The House of Love

K-Gr 3–It’s February 14th, Mia Valentina’s favorite day. She and her mama spend it getting ready for a Valentine’s Day dinner with their large family. Mia wants everything to be just right. As she lovingly works to bring beauty to one specific room, Mia rips down the faded brown wallpaper to discover that “A pretty wallpaper with hundreds of roses blooming inside a white trellis had been hidden under that dull brown wallpaper all along. It’s an inside garden!” The joyous holiday spirit of Mia Valentina and her mother is present on each page as they decorate the house. “Top to bottom they went, up the stairs, through the rooms, and down the banister. Every room was bedazzled! Every corner had a Cupid! Every door, a garland.” Careful attention to the details and rituals of holiday decorating is captured in vintage red and pink hues traditionally associated with Valentine’s Day. The palette lacks a brilliance often seen in contemporary picture books, but the illustrations are textured and thoughtfully float the story along.