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Love Stories
Trent Dalton, Australia's best-loved writer, goes out into the world and asks a simple, direct 'Can you please tell me a love story?'
A blind man yearns to see the face of his wife of thirty years. A divorced mother has a secret love affair with a priest. A geologist discovers a three-minute video recorded by his wife before she died. A tree lopper's heart falls in a forest. A working mum contemplates taking photographs of her late husband down from her fridge. A girl writes a last letter to the man she loves most, then sets it on fire. A palliative care nurse helps a dying woman converse with the angel at the end of her bed. A renowned 100-year-old scientist ponders the one great earthly puzzle he was never able to 'What is love?'
Endless stories. Human stories. Love stories.
Inspired by a personal moment of profound love and generosity, Trent Dalton, bestselling author and one of Australia's finest journalists, spent two months in 2021 speaking to people from all walks of life, asking them one simple and direct 'Can you please tell me a love story?' The result is an immensely warm, poignant, funny and moving book about love in all its guises, including observations, reflections and stories of people falling into love, falling out of love, and never letting go of the loved ones in their hearts. A heartfelt, deep, wise and tingly tribute to the greatest thing we will never understand and the only thing we will ever really love.
'It's the kind of book that has some impact on the reader ... a Chaucerian endeavour, a rich caravanserai of real, living people with something important to tell.' Sydney Morning Herald
A blind man yearns to see the face of his wife of thirty years. A divorced mother has a secret love affair with a priest. A geologist discovers a three-minute video recorded by his wife before she died. A tree lopper's heart falls in a forest. A working mum contemplates taking photographs of her late husband down from her fridge. A girl writes a last letter to the man she loves most, then sets it on fire. A palliative care nurse helps a dying woman converse with the angel at the end of her bed. A renowned 100-year-old scientist ponders the one great earthly puzzle he was never able to 'What is love?'
Endless stories. Human stories. Love stories.
Inspired by a personal moment of profound love and generosity, Trent Dalton, bestselling author and one of Australia's finest journalists, spent two months in 2021 speaking to people from all walks of life, asking them one simple and direct 'Can you please tell me a love story?' The result is an immensely warm, poignant, funny and moving book about love in all its guises, including observations, reflections and stories of people falling into love, falling out of love, and never letting go of the loved ones in their hearts. A heartfelt, deep, wise and tingly tribute to the greatest thing we will never understand and the only thing we will ever really love.
'It's the kind of book that has some impact on the reader ... a Chaucerian endeavour, a rich caravanserai of real, living people with something important to tell.' Sydney Morning Herald
352 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 28, 2021
2738 people are currently reading
24710 people want to read
About the author
Trent Dalton
14 books3,096 followersTrent Dalton writes for the award-winning The Weekend Australian Magazine. A former assistant editor of The Courier-Mail, he has won a Walkley, been a four-time winner of the national News Awards Feature Journalist of the Year Award, and was named Queensland Journalist of the Year at the 2011 Clarion Awards for excellence in Queensland media. His writing includes several short and feature-length film screenplays. His latest feature film screenplay, Home, is a love story inspired by his non-fiction collection Detours: Stories from the Street (2011), the culmination of three months immersed in Brisbane's homeless community, the proceeds of which went back to the 20 people featured within its pages. His journalism has twice been nominated for a United Nations of Australia Media Peace Award, and his debut novel Boy Swallows Universe was published in 2018.
He was nominated for a 2010 AFI Best Short Fiction screenplay award for his latest film, Glenn Owen Dodds, starring David Wenham. The film won the prestigious International Prix Canal award at the world's largest short film festival, The Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival in France. Dalton's debut feature film screenplay, In the Silence, is currently in production.
Trent also hosted the ABC Conversations show while Richard Fidler was on a Churchill Fellowship.
He was nominated for a 2010 AFI Best Short Fiction screenplay award for his latest film, Glenn Owen Dodds, starring David Wenham. The film won the prestigious International Prix Canal award at the world's largest short film festival, The Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival in France. Dalton's debut feature film screenplay, In the Silence, is currently in production.
Trent also hosted the ABC Conversations show while Richard Fidler was on a Churchill Fellowship.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,861 reviews
November 9, 2021
There is nothing I can say that will adequately express how I feel about this book except that I started crying on page 2 and didn't stop for the next 300. This book turned up exactly when I needed it. Easiest 5 stars I've ever given.
