The purpose of this paper is to give an in depth review of: The Little Book of Heartbreak: Love Gone Wrong Through the Ages, which was written by Meghan Laslocky, the journalist, in 2012.
This uplifting book comprises five different sections: History, Culture, Art and Music, Literature and Film, and Practical Advice. This book is ideal for everyone who is going through a trauma with their love life, and who is interested in cultural and social history. The author’s prime objective is to get those who are bereft of love through their suffering, and to persuade them that their heartbroken state of mind is not just normal, but is in fact, and essential part of our experience as human beings.
Clearly, Loslocky has a great sense of humor which comes across through the course of the book, which is thoroughly engaging, and a lot of fun. Even the cover has sketches of a broken glass, a wilting flower, a lipstick mark on a man’s shirt collar, and a dead bird lying on its back. This brilliant read incorporates short stories involving some of the greatest cultural and historical love affairs in history which went horribly haywire. Many of the pieces on heartbreak and heartache are there to make readers smile; these comprise stories such as how Ernest Hemingway, the serial cheater, stole the job his wife had at the time their marriage hit the rocks; the six melodramatic marriages of Norman Mailer; and the popularity of love potions in ancient Greece. The author also discusses detachment theory, and highlights the way in which heartbreak destroys our psychological thought processing. She also gives helpful advice on getting out of a lovelorn state through books, science, music, and other things which she has learned from her own unfortunate personal experiences which involve being discarded by men at least twelve times. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to all females who want to take a upbeat perspective of being dumped.
- Laslocky, Meghan (2012). The Little Book of Heartbreak: Love Gone Wrong Through the Ages. Penguin Publishing Group.
