Here’s something enjoyable to listen to as you read on. Go ahead and click on the arrow – then scroll down.

Plenty of songs are written about love. I bet 95 % of all Beatles songs are love-related. Country-western songs are – more often than not – about love, whether it be lost, stolen, or found. And if you want to get classical about it – think of how many operas are about love? (I don’t exactly know, but I’m guessing Shana will be able to fill in this blank).

Knights in Medieval times “wrote” romantic poetry for their lady loves and it wasn’t considered sissy or trite, and plenty of other classical literature revolves around love. Shakespeare, Austen, Bronte and Browning all wrote about love. So did Thomas Hardy, D.H. Lawrence and others – not that their works are classified as “romance” but at least Love wasn’t a dirty word to these authors. They saw that a great deal of human action is motivated by love.

I’m fortunate that my husband thinks Jane Austen is one of the greatest English writers of all time, so I have no problem getting him to see movies like Pride and Prejudice or While You Were Sleeping. He even likes How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and Family Man. But my sons and other young men of their generation? No way. Their reading material and movies have to be dark, driven, and macho. There are certain actors that represent what my sons enjoy about film, guys like Viggo Mortensen, Christian Bale, and Daniel Day Lewis. And while I think these actors are all very talented, their movies don’t really do it for me. American Psycho? Puleeze.

There are reports that romance novels are still selling well, even in these tough economic times. Short Article. Romance buyers know that even though there might be murder and mayhem, or some other deep conflict within the pages of their books, they will eventually be treated to a satisfying ending. The one thing that really matters is that the hero and heroine will triumph over their difficulties and can face the future together.

No, I don’t think Romance should be the only kind of books people read. I enjoy lots of different literature and I think we should all try to broaden our horizons. But I really wish people would stop turning up their noses and the mention of love and romance. Silly love songs, indeed.