March 20, 2024
‘I believe in hailstorms, rainbows, forked lightning splitting the night sky, sleight-of-hand magic tricks, fever dreams, gravestone poems, cheap beer, expensive shiraz, birdsong, wishful thinking, and Neapolitan ice cream for the young. I believe in welfare, taxes, death, fate, chance, destiny, happenstance, dumb luck, talking, smelling, seeing, touching, hearing, listening, belonging, holding on, letting go and letting rip. I believe white silk slips look good on anyone and I believe in love.’
Trent Dalton, one of Australia's most beloved writers, sat on a busy street corner in Melbourne with a sky-blue Olivetti typewriter and asked passersby a simple, direct question: Can you please tell me a love story?
What followed is this incredible collection of beautifully written and deeply moving stories about love, loss, and redemption.
One of the things that makes Love Stories so special is Dalton's ability to capture the complexities of human relationships. Each story is a masterpiece, and the collection as a whole is a must read for anyone who loves great storytelling. Even in the darkest of stories, Dalton finds moments of joy and laughter.
In "The Gospel According to Baz", a young boy named Baz learns about the power of love and forgiveness when his father is sent to prison. In "Love and Other Drugs", a woman named Tracey navigates the challenges of addiction and recovery while trying to find love. And in "The Red Queen", a young couple falls in love in the midst of a war-torn city.
Love Stories is a powerful and moving collection that will stay with readers long after they finish reading…I even hear a stage production is being put together!
My Highest Recommendation.
-Having personally met Trent Dalton last year, I can confirm he is one of the most beautiful, talented and kind hearted people I have ever met. The way he writes is genuinely the way he is.
Trent Dalton, one of Australia's most beloved writers, sat on a busy street corner in Melbourne with a sky-blue Olivetti typewriter and asked passersby a simple, direct question: Can you please tell me a love story?
What followed is this incredible collection of beautifully written and deeply moving stories about love, loss, and redemption.
One of the things that makes Love Stories so special is Dalton's ability to capture the complexities of human relationships. Each story is a masterpiece, and the collection as a whole is a must read for anyone who loves great storytelling. Even in the darkest of stories, Dalton finds moments of joy and laughter.
In "The Gospel According to Baz", a young boy named Baz learns about the power of love and forgiveness when his father is sent to prison. In "Love and Other Drugs", a woman named Tracey navigates the challenges of addiction and recovery while trying to find love. And in "The Red Queen", a young couple falls in love in the midst of a war-torn city.
Love Stories is a powerful and moving collection that will stay with readers long after they finish reading…I even hear a stage production is being put together!
My Highest Recommendation.
-Having personally met Trent Dalton last year, I can confirm he is one of the most beautiful, talented and kind hearted people I have ever met. The way he writes is genuinely the way he is.
December 30, 2021
I know I'm probably in the minority here but this book didn't wow me at all.
It is a series of stories of people from all walks of life in Brisbane, all of whom contribute some understanding to the question of 'what is love'.
It would actually make a great social media series of vignettes that you dip in and out of when you want to read something inspiring.
However, I read it in one go and found that it was a bit repetitive/boring after a while - mainly because there are no central characters that flow throughout the book so therefore there is very little character development for the reader to get emotionally involved with despite the emotional nature of each of the little stories that make up the book.
I liked the way the author collected the stories - but (for me) it would have been better to have fewer stories that were more fully developed than tiny snippets of so many stories.
It is a series of stories of people from all walks of life in Brisbane, all of whom contribute some understanding to the question of 'what is love'.
It would actually make a great social media series of vignettes that you dip in and out of when you want to read something inspiring.
However, I read it in one go and found that it was a bit repetitive/boring after a while - mainly because there are no central characters that flow throughout the book so therefore there is very little character development for the reader to get emotionally involved with despite the emotional nature of each of the little stories that make up the book.
I liked the way the author collected the stories - but (for me) it would have been better to have fewer stories that were more fully developed than tiny snippets of so many stories.
January 15, 2023
In a Nutshell: An unusual anthology of love stories. Before you go, ‘What’s unusual about love stories?’, let me tell you that these tales are not fictional but factual, collected from random strangers whom the author met in Brisbane in a two month period after the lockdown was relaxed in 2021.
