. I learned so much!