Have you ever felt left out on Valentine’s Day? Well, the main character in Will You Be My Valenswine? undergoes rejection, and woe in search for that special person to share Valentine’s Day.

“On Valentine’s Day, a little piggy
began to mope and whine.
For that pouting pig, named Polly
didn’t have a valenswine.”

Polly searches the barnyard, the pasture, and even the forest, but all the animals had sweethearts. Feeling lonely and sad she moped around the pigpen where her mother assures her that she is loved. At one point Polly’s so desperate, she wanders over to the food trough and ask it to be her sweetheart. In the end the little piglet realizes that her mother loves her very much, making her the perfect valenswine.

Poor Polly feels rejected, but her schoolmates weren’t snubbing her, she asked inanimate objects such as a rose bush, and her slop to be her valentine. Kids understand this, and they know it’s silly to pose such a question to a rose, or to pig’s slop. I had the opportunity to read this book to my son’s Kindergarten class yesterday, and they roared every time I read the word “valenswine.” It is funny. Say it aloud, and you’ll see what I mean.

Kristina Stephenson, the illustrator, paints in watercolor. Her subjects are soft and simply rendered with little details, but enough to get her point across. The animals are expressive and sweet, and even though I appreciate more fine points than less, her work is passable. The pages are colorful with lots of neutrals, greens, pinks, and reds; however, one might mistake it for spring. Our temperatures in Phoenix are in the 70’s right now so it’s not a problem for us; although, other’s might prefer more wintry scenes for a Valentine’s story. I prefer children’s book with lots of details, and or hidden surprises as my kid eats it up. He’ll spend hours studying the images, whereas I marvel at the talent, because I know how difficult watercolor is to master.

I’m partial to this story because it’s about a parent’s love for their child, and young children relate to that. Additionally, the author Teresa Bateman’s, A Plump and Perky Turkey, entertained us through the Thanksgiving holiday, so it shouldn’t be surprising that I adore her writing is this work as well. The text is a blast to read aloud. Bateman works the meter like a pro, and I purposely read the story fast for emphasis. The 24-paged book only takes about 3-minutes to read aloud, thus I recommend it to the 3 to 7 crowd. Will You Be My Valenswine? is certainly on my list to check out again for next Valentine’s Day. Now, if the publishers were smart, they’d print it in paperback. That way I’d be more likely to purchase it. By the way, “Will you be my valenswine?”

ISBN: 0-8075-9195-5
Albert Whitman & Company, 2006




Additional Valentine Features:
Franklin’s Valentines
The Ballad of Valentine
Little Mouse’s Big Valentine






Recommended: Yes