When his friend’s mom passed away, she left author Trent Dalton an old but well-maintained Olivetti typewriter. Dalton wanted to use this gift of love for a special purpose, and what better purpose could there be than to use it to collect more stories of love? Thus Dalton sat with his typewriter on a Brisbane street, asking random passers-by, ‘Can you please tell me a love story?’ Their responses form this book. (I was quite impressed at the multitude of nationalities staying in Brisbane. So many people from so many countries!)
The problem with the word ‘love’ is that our minds immediately jump to romance. But the real-life anecdotes in this anthology go so much beyond plain old romance. It comprises love in all its forms – parent, sibling, friend, work, country. It even covers heartbreaks and hopes. The variety is the strongest plus point of this book.
You might call this a collection of human stories rather than love stories. Some of the tales are philosophical, some are funny, some sweet, some sad, some weird. But all depict myriad human emotions. As I progressed through the book, I couldn’t help but recollect the famous passage from 1 Corinthians 13, that talks of the qualities of love. All of those qualities are referenced in some way or the other in this collection.
There are forty-three “chapters” herein. Some of these focus on a single person’s recollections, while some chapters are more like a collection of 3-5 stories set around a common theme. Interspersed in between are Dalton’s own thoughts of the ‘love stories’ in his own life.
I was going to rate this book the way I usually rate anthologies, giving a star rating to each story and then averaging it out. But I decided against doing that after the halfway mark. Not just because whatever stories I had rated seemed to fall between 3 to 5 stars, but also because all of these are real love stories and rating them felt like rating people and their experiences. The ones that we connect with more emotionally, we will automatically like more.
All in all, the book is a collection of love made through love. And today, if there's one thing the world needs more of to heal itself, it's love. Simple, old-fashioned, honest-to-goodness love for self and for others and for the planet.
At the same time, reading these in one go will create a bit of a saturation, especially as it isn’t fast-paced. I think this anthology will work far better if you savour it in small bites rather than gulping it down in one go.
Definitely recommended to those who are looking for evidence that the world is not entirely self-obsessed and there’s plenty of love to go around. There are many beautiful stories that will leave you with a smile on your face and warmth in your heart. The Beatles weren’t wrong: All you need is love, indeed.
4.25 stars.
My thanks to Harper 360 and NetGalley for the DRC of “Love Stories”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
When his friend’s mom passed away, she left author Trent Dalton an old but well-maintained Olivetti typewriter. Dalton wanted to use this gift of love for a special purpose, and what better purpose could there be than to use it to collect more stories of love? Thus Dalton sat with his typewriter on a Brisbane street, asking random passers-by, ‘Can you please tell me a love story?’ Their responses form this book. (I was quite impressed at the multitude of nationalities staying in Brisbane. So many people from so many countries!)
The problem with the word ‘love’ is that our minds immediately jump to romance. But the real-life anecdotes in this anthology go so much beyond plain old romance. It comprises love in all its forms – parent, sibling, friend, work, country. It even covers heartbreaks and hopes. The variety is the strongest plus point of this book.
You might call this a collection of human stories rather than love stories. Some of the tales are philosophical, some are funny, some sweet, some sad, some weird. But all depict myriad human emotions. As I progressed through the book, I couldn’t help but recollect the famous passage from 1 Corinthians 13, that talks of the qualities of love. All of those qualities are referenced in some way or the other in this collection.
There are forty-three “chapters” herein. Some of these focus on a single person’s recollections, while some chapters are more like a collection of 3-5 stories set around a common theme. Interspersed in between are Dalton’s own thoughts of the ‘love stories’ in his own life.
I was going to rate this book the way I usually rate anthologies, giving a star rating to each story and then averaging it out. But I decided against doing that after the halfway mark. Not just because whatever stories I had rated seemed to fall between 3 to 5 stars, but also because all of these are real love stories and rating them felt like rating people and their experiences. The ones that we connect with more emotionally, we will automatically like more.
All in all, the book is a collection of love made through love. And today, if there's one thing the world needs more of to heal itself, it's love. Simple, old-fashioned, honest-to-goodness love for self and for others and for the planet.
At the same time, reading these in one go will create a bit of a saturation, especially as it isn’t fast-paced. I think this anthology will work far better if you savour it in small bites rather than gulping it down in one go.
Definitely recommended to those who are looking for evidence that the world is not entirely self-obsessed and there’s plenty of love to go around. There are many beautiful stories that will leave you with a smile on your face and warmth in your heart. The Beatles weren’t wrong: All you need is love, indeed.
4.25 stars.
