A General Theory of Love
A General Theory of Love is a non-fiction book, by Thomas Lewis, M.D, Fari Amini, M.D., and Richard Lannon, M.D., that explores and explores the psychobiology of love. The book describes the nature of 3 fundamental neurophysiologic processes that create and govern love: limbic resonance, the wordless and nearly instantaneous emotional attunement that allows us to sense each other's feeling states; limbic regulation, the modulation and control of our physiology by our relationships; and limbic revision, the manner in which relationships alter the very structure of our brains. Those whom we love, as our book describes, change who we are, and who we can become.
You can read more about the nature of limbic resonance and limbic regulation and limbic revision on Wikipedia.
“In the manner of the best popularizers of science -- like Daniel Dennett, author of ‘Darwin's Dangerous Idea,’ or Stephen Pinker, untangler of linguistic mysteries -- the authors break a path that lay readers can safely follow.” - The New York Times
“Convincingly connecting love and biology is no easy task. The three authors persuade by discussing the science of love without diluting its mystique....Eminently readable.”
- Washington Post
“Elegant prose that keeps the scientific jargon to a blessed minimum.” Rating: A
- Entertainment Weekly
“An insightful look at the science of human emotions that takes us far beyond the usual self-help banalities.....Well-written and edited, this is a rare example of the fusing of scientific rigor with literary eloquence.” - San Francisco Examiner Magazine
“Drawing on a wealth of new brain research, this trio of psychiatrists from the University of California at San Francisco makes a sound, unsentimental case for the indispensability of love to human development and happiness....Though all this talk of love suggests some cuddly, sapheaded self-help book, the authors have written anything but....[T]he penultimate chapter rises to a pitch of eloquence describable only as ringing....[W]hen this impassioned book is firing on all neurons, comparisons to Oliver Sacks or Lewis Thomas -- by happy coincidence, the reverse namesake of Dr. Lewis -- become inevitable.”
- San Francisco Chronicle
“An engrossing argument that emotion plays a profound and perhaps prevailing role in a human being’s ability to develop and find happiness. ...Elegant writing.” - Kirkus Reviews
“The Beatles may have sounded naive when they assured us that ‘all you need is love,’ but they may not have been far off the mark. New research in brain function has proven that love is a human necessity; its absence damages not only individuals, but our whole society. In this stimulating work, psychiatrists Lewis, Amini and Lannon explain how and why our brains have evolved to require consistent bonding and nurturing....Their claim that ‘what we do inside relationships matters more than any other aspect of human life’ is a powerful one.”
- Publishers’ Weekly
“Three psychiatry professors (Univ. of California, San Francisco) cover an impressive vista of research and clinical insights from Freud to contemporary neuroscience....The link between the development of the limbic brain and the development of personality are described here in confident prose....Well written.” - Library Journal
A General Theory of Love has been translated into Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Korean, Latvian, Croatian, and Farsi.
A General Theory of Love is available on Amazon.com. You can also read what 92 Amazon readers have said about the book here.