Review - Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day (Holidays)
by Julie Murray
Date: 2003
Publisher: Abdo Kids Junior
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book non-fiction
Pages: 24
Format: e-book
Source: library

Valentine's Day celebrates the feast day of St. Valentine. People other than Christians celebrate it because it has become more about showing ones fondness for friends and loved ones. Readers will learn that many people celebrate this holiday by giving cards and gifts, baking sweet treats, and more. Complete with simple text and colorful photographs. Aligned to Common Core Standards and correlated to state standards.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

Part of my problem with this is that the synopsis is misleading. The book is much simpler than the synopsis makes it out to be. There's no mention of the history of the holiday in the text itself. It just states that Valentine's Day is a holiday about love, and then goes on to show different ways that people show their love. Which is fine... but since this is a book in a series about various holidays, I was hoping it would teach a little more about the holiday itself.

The pictures are simply stock photographs of children, but they're well chosen and reflect a diverse array of people who celebrate Valentine's Day in some way.

This book is not what I thought I'd be getting based on the synopsis. If you're looking for a book that explains the origins of Valentine's Day, you'll have to look elsewhere. If you just want a book that highlights the different ways people show love, this might work for you.

Premise: 2/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 2/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 2/5

Enjoyment: 2/5

Overall: 2.17 out of 5