My thanks to Harper 360 and NetGalley for the DRC of “Love Stories”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.
———————————————
Connect with me through:
My Blog | The StoryGraph | Facebook | Twitter
September 30, 2021
The world needs this book. I needed this book. When the world feels pretty dark and life is so uncertain, these love stories are a balm. But it is the heart and soul of the writer that really elevates the stories and format of the book. I adored it.
February 11, 2023
Some snapshots of the lives and loves of some Australians that were happy to tell their tales to Trent Dalton as he sat at a busy intersection with a sign that said, 'Can you please tell me a love story?'
Some of the stories were more compelling than others but I expect that the aim was to have a variety of people with an array of types of love stories in this collection. I did begin to find my mind wandering regardless of how different the stories were. I think it is because they were snapshots and therefore lacked detail and I was left wanting to know more. All in all that culminated in a lack of satisfaction which left me weary. However, I am a novel reader so I want the full arc and most definitely need some kind of conclusion, whereas, this is a bunch of short stories. There was a conclusion of sorts as Trent talks throughout about his own love story and we got a lovely ending to his journey. If I could have a do-over I think I'd have my finger on the skip button just in case a story didn't instantly grab me.
Some of the stories were more compelling than others but I expect that the aim was to have a variety of people with an array of types of love stories in this collection. I did begin to find my mind wandering regardless of how different the stories were. I think it is because they were snapshots and therefore lacked detail and I was left wanting to know more. All in all that culminated in a lack of satisfaction which left me weary. However, I am a novel reader so I want the full arc and most definitely need some kind of conclusion, whereas, this is a bunch of short stories. There was a conclusion of sorts as Trent talks throughout about his own love story and we got a lovely ending to his journey. If I could have a do-over I think I'd have my finger on the skip button just in case a story didn't instantly grab me.
December 31, 2022
Love is...
Buying a stranger a coffee. Being a surrogate. Pushing children out of the path of a crashing awning. Fighting for justice. Being grateful for the safety of a new country. Where every tear is a tribute. Hugging someone for more than thirty seconds. Writing down three good things that have happened in your day. Knowing curried egg is a favourite sandwich filling. Running a bath for someone after a hard day at work. A pinky promise. A Jesus image in your Vegemite toast. Heart shaped clouds. Motivating someone to believe in themselves. Wanting to be there when someone is down, and wanting to celebrate when they're happy.
"Love is taking all the rain for yourself."
Love is as varied and meaningful as the stars in the sky. Viewed best through a telescope made from an Australia Post mailing tube.
Love is a beautiful song that comes in and out of our lives. Sung by Neil Diamond.
Love is a emu dad looking after two baby chicks. Nestling them.
Love is an orchid. Love is a rose. Eternity!
Love is beauty. Love is pain. Without love the world would cease to exist.
I lost count of how many times I cried while reading this. Small tears. Wrenching sobs. Some of the stories are so raw they hurt. I also lost count of the number of times I laughed out loud, and appreciated the joy and beauty of the mystery of life and love. These snapshots of stranger's lives turn the mirror on ourselves.
As a bonus, at the back of the book, there's a beautiful collage of fotos of all our storytellers who shared a moment with Trent Dalton. Magnificent.
"These are the John Lennon mornings of our lives. Just watching the wheels go round and round. We all love to watch them roll, but where do we find the sacred time."
Make the time. Celebrate the love.
Sentimental writer collecting love stories. What would your story be?
The most perfect book to end my reading year with. I'm so happy it found me.
The love.
The love.
All the stars. All the love.
Buying a stranger a coffee. Being a surrogate. Pushing children out of the path of a crashing awning. Fighting for justice. Being grateful for the safety of a new country. Where every tear is a tribute. Hugging someone for more than thirty seconds. Writing down three good things that have happened in your day. Knowing curried egg is a favourite sandwich filling. Running a bath for someone after a hard day at work. A pinky promise. A Jesus image in your Vegemite toast. Heart shaped clouds. Motivating someone to believe in themselves. Wanting to be there when someone is down, and wanting to celebrate when they're happy.
"Love is taking all the rain for yourself."
Love is as varied and meaningful as the stars in the sky. Viewed best through a telescope made from an Australia Post mailing tube.
Love is a beautiful song that comes in and out of our lives. Sung by Neil Diamond.
Love is a emu dad looking after two baby chicks. Nestling them.
Love is an orchid. Love is a rose. Eternity!
