Review - Valentine's Day: Stories and Poems

Valentine's Day: Stories and Poems
edited by Caroline Feller Bauer
illustrated by Blanche L. Sims
Date: 1993
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Reading level: C
Book type: short stories & poems
Pages: 90
Format: e-book
Source: Open Library

A sweet and silly collection of stories and poems, including selections by Lloyd Alexander, Karla Kuskin, and Nikki Giovanni. The celebration continues with a recipe for Valentine sweets and ways to say "I love you" in twelve different languages. 30 illustrations.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

I'm not having much luck with Valentine's Day books. This is the second one in a row that I've read where the connection to Valentine's Day is tenuous, at best.

There are only three short stories here (and only one of them has a Valentine's Day theme). Aside from a couple of crafts/recipes, most of the rest of the book is taken up with poems. Few have an actual Valentine's Day premise. The word "Valentine" might be in the title, but that doesn't necessarily make it relevant. A lot of the poems are just about love in general (and that gets a bit icky in spots because it seems to sexualize children a bit too much). There are a few poems that don't seem to have anything to do with Valentine's Day or love at all: "Here It Is" is about a kid's favourite foods; "... And Then the Prince Knelt Down and Tried to Put the Glass Slipper on Cinderella's Foot" features a shallow girl who thinks the prince's nose is too big in the light of day; and "Giraffes" is just about... giraffes. Learning how to say "I love you" in twelve languages is kind of neat, but it can't save the whole book.

There's an appendix at the back with more suggested Valentine's Day reading, and these books look like they actually feature the holiday. There's too much here that's random and has nothing to do with Valentine's Day... and what is related is often kind of dated and cringe-worthy. (There are a couple of particularly mean-spirited poems, one of which leads me to think the speaker has an unhealthy sense of entitlement.)

This didn't impress me. I can kind of see why it's not longer in print. It doesn't keep the focus on Valentine's Day, and the selection of stories and poems is pretty weak. The black-and-white illustrations don't really do much other than break up the text; they're nothing special.

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

Enjoyment: 2/5

Overall: 2.29 out of 5