Valentine’s Day by Joyce K. Kessel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Some have said, “Don’t judge a book by the cover,” and I would say, “Valentine’s Day by Joyce Kessel is one of those books.” The cover for this book is pretty dated at this point, and reminded me of old books from the 1980’s I would check out from the library as a kid. However, while the cover doesn’t do much to inspire the imagination, the story and black and white illustrations with red highlights raise this book above others.
This book is perhaps the most robust and yet succinct retellings of the history of Valentine’s Day I have found yet. The story also doesn’t hide the origins of the holiday regarding Pope Gelasius I’s appropriating the Feast of Juno and recreating it as “St. Valentine’s Day” in honor of one or all of the three St. Valentine’s we know of from history. The book tells a few stories about the various Valentines, each one labeled as a “legend.” The book then goes on to explain the traditions of the holiday and how it has translated to modern times.
This book is longer than some other picture books for kids on Valentine’s Day. It also has some potentially not great ideas that young readers might pick up without some conversation from parents. There is discussion later in the book of “penny dreadfuls,” valentine cards sent during the late 1800’s that were meant to be insulting. A parent might want to read that section ahead of time and decide whether they want to talk about that section or not. It would be a good opportunity to have a discussion with your kid about the words we use towards others and how we can encourage others rather than tear them down.
The illustrations range from fun in a 1920’s throwback way to highly dated in a 1980’s children’s book way. Throughout, red is sprinkled into the black and white drawings, which is an interesting detail.
If you find this one at a local library, it’s worth a checkout and a read, especially if you have a child interested in the history across the span of 2,700 years of Valentine’s Day.