Love is beauty. Love is pain. Without love the world would cease to exist.
I lost count of how many times I cried while reading this. Small tears. Wrenching sobs. Some of the stories are so raw they hurt. I also lost count of the number of times I laughed out loud, and appreciated the joy and beauty of the mystery of life and love. These snapshots of stranger's lives turn the mirror on ourselves.
As a bonus, at the back of the book, there's a beautiful collage of fotos of all our storytellers who shared a moment with Trent Dalton. Magnificent.
"These are the John Lennon mornings of our lives. Just watching the wheels go round and round. We all love to watch them roll, but where do we find the sacred time."
Make the time. Celebrate the love.
Sentimental writer collecting love stories. What would your story be?
The most perfect book to end my reading year with. I'm so happy it found me.
The love.
The love.
The love.
The love.
All the stars. All the love.
December 25, 2021
I'm abandoning, boy swallow universe is likely the book I've re-read the most in my life. I cannot recommend it more than enough to anyone. But 400 pages of 4 page love stories does nothing for me, I'm never going to remember them, they don't flesh and form and as soon as I'm interested then it's over and onto the next story. If they were longer, and there was less of them and I'd be there for that. His fiction tho, I'm there for that everyday.
January 27, 2023
This is a story of love, a love story to love in all its many forms, a story of life and loss, and loss of life. It is a beautiful collection of stories shared by random people who happened to walk into Trent Dalton’s life, or at least up to the table he sits typing at, some for mere moments, and others who shared deeply personal, heartfelt memories. Some happy, some dark, some sad, but all 150 of them are worth reading.
This story begins with a love letter to a friend, Kathleen Kelly, thanking her for the gift of the typewriter that was handed down to him after her death, letting her know that it ’might be the most beautiful gift I ever got’ as he looks at the photo of her on the funeral booklet. This gift is, at least in part, what inspires him to do what he does with the typewriter, the other inspiration is the story they share about the life shared with her husband and family.
’You knew the secret to it all, how the greatest gift we can give to the world is to shut up and listen to it.’
And so that is what he does to honor her memory, in a way it reminded me of what she told him when his father passed, He’s not dead while his name is still spoken,’ you reminded me.’ They still live on in stories, and the stories, in turn, become a memory.
And so he sits on a chair on a street with a sign asking for people to share their stories of love, and as the days passed, at least 150 people sat down to share their stories, so there are 150 love stories in this collection. Some are happy, some sad, some beautiful, some heartbreaking, but all are worth reading.
Published: 10 Jan 2023
Many thanks for the ARC provided by Harper 360
September 28, 2021
This is Trent at his absolute best, and I truly think this book is the destiny of what he was always meant to write. On the passing of a good friends mother, Trent was gifted her old but well maintained and revered typewriter. Overwhelmed with the generosity of this gesture, Trent takes this typewriter with a portable table and fold up chairs to the streets of Brisbane and Adelaide to ask passers by to stop and tell him the story of love in their life. Absolutely perfectly written and compiled, this is a book that we all need to read to reassure us about humanity and the value of love, in the guise of many forms, in our life.
February 14, 2023
Trent Dalton compiled Love Stories by sitting at a busy Australian street corner, with a blue typewriter left to him by a friend. He collected love stories from anyone willing to share. There are stories of love, attempts at defining love, and reflections on love, from strangers of all walks of life.
Love Stories gave me vibes of Love Does, a long time favorite of mine. This collection is authentic and heartfelt, touching on all types of love.
Love Stories gave me vibes of Love Does, a long time favorite of mine. This collection is authentic and heartfelt, touching on all types of love.
February 13, 2023
This was fun and interesting for a while. Having read Mr Dalton's two novels, I thought this would be a good read. It was for a bit, but for me after a while the short vignettes grew somewhat tedious. Some stories were lovely, but hard to fully tell in a few pages. He basically sat on a street corner with a sign, his old portable typewriter and a chair for people walking by to tell him about love. Great concept, just not sustainable for an entire book for me. I got about half way. Worth a look, as Mr Dalton does indeed have a way with words and some of his subjects did have great things to tell. I wish the good ones had been expanded a bit.
January 27, 2022
Only 10% through but have to call it. Just finding this so contrived and saccharin it’s giving me the complete ick. Passages like “I believe in curried egg sandwiches for lunch, starting through telescopes at midnight, cheap beer, expensive Shiraz, fever dreams, destiny, happenstance, smelling, death, fate etc etc SORRY WHAT??? You are just listing things that exist sir. It’s lazy and boring and not profound and so annoying. Reminded me of Hope In The Dark by Rebecca Solnit. Cya
January 5, 2022
I love love. I love stories. I love love stories.
