The Reddest Rose Unfurls: Romantic Love from the Ancient Greeks to Reality TV

In this long-form comic essay, renowned Swedish graphic novelist Liv Stromquist walks us through the evolution and perception of romantic love in her distinctly irreverent style. Stromquist takes on philosophers and pop-culture figures alike - from Socrates to Leonardo DiCaprio and Beyonce - to break down why modern love feels so devoid of genuine feeling. She reveals how, under late-stage capitalism, our preoccupation with the individual self has warped the concept of love from something felt to just consumed. Stromquist wrestles with our dating culture's isolating obsession with endless choice and comparison, intensified by dating apps, social media, and internet culture writ large. Now in a new and revised edition, The Reddest Rose is an unflinching, engaging, and deeply humorous remedy for our fatalistic attitude towards modern love.