Happy Valentine’s Day!

This is more of a postcard than a post, but Happy Valentine’s Day, my dear readers! Here are three books for you– we’ve seen all of them before, but why not revisit them?

I recommended Love Is by Diane Adams, illustrated by Claire Keane, as a baby present before, but it would also be a beautiful Valentine’s Day gift.

Funny and sweet with a spice of zest in the form of messy bath times and wakeful nights, Love Is shows the universality of love: children will see themselves in both the duckling (the one being cared for) and the child (the caretaker), while parents will identify with the child as caretaker and maybe learn a thing or two about themselves in the process…

I always love Steve Light and Lucky Lazlo is no exception!

For young children and up to adults, this is a zany, lovelorn adventure at the theatre, and theatrical it is! Parents will appreciate the funny allusions to theatre, children will enjoy the slapstick elements, and who doesn’t enjoy a romantic comedy ending with a rose and a kiss? As for the detailed, crazy, pops-of-colour art… that’s Steve Light in a nutshell, and always a delight!

And finally, check out This Is Not a Valentine by Carter Higgins, illustrated by Lucy Ruth Cummins.

An unfluffy, not-too-sweet book of romance, this is about loving your own person on your terms in your own way. No glitter and sugary hearts here! The art is deliberately sketchy, but, in its very roughness, exquisitely beautiful (I see in my post I compared it to Christian Robinson; astute of me!). Likewise, the text rebels against jewellery and roses… but only if you want to. It’s a book that’s sweet in its own way, on its own terms, and teaches you to do the same.

So that’s a set of three good books for today– all sweet, but not saccharine. Tell me, what’s your favourite Valentine’s Day book?