I love when Allie chooses Noah in the Notebook, when Harry tells Sally he wants to spend the rest of his life with her, I love the proposal in While You Were Sleeping and when Marisa Tomei’s character gets on the plane at the end of Only You and I cry at it all. Everytime.
But real love stories are the real magic. The magic that we live for. The magic among the monotony and mundane.
I cry at the Modern Love column/ podcast / tv show, I cry at Moth events where the theme is love and people are brave enough to get on stage and vulnerably recount their love stories.
So yes I cried throughout this devastatingly beautiful book. In fact I got 24 pages into this book before I started sobbing.
I will never get sick of hearing peoples love stories. The stories that come to define people’s lives.
Trent Dalton has curated such a beautiful collection of stories. Stories that lace life and ultimately give it purpose. The common thread? Love. Each one is varied and nuanced and, well, real. Heartbreakingly real. No embellishments or sweeteners, just the agony and angst and joy of love.
One of my favourite lessons I’ve inherited from this book is that grief is the price we pay for deep love. I thought that was such a beautiful concept- so nuanced, a reframing of mourning.
How fortunate we are to grieve someone because it means we have had the experience of loving them.
I love when Allie chooses Noah in the Notebook, when Harry tells Sally he wants to spend the rest of his life with her, I love the proposal in While You Were Sleeping and when Marisa Tomei’s character gets on the plane at the end of Only You and I cry at it all. Everytime.
But real love stories are the real magic. The magic that we live for. The magic among the monotony and mundane.
I cry at the Modern Love column/ podcast / tv show, I cry at Moth events where the theme is love and people are brave enough to get on stage and vulnerably recount their love stories.
So yes I cried throughout this devastatingly beautiful book. In fact I got 24 pages into this book before I started sobbing.
I will never get sick of hearing peoples love stories. The stories that come to define people’s lives.
Trent Dalton has curated such a beautiful collection of stories. Stories that lace life and ultimately give it purpose. The common thread? Love. Each one is varied and nuanced and, well, real. Heartbreakingly real. No embellishments or sweeteners, just the agony and angst and joy of love.
One of my favourite lessons I’ve inherited from this book is that grief is the price we pay for deep love. I thought that was such a beautiful concept- so nuanced, a reframing of mourning.
How fortunate we are to grieve someone because it means we have had the experience of loving them.
January 12, 2022
Started off well, the opening letter was great. By halfway through I kept imagining this being in the same realm as celebrities getting together to do a song for charity - so cheesy.
By the end, Trent acknowledges the mushiness and embraces it and by the end I came around to it. The letters - from his wife to him; from him to Kath; from him to Eric - were a really nice finishing touch.
Only read this if you are in a wonderful headspace is my advice x
By the end, Trent acknowledges the mushiness and embraces it and by the end I came around to it. The letters - from his wife to him; from him to Kath; from him to Eric - were a really nice finishing touch.
Only read this if you are in a wonderful headspace is my advice x
December 21, 2021
Love Stories is the book I never knew I needed until I started to read it. There’s a television series on Amazon Prime called Modern Love, stories of love based on an essay series that originally appeared in the NY Times. Real love stories written by real people. I feel like Trent Dalton has given us an Australian version of this all wrapped up in a gorgeous rose-coloured cloth bound gold embossed book that reads as beautifully as it looks.
I can’t tell you how cathartic reading this book has been for me. I’m sure I’m not alone in feeling the weight of this no end in sight pandemic. Fear has made us all so divided. The vaccinated against the anti-vaxxers; the masked against the unmasked; us against them; me against you – it doesn’t stop, this general all-pervading vibe that if someone doesn’t agree with your stance on something then they are an idiot. It’s easy to forget that we are all people who have things we care about, things we are scared of, things we believe strongly in, things that confuse us. This book brings that back into focus. The things that connect us all at a time when we (*me) need to be reminded about what we have in common, as opposed to why we think we hate each other. I so appreciate the intent of this book, the timing of its publication, and the sheer bloody truth of it. Trent Dalton you are a legend.
I can’t tell you how cathartic reading this book has been for me. I’m sure I’m not alone in feeling the weight of this no end in sight pandemic. Fear has made us all so divided. The vaccinated against the anti-vaxxers; the masked against the unmasked; us against them; me against you – it doesn’t stop, this general all-pervading vibe that if someone doesn’t agree with your stance on something then they are an idiot. It’s easy to forget that we are all people who have things we care about, things we are scared of, things we believe strongly in, things that confuse us. This book brings that back into focus. The things that connect us all at a time when we (*me) need to be reminded about what we have in common, as opposed to why we think we hate each other. I so appreciate the intent of this book, the timing of its publication, and the sheer bloody truth of it. Trent Dalton you are a legend.
January 15, 2022
Although I can appreciate the author's intention of this book - to find love amongst all of the negativity in the world and often in the small things - it skimmed over each love story way too quickly. There was no depth to the individual stories with the author injecting their own arguably unrelated 'love story' in-between. I clearly hold an unpopular opinion on this book however, the lack of emotional exploration has left me very unmoved.
May 20, 2022
3.75 Stars (Rnd ⬆️) — A quest to find some answers to one of the truest and noblest quandaries of human existence, Love. Dalton stops tells a number of stories about all things love through the lenses of strangers he’s stopped on the street — largely anyways. These stories aren’t your. Average anecdotal venture into what it means to those whom find it, no no! Rather, these stories are translated and paraphrased by the author in such a gifted and poignant way, that we find a book full of emotively crippling, heart-warming, gut-wrenching, warm & fuzzy and everything in-between shirt stories that often require to be re-read such is the bias formed on first reading due to the aloof-like effect stories such as these partake in the readers minds-eye.
Trent Dalton is at the very least, a curious and somewhat unique novelist — I suppose all novelists are by the mere plying if their trade, extremely unique — that has mastered his Australian audience with a level of accomplishment seldom seen. He’s done so in a in extremely short period of time as well. Here, we get nothing remotely like his brilliant fiction debut Boy Swallows Universe, but what we do get is another extremely well-crafted book that conjures a myriad of emotional-rollercoasters that all readers should experience, at least in some form or quantity.
Trent Dalton is at the very least, a curious and somewhat unique novelist — I suppose all novelists are by the mere plying if their trade, extremely unique — that has mastered his Australian audience with a level of accomplishment seldom seen. He’s done so in a in extremely short period of time as well. Here, we get nothing remotely like his brilliant fiction debut Boy Swallows Universe, but what we do get is another extremely well-crafted book that conjures a myriad of emotional-rollercoasters that all readers should experience, at least in some form or quantity.
February 15, 2022
A gorgeous, heart-warming concept. It almost felt personal knowing every reference to the city of Brisbane I call my home. It didn’t end up being quite as emotional or extraordinary as the hype made it out to be, but it was still a wonderful read. His writing is pure lyrical magic.
January 8, 2022
I love Trent Dalton & his big, open, soft heart. I love his curiosity & the way he sees the world & the people he meets. I love his enthusiasm & joy. I love this book. It made me smile & cry when Trent spoke about the longest hug with his dad, makes me tear up again now thinking about it. But most of all, I love love. Love, in all it’s forms, is the best.
June 17, 2022
What can I say about this except love? I don't know how to describe this book; part epistolary, part essays, part memoir, part poetry. It could have been a sentimental and soppy mess. But Trent Dalton is sincere and brilliant writer - he pulled it off. And I often dislike authors reading audiobooks, but he did a perfect job narrating.
February 9, 2022
Very underwhelming. He inserted himself into everyone’s stories when he really didn’t need to and sounded disingenuous when recalling many stories, repeating exactly what the stranger said in his typewriter font and acting like it was the most insightful statement about love he’s ever heard.
While stories from strangers is an interesting concept, it’s been done before (albeit in more interesting cities).
2 stars because some of the stories were actually moving. However, that had little to do with the author himself.
While stories from strangers is an interesting concept, it’s been done before (albeit in more interesting cities).
2 stars because some of the stories were actually moving. However, that had little to do with the author himself.
November 3, 2021
Simply beautiful. Love.
November 4, 2021
I am in love with this book!
Want to read
March 8, 2023f
April 17, 2022
doubted a non-fiction by Trent, (love his vivid descriptions and the characters he created in boy swallows and all the shimmering and wasn’t sure if it would reflect in non fiction), but he nailed this, loved it a lot.
October 9, 2022
The measure of how great this book is: When I read the book laying down I had to stuff tissues in my ears to stop my tears from filling my ear canals and giving me swimmers ear.
A few years ago for Valentines Day I brought an old typewriter and started a love letter on it. I also found online a ream of continuous paper. I had always found the way that Jack Kerouac wrote "On the Road" to be extremely romantic...and it inspired me to start a love story with my partner in the same way. We each take turns in typing things on this continuous ream of paper. I thought it was the most romantic gift ever.
Love Stories is the kind of book I wish I had written. Like, seriously wish I had written. I know I could have done it, its a genius idea and perfectly executed. When I got over the insane jealousy of not being the one to write this book (there will always be a green tinge that lingers) I was able to savour the raw honesty, the naked and sacred heart of this book. I am of course an incurable romantic and probably as much of a cheeseball as Trent when it comes to love so there was no cringe for me here, only big goofy smiles through rivers of tears. A rare and unashamed 5 stars.
A few years ago for Valentines Day I brought an old typewriter and started a love letter on it. I also found online a ream of continuous paper. I had always found the way that Jack Kerouac wrote "On the Road" to be extremely romantic...and it inspired me to start a love story with my partner in the same way. We each take turns in typing things on this continuous ream of paper. I thought it was the most romantic gift ever.
Love Stories is the kind of book I wish I had written. Like, seriously wish I had written. I know I could have done it, its a genius idea and perfectly executed. When I got over the insane jealousy of not being the one to write this book (there will always be a green tinge that lingers) I was able to savour the raw honesty, the naked and sacred heart of this book. I am of course an incurable romantic and probably as much of a cheeseball as Trent when it comes to love so there was no cringe for me here, only big goofy smiles through rivers of tears. A rare and unashamed 5 stars.
November 6, 2021
Having revelled in these individual and highly personal accounts shared with Trent Dalton as he sat in a street corner in the Brisbane CBD, it was confirmed yet again that books speak to us most powerfully when they tap into our experiences and attempt to capture our sentiment and understanding.
I was moved by the stories; the individuals who shared them and with the writing that was both lively, energising and poignant.
I am very glad to have read this collection of ‘love stories’ in order to be reminded how authentic writing is a rich gift that can transport the reader to very special places drawing upon precious memories in the process. Dalton’s writing resonated so strongly with me as I came to appreciate how much I craved positive uplifting encounters after so many months of constant COVID downers!
I was moved by the stories; the individuals who shared them and with the writing that was both lively, energising and poignant.
I am very glad to have read this collection of ‘love stories’ in order to be reminded how authentic writing is a rich gift that can transport the reader to very special places drawing upon precious memories in the process. Dalton’s writing resonated so strongly with me as I came to appreciate how much I craved positive uplifting encounters after so many months of constant COVID downers!
December 4, 2022
Choosing between 4 or 5 stars was nearly impossible for this book.
On the one hand, it made me believe in true love and all its beauties. On the other, many of the stories did not touch me and were not very engaging. However, the ones that did made my heart very happy!
Before reading this, I had doubts that people could stay in love through years of marriage. I figured everyone got tired of their spouse at some point, but you just had to live with it. But now, I truly believe that there’s someone out there for me that I’ll get to love forever. And I think whenever I meet them, I’ll just know :)
This book was VERY well written and made to warm your heart. I recommend to anyone looking for a fun, feel good, easy read.
On the one hand, it made me believe in true love and all its beauties. On the other, many of the stories did not touch me and were not very engaging. However, the ones that did made my heart very happy!
Before reading this, I had doubts that people could stay in love through years of marriage. I figured everyone got tired of their spouse at some point, but you just had to live with it. But now, I truly believe that there’s someone out there for me that I’ll get to love forever. And I think whenever I meet them, I’ll just know :)
This book was VERY well written and made to warm your heart. I recommend to anyone looking for a fun, feel good, easy read.
February 3, 2022
This book is beautiful in a really unique way. First of all the concept is amazing, telling real love stories from real people, and the execution is messily perfect, in a way that reflects the subject matter. It is a truly empathetic take on what it means to be human and what love means to different people. Each chapter was a different snapshot into a person's life and that person's experience of love, and every single one of them felt truly genuine. I really felt like I was sitting there in the moment listening to each person tell their story.
For anyone who wants a little bit of faith restored in humanity, this is the book to read.
For anyone who wants a little bit of faith restored in humanity, this is the book to read.
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